Lentil and black bean burgers are the perfect plant based meal!
Inexpensive and so easy to make, you are going to want to make these on repeat to always have on hand! Never buy store bought veggie burgers again! Naturally vegan, gluten free, soy free and packed with flavor.
Why you will love this recipe
- Black beans and lentils are so budget friendly and so easy to make! You can buy black beans and lentils premade at the store making this a quick easy to make anytime.
- Full of fiber and protein these vegan black bean burgers are so filling and go great with your favorite Mexican inspired side dishes! Serve with cilantro lime slaw or Mexican cauliflower rice for an epic meal!
- Vegan, gluten free, dairy free and budget friendly, these homemade black bean burgers are great to add to your weekly meal rotation! Great for meatless Monday, you can serve these lentil burgers on a gluten free bun or on a lettuce wrap for a super simple meal!
- Great for batch cooking! Make your own frozen veggie burgers! After cooking, you can freeze these burgers and cook on the stove in just a few minutes when you are ready to eat!
Ingredients
- Black beans (cooked) – tender and a great source of protein, these add structure to the burgers.
- Lentils (cooked) – good contrast to the beans, these are also great for structure and texture.
- Red onion – the onion adds flavor but also helps to keep the burgers tender and moist when cooking.
- Red bell pepper (I love using roasted but you can also use fresh) – adds a level of sweetness to the burgers to offset the spices.
- Ground Flax Seeds – helps to keep the burgers together. Flax replaces eggs in traditional recipes.
- Oat flour (make your own with your blender) – the burgers need a bit more structure than the beans alone can provide. The oat flour helps to really ensure they are well formed patties.
- Spices: Chili powder, Ground cumin, Smoked paprika – these add add a smoky flavor and give the burgers a depth of flavor.
- Salt – helps to elevate all the spices in the burgers.
How to make black bean lentil burgers
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375F.
Step 2: Start by adding 1/2 the black beans and 1/2 the lentils in the food processor and pulse, creating a thick paste (doesn’t have to be smooth).
Step 3: Add the black bean and lentil mixture to a large bowl.
Step 4: Add the red onion and red bell pepper to the food processor and process on high until the onion and pepper are well broken down. They don’t’ have to be a mush.
Step 5: Add the pepper and onion mixture to the beans in the bowl. Mix in the ground flax and spices and combine well.
Step 6: Add the rest of the beans and lentils to the mixture and stir well, making sure they beans and lentils are well incorporated.
Step 7: Using a 1/3 cup measuring cup, measure out 8 burgers and place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Form the burgers into patties, making sure they are well compacted.
Step 8: Bake the burgers in a 375F oven for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, take the burgers out of the oven and carefully flip them. Bake another 10 minutes.
Step 9: Remove the burgers from the oven and allow to cool at least 5 minutes before topping and eating.
Top tips
- If you do not have a food processor, use a fork to smash the beans and lentils as best as you can. The red onion and red bell pepper can be finely chopped with a sharp knife.
- Make your own oat flour: Simply grind rolled oats in a high speed blender or food processor until it resembles flour (takes about 30 seconds to 1 minute).
- You can buy canned lentils and black beans to make this recipe so easy to throw together. You can also find pre-cooked lentils in the refrigerated section of most grocery stores.
How to serve these burgers
These Mexican burgers are great on a bun, as a traditional burger topped with guacamole and lettuce, tomato and red onions.
They are also great crumbled up in a burrito bowl or crumbled up on a taco salad (my favorite way to enjoy them).
If you decide to make these, try them on a salad with chopped walnuts and use salsa for the dressing, I promise these burgers so versatile you will find endless ways to enjoy them!
What to serve with these burgers
These vegan burgers are packed with flavor on their own. You can serve them as is or with your favorite side dish! I highly recommend making the nacho cheese sauce and pouring it on top for a super delicious cheesy burger!
- Cilantro Lime Coleslaw
- Mexican Cauliflower Rice
- Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice
- Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Brown Rice
- Pickled Onions
- Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce
- Chimichurri Sauce
- Vegan Chipotle Mayo
- Carrot Fries
FAQs
How to make lentils for these burgers
To make lentils, you will want to add a pound of lentils to a large pot and cover them in 4 cups of water.
Bring the lentils and water to a boil and once the water is boiling, turn it down to low and cover the pot. Cook for 12-15 minutes on low.
How to make black beans for these burgers
You can make black beans at home using your instant pot! This takes about 1 hour but it super simple.
You can also make black beans on the stove, but you have to soak them overnight and cook them about 1 hour on the stove. I recommend buying canned black beans if you don’t have a pressure cooker to make them in as they are quite time consuming.
Storage
- Fridge: Store the leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days in a well sealed container.
- Freezer: You can also freeze these burgers after cooking and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Tips for freezing:
- Freeze the burgers individually on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper after allowing the burgers to cool fully in the fridge.
- Once frozen, remove from the baking sheet and store in an freezer safe container with a square of parchment paper between each burger to make them easy to break apart when you want to heat up the burgers.
- Defrost on the counter (on a plate) for 10-15 minutes and you can reheat these black bean patties on the stove on medium heat or in the air fryer 5-6 minutes at 375F.
Substitutions
- Black beans: You can also use cooked white beans (cannelini beans, great northern white beans or navy beans), kidney beans (red or dark red) in place of the black beans.
- Lentils: Lentils add some contrast to the beans but if you don’t have them, you can substitute lentils with another can of beans.
- Red bell pepper: I like to use a roasted red bell pepper to add some smoky flavor to the burgers but you can easily use a fresh red bell pepper as well. If you don’t have red bell pepper, you can also use shredded zucchini (just be sure to squeeze out the water before adding it). You could also use another 1/2 of a red onion in place of the bell pepper.
- Red onion: If you cannot tolerate red onion, you can omit the onion completely. If you don’t have red onion on hand, you could use white or brown onion in place of the red (purple) onion.
- Ground flax: Ground flax helps to bind the burgers and hold everything together. You can grind your own flax seeds in a high speed blender or a coffee grinder. You can also use ground chia seeds (grind them yourself in a high speed blender or coffee grinder) in place of the ground flax.
- Oat flour: Oat flour is used to bind the burgers, as oats can help absorb some of the liquid from the bell pepper and red onion. You can make your own oat flour by blending up rolled oats in your blender. If you don’t have oats on hand, you can also use gluten free flour or 2 tbsp. coconut flour in place of oat flour.
- Chili powder: This helps to add some spice to the burgers and ensure they have good flavor. You can omit and add more cumin and smoked paprika.
- Cumin: Cumin helps to add a smoky flavor to the burgers. You can add more smoked paprika in place of cumin if you don’t have it on hand.
- Smoked paprika: This also adds a smoky flavor to the burgers. If you don’t have smoked paprika on hand, you can substitute paprika or cumin in it’s place.
If you love this recipe, you should try
- 5 Ingredient Black Bean Burgers
- 3 Ingredient Black Bean Dip
- Everything Bagel Hummus (with lentils)
- 10 Minute Black Bean Soup
- Sweet Potato Lentil Burger
Mexican Black Bean Lentil Burgers
$3.90 Recipe/$0.49 ServingIngredients
- 1.5 cup cooked green lentils (divided) - $0.56
- 1.5 cup cooked black beans (divided) - $0.99
- 1 roasted red pepper (or red bell pepper) - $1.00
- 1/2 cup red onion - $0.17
- 1/4 cup ground flax seeds - $0.28
- 1/4 cup oat flour (gluten free if needed) - $0.15
- 1 tbsp. chili powder - $0.25
- 1 tbsp. cumin - $0.25
- 2 tsp. smoked paprika - $0.20
- 1 tsp. salt - $0.05
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F
- Add 1/2 of the black beans, 1/2 of the lentils to the food processor and pulse until the mixture is starting to form a chunky paste/puree (does not have to be smooth).
- Move the black bean and lentil mixture in a large bowl from the food processor.
- To the food processor add 1 roasted red pepper (no liquid) and the red onion. Turn on high until this becomes a puree (takes about 20 seconds, doesn't have to be super smooth).
- Add the pepper and onion mixture to the bowl with the bean mixture. To that also add the ground flax, oat flour and all the spices and salt, stir well.
- Add the rest of the black beans and lentils to the bowl with the rest of the ingredients and stir well to fully combine.
- Place patties on a parchment paper that has been lightly sprayed with olive oil or avocado oil spray.
- Use a 1/3 cup for easy measuring, scoop out 1/3 cup of the mixture to your hands. Form into patties and add to the baking sheet. Makes 8 patties.
- Bake at 375F for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, take out of oven and carefully flip burgers. Cook 10 more minutes.
Laeken
Tuesday 23rd of November 2021
Hi there,
I made these and they came out super stodgy - are you able to tell me how i can correct this as it tasted amazing it just was quite gluey.
Samantha Rowland
Tuesday 22nd of March 2022
Hi there! I would increase the ground flax or the oat flour to get a consistency that works for you (each red onion can be different sizes and give off a different amount of water when you blend them up)! Glad you loved the taste!
runnermh
Monday 21st of October 2019
I’m wondering if, in one of your updates, you eliminated the protein powder as an ingredient on purpose or by accident? There is no mention of protein powder in the ingredient list, though it is mentioned in the post and in the comments...
I’d love to make these but I want to make sure I have the right amount of binder in their first. Any clarification would be great! Thanks.
Samantha Rowland
Monday 21st of October 2019
Hey there! Great question! I actually replaced the protein powder with the oat flour after many people informed it was tough to find unflavored protein just for a recipe. Hope this helps!
Heather Blythe
Monday 22nd of July 2019
How do you cook your lentils prior to the recipe? I usually use the instapot, and before those days just boiled them. Any tips??
Samantha Rowland
Thursday 1st of August 2019
Yes the lentils should be cooked. I often keep cooked lentils in the fridge or buy them refrigerated so I can use them in recipes like this.
Annie
Tuesday 20th of February 2018
I would like to make this recipe because they look AMAZING! I assume you add the other half cup of lentils and black beans back into the purée? Can’t wait to try them!
Samantha
Thursday 22nd of February 2018
YES! Thank you for catching this. I've updated the recipe.
Stephanie
Saturday 10th of January 2015
These look amazing! Thank you so much for linking up at Tasty Tuesday! Your recipe has been pinned to the Tasty Tuesday Pinterest board! Please join us again this week!
Sam
Sunday 11th of January 2015
Thank Steph! Thanks for hosting - love the link up :)