Description
These Vegan Chickpea Burgers are a flavorful, wholesome, and easy-to-make plant-based burger option. Made with chickpeas, aromatic spices, fresh cilantro, and oats for binding, these burgers are sautéed briefly and then baked to a perfect texture. Ideal for a healthy lunch or dinner, they can be served on buns with your favorite toppings like lettuce, tomato, avocado, and spicy tahini dressing.
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 1 can chickpeas (15 oz), drained and rinsed
- 1 medium red onion, roughly chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon paprika (regular or smoked for smoky flavor)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup quick oats (or rolled oats as substitute)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (adjust to taste)
Instructions
- Preheat and prepare aromatics: Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Roughly chop the red onion and mince the garlic cloves thoroughly to prepare for sautéing.
- Sauté onion and garlic: Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and minced garlic. Sauté for 5-7 minutes until the onion softens and the garlic turns lightly browned and fragrant.
- Combine ingredients in food processor: Transfer the sautéed onion and garlic into a food processor. Add the drained chickpeas, paprika, cumin, chopped cilantro, salt, quick oats, tomato paste, and red pepper flakes.
- Pulse mixture carefully: Pulse about 15 times on the food processor just until combined. The mixture should still have some texture with chunks, not completely smooth. If it feels too wet, add 1-2 tablespoons more quick oats to help absorb excess moisture. The mixture should be moist but not soggy or dry.
- Form patties: Use a large cookie scoop or spoon to portion out the mixture into 4 equal portions. Shape each into a round patty roughly 3 tablespoons worth of mixture per patty.
- Bake the patties: Place patties on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or lightly greased. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Carefully flip patties using a spatula and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes until golden and firm enough to handle.
- Serve and enjoy: Let the burgers cool slightly. Serve on buns with your choice of lettuce, tomato, avocado, sprouts, ketchup, spicy tahini dressing, or any favorite toppings.
Notes
- If you don’t have quick oats, rolled oats work as a substitute, but avoid steel cut oats as they do not blend well in this recipe.
- For a quicker recipe, canned chickpeas are recommended, but you can substitute with 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas from dry beans if preferred.
- Be gentle when flipping the patties during baking as they can be delicate initially.
- Adjust red pepper flakes to control the spiciness according to your taste.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35-40 minutes
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Vegan, Mediterranean-inspired
