I LOVE veggie burgers way more than I ever loved ground beef burgers for so many reasons:
- They are healthier. Replacing beef with beans/lentils/sweet potatoes/quinoa is obviously a smarter choice.
- They are lighter. In addition to being healthier, they are also lighter. You don’t feel heavy and weighed down after eating a veggie burger.
- They are more versatile. There is SO much you can do with a veggie burger and so many different ways to make them. If people say they “don’t like veggie burgers,” they just haven’t tried a HOMEMADE veggie burger made with real ingredients.
- They still feel like comfort food rather than health food. There is nothing like biting into a giant burger.
- You save calories and can eat more FRIES (For real though. I love fries).
My go-to veggie burgers are usually of the black bean variety (see THESE and THESE). However, every once in a while I crave something a little different (see number 3, above). Like many of my other recipes, I saw a picture on Pinterest of a similar burger and I altered the recipe to fit out tastes. They are vegan and can be made gluten free by using gluten free breadcrumbs or oats. I love these burgers on whole wheat kaiser rolls, but they are also great in a lettuce wrap (Tone It Up girls- use a lettuce wrap and enjoy for your M3 or M5. I know I will be doing this next week when I start Round 2 of the Bikini Series!). These burgers have a lot of flavor thanks to the onion, red bell pepper, jalapeno, and garlic. I seasoned them very simply with salt and pepper. Because I don’t eat cheese on my burgers anymore, I have been all about using different sauces on my veggie burgers. For these burgers, I made a simple Sriracha Lime Mayo sauce. It’s made with sriracha, vegan or regular mayo, and fresh lime juice- that’s it. It’s so easy and delicious and it pairs very nicely with the chickpea burgers. These burgers have just the right amount of spicy and I’ll think they will please just about anyone. If you’re a daredevil and looking for extra spice, serve your burger with sliced jalapenos on top.
NOTE: I made these in my food processor so I did not finely chop my ingredients. Just cut my veggies into big chunks and let the food processor do it’s job. If you do the same, just make sure not to process it TOO much- you want to see all of the little flecks of pepper!
Active Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 5
Ingredients:
For the Burgers: 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed 1 small red bell pepper, finely diced 1 white onion, finely diced 1 jalapeno, seeds and membrane removed and finely chopped 1 tablespoon garlic, minced 1 flax egg (1 tablespoon flax + 3 tablespoons water) salt and pepper, to taste ¾ cup breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon olive oil
For the Sriracha Lime Mayo:
4 tablespoons mayo (vegan or regular) 2 teaspoons sriracha
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
Directions:
For the Burgers: Mash the chickpeas with a fork or a potato masher until no whole beans remain. Add all other burger ingredients (except the olive oil), and mix until combined. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Shape the chickpea mixture into 5 patties. Add the patties to the skillet and cook over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes, or until browned and beginning to char. Flip and cook another 3-4 minutes.
For the Sriracha Lime Mayo:
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and wisk until smooth and creamy.
Serve each burger on a whole wheat kaiser roll or lettuce wrap with 1 tablespoon of the mayo, red onion, and cabbage leaves (or romaine lettuce).
Nutrition Information per serving (1 Chickea Jalapeno Burger patty with 1 tablespoon Sriracha Lime Mayo):
Calories: 248 Fat: 13g Carbs: 29g Protein: 7g Sodium: 463mg Sugar: 4g
*Nutrition information is based on the products I used personally in this recipe. Different products may yield slightly different information.
