This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This vegan black bean burger recipe is gluten free and easy to make! Made from cooked sweet potatoes, black beans, quinoa, flax seeds and flavorful tex-mex seasonings.
I love a good veggie burger, especially when it’s made with some of my favorite ingredients like sweet potatoes, black beans and quinoa!
These vegan black bean burgers are easy to make, super satisfying and require no eggs. To help bind all the ingredients together, all you need are a few tablespoons of ground flax seed and that’s it!
The burgers are seasoned with a flavorful mixture of ground cumin, onion powder, chili powder, garlic and oregano to help balance out the sweetness of the sweet potatoes. The result is a subtly sweet and savory black bean burger that will satisfy even the biggest meat lovers.
To make it even better, I served it up with a huge shmear of this easy chipotle sauce and it can’t get any better than that!
How to make vegan black bean burgers
In a small bowl, combine ground flax seed, cumin, salt, onion powder, chili powder, garlic powder, dried oregano and black pepper. (photo 1)
In a large mixing bowl, add 2 cooked sweet potatoes and 1 15-ounce can of drained and rinsed black beans. (photos 2-3)
Using a fork or potato masher, mash the sweet potatoes and black beans until the consistency is only slightly chunky. Some beans will be completely mashed and some will not. (photos 4-5)
Add 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa, the small bowl of seasonings and mix together until fully combined. (photo 6-8)
Form the mixture into 8 burger patties using your hands and place on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.
Bake in a 400°F oven for 20 minutes, carefully flip the patties over and bake for 20 more minutes.
And voila! Time to eat.
Tips for making the best vegan black bean burgers
- Make sure to spray the parchment paper with nonstick cooking spray or olive oil. I made a batch where I forgot to spray it, and the patties stuck to the paper.
- Drain as much moisture as possible from the canned black beans. The more moisture in your mixture, the stickier it will be which will make it difficult to form it into burger patties.
- If the burger mixture is very sticky when forming it into patties, add in 1 or 2 more teaspoons of ground flax seed to help absorb some of that moisture.
Ways to serve these black bean burgers
My favorite way of serving these black bean burgers is in between a brioche bun with your typical lettuce/tomato/onion toppings as well as a big shmear of this easy chipotle sauce! It’s a little spicy, super creamy and it makes every burger better.
You could also go the bunless route and serve it on some lettuce or collard greens and top it with some pickled onions for some tangy crunch.
More Vegan Recipes
Vegan Black Bean Burgers
Ingredients
- nonstick cooking spray or olive oil
- 2 medium sweet potatoes, halved lengthwise
- 1/2 cup dry quinoa (about 1 1/2 cups cooked)
- 3 tablespoons ground flax seed
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
For serving (optional)
Instructions
- Bake the sweet potatoes: Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Place halved sweet potatoes cut side down and poke each half with a fork a few times.Bake for 30-35 minutes until sweet potatoes are tender and cooked through. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. While sweet potatoes are baking, make the quinoa.
- Cook the quinoa: Place quinoa in a fine-mesh sieve and rinse under cold running water for about 1 minute. Drain and transfer to a medium pot. Add in 1 cup of water and bring to a boil over high heat.Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until quinoa is tender and cooked through. Let stand for 5 minutes, covered. Remove the lid and fluff with a fork.
- Make the seasoning: In a small bowl, add the ground flax seed, ground cumin, coarse kosher salt, onion powder, chili powder, garlic powder, dried oregano and ground black pepper. Mix together and set aside.
- Mash it up: In a large bowl, add the black beans and cooked sweet potatoes. Mash until the consistency is only slightly chunky. Some beans will be completely mashed and others will not. This will help create a nice texture.
- Mix it all together: Add the cooked quinoa and combined spices. Mix it all together until all the ingredients are evenly distributed. hands and form into 8 burger patties, about 1/3 cup of mixture each.
- Make the patties: Using your hands, form the mixture into 8 burger patties, about a heaping 1/3 cup of mixture per patty.
- Cook the burgers: Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray or olive oil. Place burger patties baking sheet and bake in 400°F oven for 20 minutes. Carefully flip over the patties and bake for another 20 minutes. Remove from oven and serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was originally published in March 2017. It was republished with updated photos and helpful tips and tricks in June 2019.
This is such a delicious recipe! Thanks Isabel. I doubled the spices in mine and it was every bit as good as some of my favorite veggie burgers at restaurants.
This sweet potato, black bean burger looks very delicious. I would definitely try this recipe out in the weekend.
It is 1 1/2 cups of cooked quinoa and not uncooked right? How much is that uncooked?
It’s about 1/2 cup uncooked.
These look so yummy! Have you tried grilling or frying these? Would they store well in the freezer? I’m the only vegetarian in my household, so this recipe would have to be storage-friendly.
Thanks, Cynthia! I haven’t tried grilling them, but I bet frying them would be delicious! They store very well. Just let them cool and wrap them in plastic wrap, then put the wrapped burgers in a freezer-safe ziplock bag.
I’m gonna try these today. i want to make them 100% vegan so I’ll use vegannaise instead of mayo. I need a new good black bean burger recipe, hopefully this will make the cut!
Hi Shay, I hope you like it! I think vegannaise is a great substitution 🙂
I’m going to try these! Do you know how well the burgers keep? Can they be re-heated or prepared in advance? Thanks!
I would keep them up to a week in the fridge or a few months in the freezer. They can definitely be reheated! I suggest the oven for the best results.
In the instructions on number 6, how many degrees do I set the oven to? 400? Looks delicious!!
Hi there! Yes, 400 degrees. I’ve updated the instructions so they’re a bit clearer. Thanks for asking!
Made this today and it was sooo good! I added habanero pepper seasoning. Then had it again for dinner but this time I had just the patty with cauliflower hummus on top to change it up. Thank you!
I’m so happy you liked it! And adding hummus on top is such a good way to eat it! Great idea.
This sounds divine! I’ve been looking for a good veggie burger to try.
Thanks, Carmen! I hope you enjoy it 🙂
That mayo is making my mouth water! I bet it makes each bite 10 times better, although that burger looks pretty damn good on its own. 🙂
It seriously does! It makes such a difference – I highly recommend making it for the burger. I mean, you can’t go wrong with chili and lime 🙂