Back in the day (after college to be exact) I started eating a vegan diet…and loved it! Coincidently, this was also the time that I taught myself how to cook (lots of Food Network shows). To be clear, cooking at that time meant following the directions of recipes without burning down the whole house! Through trial and error, I was able to start putting together some tasty vegan dishes that even the biggest meat eater would admit to enjoying.
A key staple for the vegan diet is having a veggie burger that does not contain eggs as a binder. It is quite a challenge since most restaurants and food manufacturers use the egg to help keep the burger patty together. Then, I stumbled upon this recipe…the vegan chickpea burger. And guess what…it actually holds up!
I think the key to this vegan glue is in the canned beans. That nasty looking liquid that submerges the canned beans…that is called aquafaba! This liquid contains a lot of the starchy content from the cooked beans and when used in recipes will almost take the place of an egg or egg white. Super cool!
So, when you make this recipe, make sure to add just a hint of the aquafaba to the veggie burger mixture so that it holds on tight. The other trick for making a vegan veggie burger patty not crumble is to cool the batter. Once you mix together all of the ingredients, throw the batter into a container in the refrigerator for at least 30-minutes, but ideally overnight.
Without further ado, here’s the recipe!
- 1, 15 ounce can of chickpeas, drained, save 2 teaspoons of canning liquid
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
- 1/2 cup chopped sweet onion
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro (or parsley if you're a hater!)
- 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- mild oil for cooking
- In a food processor, add the beans, canning liquid, carrots, onions, cilantro, garlic, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. Blend ingredients until well combined, forming a thick dough.
- Remove dough from the food processor and place in a bowl in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30-minutes.
- Once cooled, shape the dough into burger patties with your hands, making about 6 to 8 equal sized patties. Press the patties to about 1/2 inch thickness for quicker cooking time.*
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the patties in 2 batches for about 5-7 minutes on each side or until they begin to brown.
- Remove cooked patties from the heat and allow to slightly cool before eating. Use the burger on top of a salad, on a bun, or even in a wrap.
- *You may wrap and freeze the uncooked burger patties and use for a later time.
