These black bean burgers are full of flavor and can be made ahead to enjoy at your next cookout. We recommend doubling the recipe so you can freeze some extra black bean burgers for an easy meal later.
Drain and rinse the black beans, and then spread them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper as evenly as possible. Try to get as much moisture out of the beans as you can by lightly patting them with a folded paper towel. The oats in the mixture will absorb some of the moisture, but removing excess moisture will help the mixture be easier to handle to form into patties. Then place the beans in a 325° F preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes to slightly dry out the beans.
While the black beans are baking, sauté the diced onions and red bell peppers with the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat for 4-5 minutes. Add in the minced garlic cloves and sauté for an additional 1-2 minutes.
Remove the black beans from the oven and let them cool slightly. In the meantime, combine the sautéed veggies in a food processor with the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, oats, egg, Worcestershire sauce and barbecue sauce until the mixture is mostly smooth, but slightly chunky. Seasonings and spices can be adjusted to personal preference. Then add the beans to the food processor (or put the mixture and beans in a large bowl and mash with a fork) and pulse the mixture. Mash the beans well, but not completely. It’s OK to leave a few chunks and whole beans.
Form the mixture into patties using about 1/3 cup of the mixture for each patty. You can make the patties larger or smaller, but remember that the bean mixture will not shrink up once cooked, so whatever size you make the patty is the size it will remain on your completed burger. If your black bean mixture falls apart when you are making patties, either chill it in the refrigerator or mash the beans up in the mixture a little more to hold it together better. For the best burger patties, the mixture should be mostly smooth with some slight chunkiness.
At this point, you can choose how to cook the patties or freeze them for later. It’s best to only flip the patties once when cooking, no matter the cooking method. The less they are handled when cooking, the better they will hold together.
- To Grill: Place patties on greased aluminum foil or a well-oiled grill for about 6-8 minutes on each side. You will want to make sure the surface is well-oiled to prevent sticking. If the burgers don’t seem solid enough to grill, choose a different cooking method or put in refrigerator for about 20 minutes to firm up a little.
- To Cook: Pan-fry over the stove in a lightly greased skillet or on an electric griddle over medium heat for about 4-5 minutes on each side.
- To Bake: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake at 375° F for about 20 minutes, turning the patties over half-way through.
- To Freeze: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay the patties on the baking sheet. Put the baking sheet in the freezer for 30 minutes to an hour to freeze the patties. Once the patties are solid, cut the parchment paper into squares to use to separate the patties when stacking them. Store the stacks of frozen patties in ziplock freezer bags or airtight containers in the freezer. The patties freeze well for up to 3 months. When you are ready to use, take out as many patties as you need and follow one of the cooking methods above. You can cook the patties from frozen, but you may need to add a minute or two to your cooking times.
Once cooked, serve on Healthy Life Buns with your favorite toppings. The great thing is that these burger are so versatile that you can make them your own! Enjoy them with classic burger toppings or experiment with a Mexican or Southwestern style flair.
Ingredients:
This recipe makes 4 black bean burger patties.
- 1 (15oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 cup quick or old fashioned rolled oats
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp barbeque sauce
- 4 Healthy Life Wheat Burger Buns
- Desired burger toppings
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F, and line a baking sheet with edges with parchment paper.
- Spread drained, rinsed black beans on the baking sheet as evenly as possible. Then take a folded paper towel and gently pat excess moisture off the beans.
- Place the beans in the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes to slightly dry out the beans.
- In the meantime, sauté the diced onions and red bell peppers in the olive oil over medium heat for 4-5 minutes. Add minced garlic, and sauté for an additional 1-2 minutes.
- While the black beans cool slightly, combine the sautéed veggies in a food processor with the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, oats, egg, Worcestershire sauce and barbeque sauce until the mixture is mostly smooth, but slightly chunky.
- Add the beans to the food processor (or put the beans in a large bowl and mash with a fork) and pulse the mixture. Mash the beans well, but not completely. It’s OK to leave a few chunks and whole beans.
- Form the mixture into patties using about 1/3 cup of the mixture for each patty. You can make your patties smaller or larger, but remember that the bean mixture will not shrink up once cooked, so whatever size you make the patty is the size it will remain once you cook the burger.
- Once you have the patties ready, you can choose how to cook them or freeze some for later
- To Grill: Place patties on greased aluminum foil or a well-oiled grill for about 6-8 minutes on each side. Note: it is best to only flip the burgers once, to prevent breakage. If the burgers do not seem solid enough to grill, choose a different cooking method or put them in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes to firm up a little.
- To Cook: Pan-fry over the stove in a lightly greased skillet or on an electric griddle over medium heat for about 4-5 minutes on each side.
- To Bake: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake at 375 degrees F for about 20 minutes, turning the patties over about half way through.
- To Freeze: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay the patties on the baking sheet. Put the baking sheet in the freezer for 30 minutes to an hour to freeze the patties. Once the patties are solid, cut the parchment paper into squares to use to separate the patties when stacking them. Store the stacks of frozen patties in Ziplock freezer bags or airtight containers in the freezer. The patties freeze well for up to three months. When you are ready to use, take out as many patties as you need and follow one of the cooking methods above. You can cook the patties frozen but you may need to add a minute or two to your cooking times.
- Once cooked, serve on Health Life Buns with your favorite toppings.
Tips for Making Black Bean Burgers
- Make these burgers your own! The great thing is that these burgers are so versatile that you can enjoy them with classis burger toppings or experiment with Mexican or Southwestern style flair.
- If you choose to grill your black bean burgers, make sure your grill is well-greased to prevent sticking.
- If your black bean mixture falls apart when you are making patties, either chill it in the refrigerator or mash the beans up in the mixture a little more to hold it together better. For the best burger patties, the mixture should be mostly smooth with some slight chunkiness.
- It is best to only flip the patties once when cooking, no matter what cooking method. The less they are handled when cooking, the better they will hold together.
- Try to get as much moisture out of the ingredients as you can by patting the beans dry and possibly even the sautéed vegetables. The oats in the mixture will absorb some of the moisture but removing excess moisture will help the mixture be easier to handle to form in to patties.
- Seasonings and spices can be adjusted to personal preference.
- Double the recipe and freeze extra black bean burgers for an easy meal later.