Sweet Potato Black Bean Burger

I made these by processing everything in the food processor except the rice. After adding the rice, it was a sticky, gooey mess, and I was a bit worried that it wouldn’t turn out. However, after baking them as directed for 40 minutes, they came out as expected. What a pleasant surprise and an enjoyable dinner. The taste was very good. Cleanup wasn’t so fun though. This recipe made 10 burgers for me.

These come together so quickly and are very yummy! I was nervous the patty size was going to be too small but it was really delightful. I served mine on a bed of arugula with lemon/apple cider vinegar and topped with sea salt, avocado and salsa. Upon completing my meal I promptly sent the recipe to two friends and told them “YOU MUST MAKE THESE!!”

Recipe subs:
Reduced green onion to 1/4 cup as that was all I had on hand and I used 1/2 tbsp of coconut sugar

YUM.

While these turned out absolutely delicious, I found this recipe incredibly difficult to follow along with and to achieve. I default to your website for recipes, even since you stopped being exclusively vegan, but this experience was definitely offputting. I’ve never had to watch your instructional videos and pictures so much – usually, I can just follow along with the written instructions easily and get stellar results.

Even while making it, none of it seemed to go as you showed in the video – or DIDN’T show – black beans didn’t mash, sweet potatoes in skin didn’t mash (was I supposed to peel them? It certainly doesn’t say to do that, and the video doesn’t show that step). Ended up having to throw it all in the blender. And it was completely off consistency-wise by following the instructions – far too dry to start, and once it was wet enough, it was not moldable, and certainly didn’t work with the plastic wrap in the measuring cup. I ended up just scooping normally and then flattening with the plastic wrap after, and praying that it would hold.

Which, it did. Absolutely delicious, once all was said and done.

Such an easy recipe, I mixed everything in a food processor and it came out supereasy to bake, nothing chunky. Loved the texture and recipe. Thank you! Enjoyed by all.

I made these burgers tonight. They are absolutely delicious.I will definitely make them again. The entire family enjoyed them, Thank you!

I made these burgers tonight. They are absolutely delicious.I will definitely make them again. The entire family enjoyed them. Thank you!

My favourite veggie burger recipe! So yummy!

Very nice! I served it with avocado and jalapenos and the flavours meshed really well together. Thank you! Next, I will try the recipe from your book for the burger with cocoa powder!

This was delightful. I’ve never made veggie burgers, and I made a few substitutions, but it went fine:
Nutmeal: half pecan, half almond
Beans: fished bits of beans out of baked beans I made recently, did not rinse. (Therefore omitted salt, pepper, and brown sugar.)
Onion: instead, minced a huge clove of garlic
Chipotle powder: quadrupled (1/2 tsp for 6 burgers)
I found myself adding more rice as I went along and got a feel for the best consistency. I baked the full 45 min because I like them crispy.
BTW, I think the Black Bean Burger was what I got on my last trip to Beer Kitchen in KC. :)

This is my first time making a veggie burger. It was absolutely delicious! I used red quinoa instead of rice and used a little pesto aioli on top! This recipe is a winner!

Never tried veggie burgers before, but I had some leftover black beans I didn’t know what to do with so I decided to make veggie burgers. I modified the recipe a lot to fit what I had in the pantry but it turned out surprisingly delicious! I only made one patty so I kinda just guessed the ratios. I substituted cauliflower rice for the regular rice, and used chopped purple onion instead of green. I used a little bit of almond flour to bind, but it didn’t really need very much because it was quite moldable. Added garlic powder and turmeric as well. I’d totally make these again!

This burger is amazing and so easy. Also loved by my carnivorous boyfriend. I used a pressure cooker to cook the potatoes and rice, and pan fried the burgers (we were hungry). Served on a brioche bun with avo and veggies!

Yummy! This is incredible! The brown rice and nut meal adds wonderful texture to the burger. I honestly don’t miss the meat! My new favorite burger!

I made this recipe last night and the burgers were a hit! To speed up the process, I cooked the sweet potato in a pressure cooker and I pan fried the burgers instead of baking. Turned out great. Next time I will try with quinoa instead of rice

Thank you, Thank you. So easy. I batched these last week, first time making, par cooked, and froze, with parchment paper between each, and into a reused bread bag. I LOVE these. A couple of days ago, two friends, individually, dropped by, tired and hungry, little time to make dinner or go purchase. Both are Carnies. They LOVED them and begging for more to take home and keep in freezer. One friend has had all of my plant “burgers”. These are her favorite. I’m batching them today and will always keep some in my freezer…. BTW….. they are my favorite, too!!!!!

The best held together veg burger ever!!! And talk about delicious. Will definitely be making again. Would just make sure you have time for the cooking for the sweet potatoes :) yum yum yum

These turned out beautifully! I used black rice (sometimes referred to as forbidden rice) and not only did it enhance the burger appearance but added additional texture. Unfortunately didn’t have nut meal but didn’t feel like it detracted from texture or flavor. They are savory and delicious. Enjoyed both as a stand alone and on a bun. Made six generous burgers. A definite repeat for our family.

I just made these tonight and they were delicious. Interestingly, I was planning on adding bread crumbs since I didn’t have any pecan meal, but in the end I didn’t add anything more than black beans, onions, brown rice and sweet potatoes along with the spices. They stuck together beautifully and my husband loved them too! I used more sweet potato than this recipe called for so maybe that’s why they stuck together beautifully. Thanks for sharing your great recipe!

Seriously delicious. Happen to have leftover brown rice and baked sweet potatoes in the refrigerator so I threw this together very quickly. I wanted full size burgers so I measured out 4 ounce patties and baked them 30 minutes on Each side. Perfectly firm on the outside and moist on the inside. I’ll definitely throw this recipe into our rotation. Excellent served with red onion and sprouts.

I made this today and it was so delicious I could have eaten half of the mixture right out of the bowl! I used quinoa and it was fine. Will definitely make again.

I used chickpeas instead of black beans and almond meal instead of walnuts and it turned out amazing! I will be making these again for sure!

This is hands-down the best homemade veg burger. I’ve tried a lot of other recipes and this turned out to be the perfect one. Thank you

These are amazing…packed with tons of flavour and very easy to make. I didn’t have any green onions on hand, so threw in some onion powder, and instead of chipotle seasoning, I used a spoonful of sauce from my chipotle peppers that were marinating in adobo, which added a really strong smoky kick. Thanks for the recipe, Dana! You sure know your way around making simple food intrinsically delicious!

So so so so so good! I was eating the mixture before I even began to cook the burger!!! Perfectly spiced!! Such a great replacement to meat! I am recently changed over to a plant based diet, so I so thankful to find this!
Thank you for sharing such an amazing recipe!!!

I nearly didn’t get to make these burgers ’cause the mash was already soo delish :)
Thanks for another great recipe. Easy to make and full of flavour!

This was a HUGE hit with my family! So tasty & perfectly spiced. I was a little intimidated by the recipe at first, but it was actually much easier than I thought. Pre-cooked quinoa from the grocery deli worked wonderfully for us too!

Yummy! I was looking for some way to use leftover sweet potatoes and found this. I ground up pecans in my food processor and used brown rice (and no chipotle powder). Mine didn’t turn out quite as pretty as yours, but so delicious! Thanks for the recipe!

I made these for my meal prep this week and they are so good! We didn’t have walnut/pecan meal, so we subbed panko bread crumbs and they turned out perfect. I paired them with some air fried broccolini! It was such a great balanced lunch!

This was a good burger, a bit hot for my buds however. I would maybe reduce the chipotle powder to 1/4 tsp. My family loved them!

There is some magic in this recipe. I saw the pic on Instagram and thought-ok it’s a basic and easy burger, good enough for dinner. I doubled and followed the instructions as written. I thought I would freeze a few. Nope. My family devoured them. I did not try with BBQ sauce but will next time.

I made this and it was really good! Even my non vegetarian friends were impressed.

Just felt the need to say thank you! I make this recipe all the time, its my go-to veggie burger, never disappoints and is something I’m excited to share with friends and family vegetarian and omni alike

I made a batch for the second time and they came out even better than before for some reason. I think it was because of the texture this tune-I left slightly more whole/partially crushed black beans in the mixture and added some pumpkin and sunflower seeds in. Whacked the over to full for the last 5 mins of cooking which gave them a really nice crunch without reducing the softness inside.

I loved this recipe! I mixed rice and quinoa, and changed the seasoning to 1 Tblsp of a garlic/herb mix I have and 1/2 Tblsp of Montreal Seasoning. Also, I added 1 vegan ‘egg’ substitute. Loved it!!! Crispy on the outside, baked easily. Thank you!!

We had a bounty crop of organic sweet potatoes and I needed a recipe to use some of them up! WOW This far surpassed my usual black bean burger recipe. I made regular size burgers and used Quinoa. They were perfect. I believe I baked them a little longer than recipe suggested because they were larger. I kept checking on them. YUM!!! I will be making more and freezing them.

Wow! What an explosion of texture and flavour! Just finished making a batch of these and they were incredible. Having recently decided to give a plant based a diet a crack I was on the hunt for some inspiring dishes and these burgers jumped out at me and I wasn’t disappointed at all. I still have 7 left in the freezer! Healthy but also a real comfort food. Om nom nom…

I made these today and they were amazing! Really enjoyed them and so easy and quick to make plus super healthy! Will be making again and again. Thank you for this fab recipe.

Amazingly DELICIOUS!!!!! I always thought making black bean burgers would be difficult, this was so easy and the flavor is better than any meat burger. I just watched Forks over Knives on Netflix. If you don’t eat plant based or limit meat and dairy after watching that…..WOW!!!! I love your site.

It was delicious! I didn’t have enough walnuts so I mixed the walnuts with some flax seed meal and it turned out well. I’ll be making this again for sure.

Five stars !

This are delicious! I used 1.5 cups of mashed purple sweet potato and .5 cup of canned pumpkin— turned out great!

Delicious and simple to make! Added a bit of extra spice. I was skeptical that it really would make 12 servings but it did. So yummy, can’t wait to eat the leftovers!

I love this burger. The first time I made the recipe I used rice and I also added sauteed onion and mushrooms. The second time I used quinoa with equal success. I make a large quantity and freeze for an easy and nutritious weekday meal for my family. Just heat and serve :)

Hello Dana.
I am planning weekend dinner with friends and I want to make everything at home. Do you have a nice recipe for the burger buns?
Thanks for your help.
Christina from Switzerland

Made these this morning! Used fax seed meal instead of walnut. They are yummy! Thanks for the recipe!

Excellent! We have made these veggie burgers numerous times… very healthy, pleasing and filling as well. Next step – convert the 8 year old!

I just made these burgers and they came out great. They held together well and had good texture. I put some hummus on them and served them with avocado and brown rice.
I just recommended this recipe to two friends, thanks.

I’ve made this recipe over a dozen times and it never fails me. Sometimes I eat it as a true burger and sometimes I just chop up a patty and have it in a salad. Love it so much!

Thank you so much for this recipe! I needed something vegan to bring to a grill and came upon this page. I substituted kidney beans for black beans, since that’s what I had on hand, and almond meal for walnut flour. Topped them with some home-made guacamole, and voilà: they turned out absolutely delicious and were super well-received by everyone who tried them. I will definitely be making these again.

oh my God these are hands-down the best burgers I have ever eaten. I made a double batch for my meal prep for the month, I ended up using 4 cups of rice and about 2 cups of wheat germ instead of pecan meal. I did them in half cup servings about 1.5 cm thick and baked them for 40 mins, they were so good! I’m shocked. I think I honestly prefer them to any beef burger I’ve ever had.

Great as leftovers!
I’ll be honest, the night I made and served these, the response was a little “meh.” Which was disappointing because they’re a decent amount of effort for a mid-week, post-work meal where toddlers are involved. But we had them again as leftovers a night or two later and they were AWESOME. All the flavors totally came together as well as the texture. Next time I make these, I will prepare and bake on the weekend, then warm up in a frying pan the night I serve them. We used oat flour instead of nut (allergies), and white rice instead of brown (preference), but otherwise stuck to the recipe. Very solid recipe, will definitely make again!

I loved these. I made a couple of changes but only because I was using what was in the pantry. I didn’t have walnut or pecan meal so I used ground LSA (Linseed, Sunflowers and Almonds). No green onions so used a Spanish (red) onion, added 1/4 diced red capsicum – ‘pepper’ to you :) And only added cumin, salt and pepper. We didn’t do the burger thing we had them with steamed broccoli and carrots, avocado and vegan aioli. My 11 year old LOVED them too. I call that a Win!

This was a success! I found I needed to bake them longer and hotter than the recipe specified because when I tried to flip them at the halfway point, they were breaking up. But I ended up with a platter of tasty burger patties. We ate them in lettuce wraps with burger sauce and fruit salsa. I will definitely make them again.

Best veggie burger I’ve personally made, maybe even ever had. The main thing that separate this from most veggie burgers is that it’s not too dense like when you only use beans, the sweet potatoes help keep the burgers moist and the seasoning is delicious!

Sooooooo good! Can’t tell you how many veggie burger recipes I’ve checked out. Dozens. This is my favorite so far. Thank you!

So…I made this…like just now and it’s amazeballs, but I added pumpkin pie spice and THAT is what I believe sent it over the moon. Sooooo good.

I made this today, followed the recipe exactly. WONDERFUL!!! I may try using quinoa instead of rice next time to see how that is but there is no need to modify this recipe at all. I am not vegan or anything like that but I do cook for my elderly mother who has various food issues, like eating very little fat and hardly any beef. Chicken and fish can get a bit monotonous. She is going to love these. Lots of flavor but no spices that will disagree with her stomach. I plan to make another batch to freeze. This recipe is a very welcome addition to my small collection of true winners.

These are terrible! Not at all what I expected they would taste like. Adding brown sugar and much more salt, and extra of all the spices got these burgers to where I wanted them to be. Still the texture is off so I’ll have to play around with the recipe much more to like them. In my opinion, not worth the effort, I’ll just find a new recipe.

I have made this burger twice now – it is delicious and easy to make. Thank you for the recipe.

I have been making recipes from this site for a few years, and this recipe is definitely one of my favorites. It is SO GOOD!!! Made it for my family tonight and paired it with some curried ketchup. Everyone loved it – highly recommend!!

Best veggie burger recipe I have come across.
Simply the most nutritious, wholesome and flavor packed veggie burger you can think of. I’ve made a few times now, the only ingredient I’ve added is a tbsp of BBQ sauce.

I made these veggie burgers tonight with a couple of additional/substitutions:

-increased walnut meal to ~2/3 cup
-added 1/2 cub sauteed mirepoix (mix of diced onion/carrot/celery)
-pulsed 1/2 black beans and mirepoix in food processor
-subbed quinoa for grain

The flavor is amazing! My only frustration was that I followed the 1/4 cup portion in oiled sheet pan at 350 bc my oven… And the burgers stuck badly. Next time I will try to place on parchment paper and toward center of oven, not lower rack. What is the desirable thickness??

I rescued them by crumbling as a taco filling!!

We went over to a friends house where they made these and they are delicious! It reminded me I need to make them too, so what am I doing now?! Planning to have these for dinner – thanks!

Delicious!! Made this tonight and used ground flax seeds in place of almond meal (nut allergy) and it worked a treat :-) Served the burgers with a rocket, avocado and beetroot salad instead of bread….

These are excellent! Sweet and spicy! I love that they crisped around the edges. They held together and weren’t mushy. Took some time but easy to make.

I made this recipe for dinner tonight. It tasted very good but I did make a few changes. I am always careful when adding cumin because it can be so overwhelming. This recipe calls for 1 1/2 tsp of cumin. I think this is way too much so I added 1/2 tsp and that was plenty. They were moldable but not enough to flip after 20 minutes so next time I will add more than 1 cup of brown rice, maybe 1 1/2 to 2 cups plus I will add the full can of black beans instead of just 1 cup. I did end up cooking them longer so they would brown a bit and have a little crust on top. Also I made them about 1/2 cup scoops rather than 1/4. I used almond meal and will most likely use a little extra next time. I didn’t use brown sugar but did use about 3 tsp of coconut sugar which I will eliminate next time because the sweet potatoes make it sweet enough. Thanks for the recipe.