This recipe template for easy homemade vegan burgers basically consists of an onion-garlic sauté; beans, lentils, or plant-based ground; oatmeal and breadcrumbs; and a “flavor bomb”of choice. Simple and economical, you’ll love every bite!
The basic formula for these hearty burgers is inspired by my friend and colleague Laura Theodore, “The Jazzy Vegetarian” (that’s her brand, though she’s a longtime vegan).
Laura’s famous “Hungry Guy” black bean burgers, using only 5 ingredients, proved to me that homemade vegan burgers don’t need a million ingredients and lots of steps to be really good.
Any one of the following can be used for the protein portion of the burgers. Mix and match with the “flavor bomb” (salsa, barbecue sauce, marinara sauce, or Indian simmer sauce) for a different result each time you make this:
- 1 1/2 cups cooked beans or one 15-ounce can (drained and rinsed) — red, pinto, and black beans all work well
- 1 1 /2 cups cooked lentils or one 15-ounce lentils (drained and rinsed)
- 1 1/2 cups packaged plant-based ground
- 1 1/2 cups finely crumbled tempeh
- 3/4 cup well-cooked quinoa + 3/4 cup cooked or canned (drained and rinsed) beans
Red Lentil & Quinoa Burgers uses a similar approach
What’s the advantage of making burgers at home, with all the great plant-based burgers, available? For one, it’s more economical, and you wind up with more burgers for a larger family or hungry eaters who might like a second helping.
Batch cooking and freezing: These burgers also a great way to do batch cooking, since they freeze quite well.
Roast some vegetables at the same time: While your homemade vegan burgers are baking, roast some vegetables or make oven fries. The oven temperature is the same.
Plan ahead for homemade pickles: Pickles go so well with burgers! Try these easy refrigerator pickles. They need 24 hours to develop flavor.
Tasty Toppings for Plant-Based Burgers
Homemade burgers benefit from the same kind of creative embellishments:
For your creative homemade vegan burgers, try some of the combinations listed here, and vary the type of bread you use — Kaiser rolls and English muffins work well as burger buns, and you can also stuff burgers into pita bread. Add vegan mayo and sriracha to your list of standard condiments along with mustard and ketchup.
- Plant-based bacon (crisp-cooked), cheese, tomato, wilted spinach
- Caramelized onions and peppers; BBQ sauce, thinly sliced pickles
- Any kind of simple slaw, vegan cheese slices, bread-and-butter pickle slices
- Vegan mayo + sriracha, sliced tomatoes, sliced red onion, green sprouts
- Hummus, sauerkraut, sliced avocado
- Guacamole, arugula or shredded lettuce, pico de gallo or salsa
- Wilted mushrooms, vegan cheese slices, sliced tomatoes, tahini dressing
- Pesto, roasted red peppers, vegan mozzarella slices
This recipe makes 6 large burgers, or 8 to 9 smaller ones.
The recipe formula in this post is a just a bit more involved than Laura Theodore’s 5-ingredient “Hungry Guy” Vegan Black Bean Burgers, but it’s still quite easy.
Easy Homemade Vegan Burgers: A Simple Recipe Template
A template for a variety of easy homemade vegan burgers, this yields 6 large or 8 to 9 smaller burgers. Mix and match — use a different protein/"flavor bomb" combo each time you make this recipe
Ingredients
Onion and garlic sauté
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
Bean or ground base
- 1 1/2 cups plant protein (see options in Notes)
- 3/4 cup oatmeal (quick-cooking rolled oats)
- 3/4 cup fine breadcrumbs
“Flavor bomb”
- 1 cup salsa, barbecue sauce, marinara sauce, or Indian simmer sauce
- 1 tablespoon barbecue seasoning (see Note)
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º F. Line a roasting pan or baking sheet with parchment.
- Heat the oil in a small skillet. Add the onion and sauté over medium until translucent. Add the garlic and continue to sauté until the onion is golden, about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Combine onion mixture with the the remaining ingredients in a food processor and pulse on and off until evenly and finely chopped. Stop the machine to stir once or twice, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Use a 1/3 measuring cup for smaller burgers, 1/2 cup for larger burgers. Spray the inside of the cup with cooking oil spray or spread a little oil in the cup with paper towel. Grab some of the bean mixture in the cup, leveling it off but not packing it in too tightly. Invert the cup onto the parchment with a sharp tap to release the mixture. Repeat until all of the bean mixture is used up.
- Spray the bottom of the cup to flatten each burger to about a 1/2-inch thickness. Wipe the bottom of the cup and respray from time to time.
- Bake for 15 minutes, or until the bottom is golden, then carefully flip and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Watch carefully to avoid over-baking, or the burgers might become dry. Remove from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes or so before serving.
Notes
Use any one of the following:
- 1 1/2 cups cooked beans or one 15-ounce can (drained and rinsed) — red, pinto, and black beans all work well
- 1 1 /2 cups cooked lentils or one 15-ounce lentils (drained and rinsed)
- 1 1/2 cups packaged plant-based ground
- 1 1/2 cups finely crumbled tempeh
- 3/4 cup well-cooked quinoa + 3/4 cup cooked or canned (drained and rinsed) beans
Do you want more homemade vegan burgers?
Here are more delicious vegan sandwiches & wraps.
Ruchama
Thanks for this. It will be very useful. I’m wondering whether these burgers could be cooked using my air fryer. If so, at what temperature and for how long? Is there a formula for translating oven cooking to air fryer cooking? We have a huge oven and we prefer to use the air fryer when it’s just the two of us and no bread to bake.
Nava Atlas
Ruchama, I don’t own an air fryer, so I’m afraid I can’t answer any of these questions. Perhaps the documentation that comes with the machine would have an answer. My guess is that it would take less time than the equivalent in a meat burger, since there’s nothing raw that needs to be cooked through …