From day one of this blog, I had the idea to make “fuss-free” vegan recipes, but it took me awhile before I really nailed down what that meant. In the beginning, I thought the best approach was to use no specific measurements and vague instructions for my recipes… Unsurprisingly, recipe testers had varied results. Yep, not the smartest idea I’ve ever had.
Luckily, it wasn’t long before I re-thought “fuss-free” and made it all about simple ingredients, and quick and easy recipes. That doesn’t mean that my original fuss-free recipes (if you can call them that), were bad, it just means there was a dreadful lack of guidance and poor food photography to boot.
So every now and then I like to go back in time and revise one of the original fuss-free recipes. I’ve done it before with my 6 Ingredient Pulled Jackfruit, and Lentil Tacos with Avocado Cilantro Sauce, and today I am doing it with these Vegan Beet Burgers.
Because omnomnom!! My first version for vegan beet burgers required too many ingredients, a couple of flavours were competing, and of course, some measurements would be helpful. I’ve taken it from 14 ingredients to just 10, made it simpler and quicker, and got those flavour notes on point.
The intense colour of these burgers is so neat, but what’s really rocking my socks is how the beets provide this deep rich earthiness to the burgers. So much flavour depth. The oats and lentils make a great base, and the sneaky trick is adding a bit of peanut butter which adds some richness and good fat balancing everything out perfectly.
When you make these, the dough is really sticky, but once cooked, they firm up and have a nice texture bite (no mushy burger here)!
To make Vegan Beet Burgers: peel the beets. I have a grater attachment for my Breville food processor so I used it to grate the beets directly into the processor. If you don’t have that, just grate beets with the grater you have.
Then just add the beets, along with all of the remaining ingredients to the food processor.
Pulse, stopping to scrape the sides, until the mixture comes together.
Form into 4 patties. The patty mixture will be very sticky, so wet your hands in between forming each patty, to help stop the sticking.
Then you can either fry or bake the burgers, until brown on the outside and tender on the inside.
Leftover burgers get quite firm in the fridge overnight, so I prefer mine freshly made. However, if you like a nice firm bite, you might enjoy them even more!
Quick and easy recipe for a hearty veggie burger with a perfect bite (not mushy).
- 2 cups grated raw peeled beets (about 2 medium beets)
- 3/4 cup large flake rolled oats
- 1/2 cup cooked lentils (I used canned)
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 yellow onion , finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic , finely minced
- 1 tablespoon natural peanut butter
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
If you have a grater attachment for your food processor you can use it to grate the beets directly into the processor. If not grate beets with the grater you have, then add the beets, along with all of the remaining ingredients to the food processor. Pulse, stopping to scrape the sides, until the mixture comes together.
Form into 4 patties. The patty mixture will be very sticky, so wet your hands in between forming each patty, to help stop the sticking.
Heat enough oil to cover the bottom of a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, add the patties. Cooking them low and slow is the key for good texture. Cook about 3 to 5 minutes per side, until they are nicely browned on both sides and hold together well. Serve hot on a bun with your favourite burger toppings.
Preheat your oven to 350F (180C). Lightly grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.
Lay the patties out in a single layer with room around them for air to circulate. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, flipping halfway through until firmed up and lightly brown on both sides. Serve hot on a bun with your favourite burger toppings.
Leftover burgers get quite firm in the fridge overnight, so I prefer mine freshly made. However, if you like a nice firm bite, you might enjoy them even more!
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
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Bon appetegan!
Sam.
I have not tried this recipe yet but it seems delicious. My question is, can I make these into beet balls and bake them? I would love to have it be versatile to use in other dishes.
Yes I think they would work just fine. ENjoy!
Hi there!
What kind of lentils do you use? Does it make a difference? I have a massive variety (never say ‘lentils’ to an Indian person – we have hundreds of kinds) – which is appropriate for these burgers?
Thanks!
Haha! 🙂 Can you believe the can of lentils I bought didn’t say!? I believe they were brown lentils, but I also think any pre-cooked lentil should work well here. Enjoy!
Hi Sam, we don’t eat white flour. Can we use a brown rice flour or any other type of healthier flour then white?
Thank you.
Hi Allyson, alternative flours are not my specialty, but you can review this guide which will help you replace flours.
Nothing beefs a beet burger!!!
Ba dum dum tsk!
This is an incredible recipe, especially considering it uses pantry staples to transform beets (not a favorite) into absolutely delicious veggie burgers. I got some beets in a CSA box, thought of burgers, and was thrilled to find this recipe to use all of them. I ordered more just to make these again!
Yay!! So thrilled you loved them so much, Kim!! Thanks for your great review 🙂
Can I make this without using a food processor, but rather work the ingredients together with my hands?
Yes, that should work fine! Enjoy 🙂
I’m glad I saw this comment, I’ve had those on my wishlist for a while, but am still sans food processor.
I grated the beets very finely, mashed the lentils with a fork before adding them, and used fine rolled oats. Then I combined it all by hand (wearing rubber gloves). It worked really well & the patties turned out delicious!
Yay!! Thrilled it worked for you, Yulca! Another success 🙂
Hi Sam!
May I know what would you suggest as substitution for beets in this recipe?
Hi Yvonne, since the focus ingredient in this recipe is the beets, I wouldn’t recommend substituting them and instead try another burger recipe such as my jerk sweet potato & black bean burgers, smoked apple burgers, or boss bbq burgers from my cookbook.
Tried these today and they were lovely. Cooked them in the oven for approx 30 minutes. Putting the rest of the uncooked burgers in the freezer for another day.
Yay! So happy you loved them, Carla 🙂
does the prepared mixture freeze well?
I made a double batch yesterday and gave half to my daughter, a vegan. I’m not vegan but i try and eliminate meat wherever i can. These burgers were delicious and i much prefer them to meat burgers and even beyond burgers. The recipe was easy to follow and make. I had one for lunch yesterday while it was hot off the press. I’m going to add a little cumin next time and a little more garlic. Thank you!
That’s wonderful Tom! I’m thrilled you love them 🙂
Hi! I made these today and the beets were really fresh, so very wet. I grated them with my Breville and then measured them out. Good thing as 3 beets made 5 cups as the beets were all large and no mediums when I bought them. 🙂 I had to add 1/4 cup more flour to compensate for moisture. Tasted the mixture raw and what flavor! Had to add a little more salt. This is for a gathering of 9 people and one is a gourmet cook, if she likes them, yeah!!! 🙂 Will let you know how it goes.
Awesome, I hope you love them, Marie 🙂
Hi Sam! As promised, here am I getting back to you. EVERYONE loved the burgers! Even the gourmet cook liked them! Her husband took one home with him. 🙂 I fried them slowly on setting 5 on my electric stove after I warmed the pan on 7, using a vegan margarine. I only fried them for 2 minutes per side because I was not serving them until the next day and knew warming would cook them more. I got 10 burgers out of the mixture and placed all of them in a baking dish with parchment paper and then aluminum foil as a cover. Warmed them at 225 degrees F for 50-55 minutes. They were perfect! I fixed one for a blind man I know and he called to tell me that was the best burger he has eaten! Served them with my vegan cashewnaise dressing and my vegan French mustard, vegan cheese slices, tomatoe, onion, green lettuce on homemade whole wheat hamburger buns. Will make these again. Going to try your Seitan Steaks next. Hugs!
Wonderful!! Thrilled everyone enjoyed them so much, thanks for the review, Marie 🙂
These have gone into standard rotation for my husband and I – which is most surprising since he hates peanut butter and I don’t like beets! Something about them just works. For the record, we spice them a bit differently (I include cumin and asafoetida because my hubby can’t have garlic/onions) and we normally use kidney or black beans we also have extra laying around, it still works perfectly. Thanks so much for this awesome recipe!
Haha! I love that. You’re most welcome, Jen! Glad you both enjoy 🙂
Holy cow, this is the veggie burger of my dreams! Your blog came up when I googled for beet veggie burger and since it looked simple, I tried it out. This is the veggie burger recipe I’ve been searching all my life for! AMAZING! THANK YOU! I was a little suspicious of using raw beets to I boiled mine for a bit. It was all simply fabulous Can’t wait to try your book and other recipes now that I’ve found you!
Wonderful, so happy you loved it so much, Palli! I hope you love the book too 🙂
Thanks for sharing, Great post.
Glad you enjoyed!
I am not vegan or vegetarian and these are AMAZING!!!!
Yay! So happy you enjoyed them, Jo-Ann 🙂
These burgers are amazing!!! I didn’t have enough fresh beets so used 1/2 cup of the roasted vacuumed packed ones. I squeezed out the excess liquid since those were much squishier. The texture and taste was perfect! My picky meat eater boyfriend was super impressed and is now going to request me to make these all the time. I’m ok with that since they were super easy to make! Thanks for another great recipe, Sam!
So happy you enjoyed it, Kitty 🙂
Tried these out last night, and my 11 year old daughter inhaled 2 of them along with some roasted potatoes and green shake, LOL! So I would say they were a hit! Will definitely be adding these to the supper rotation! Thanks for another great recipe, Sam!!!!
That’s amazing! So happy you enjoyed them, Nola 🙂
Curious! Would it be possible to make up a bunch ahead of time and freeze, and would you freeze before cooking them? Or after?
For sure! I would bake them and then freeze them. Enjoy!
Hello! I’m newly vegan, I absolutely LOVE all of your recipes and I am so excited to try this out. 🙂 Can these be frozen like the seitan steaks? I’m the only vegan in my house and I would hate to waste any leftovers.
Thank you so much, Hannah! I’m flattered 🙂 Yes, to freeze them, I would recommend baking them for about 20 minutes. Let cool and then freeze. Then you can reheat by popping them in the oven or frying them up. Enjoy!
GENIUS! I would never in a million years put together these ingredients and think they would come out tasting so delicious! I was so hesitant to try these but couldn’t say no with how easy they are to make and I had everything on hand. Thank you for this recipe! It is definitely a keeper!
Haha! That’s awesome, Erica! So thrilled you gave them a go 🙂
Hi Sam! Can you use a different flour instead of all purpose like almond, chickpea, oat, etc? Thank you and I can’t wait to make this recipe!!
Hi Gillian, that isn’t really my expertise but the flour in this recipe is what makes the burgers hold together and bind. So if you are confident your flour replacement will do the same, then go for it 🙂
I stumbled across this recipe when I was trying to figure out different ways to cook beets, and I can’t wait to try it! I was wondering if the burgers could be frozen, and then cooked later?
I haven’t tried that myself, but I am sure it would work fine. Enjoy!
Hey Sam, thanks for this recipe. My first attempt came out a bit gooey when raw, but definitely salvageable (and delicious) when pan fried. I followed your proportions exactly (just doubled everything) and even increased the flour when I saw that it wasn’t holding together. Any suggestions for helping the raw burger to stick together?
Thanks!
-Ron
Hi Ron, glad you enjoyed the burgers! It sounds like there was a bit too much liquid in your burgers, likely from the beets. Make sure you measure carefully but adding a bit more flour will do the trick if the problem happens to you again. Enjoy!
Cannot wait to try this recipe. Bought some of these premade at Food Lion this week and they were very good!
Thanks so much for sharing!
I hope you love them, Patsy 🙂
can you make these the day before and keep in fridge or are they best made on the day
You can absolutely make these the day before. Enjoy!
These are by far the BEST BEET BURGERS EVER!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I have made several different ones that took 1/2 a day to make and they were not any where close to these. My husband who is a eats mostly veggie ( by force! lol) loves them. I can’t wait to make these at our next family BBQ. I have been following you since I went vegan and love all your recipes that I have made. Delicious vegan cooking made easy!
Hahaha!! Thrilled you and your husband love them so much, Tracey!! 😀
Well youve got it a little wrong when you think that being vegan is colesterole free!
Cholesterol only comes from animal products. So if you only eat plants (a vegan diet), then it is indeed cholesterol free.
I think you may be getting confused between cholesterol and saturated fat. As Sam said, only animal products have cholesterol, but many plants contain saturated fat.
Please explain?
Your body make it from fat
Any suggestions for peanut butter substitute? Recipe looks amazing – will make it tonight but peanut allergy in the house
Any nut or seed butter will work wonderfully. Enjoy!
Wow,
I was very unsure how these were going to turn out. However, they came out amazing! I paired them with some frozen mixed veggies and a sweet potato as sides. Thanks Sam!
Wonderful! So happy you enjoyed them, Tim 🙂
Dang, girl, you’re good! Best burger, EVER! I did my usual sub- chickpea flour for the all purpose flour and added a bit of horseradish! Mic drop!
Husband…”can I have another one?” Sure! Absolutely!…. “Did you want to keep this one? It might go bad.” “oh, that case you had better have that one, as well”. No leftovers today!
I have to get a bigger recipe box! Yeah, I’m old school! Very old school!
Wishing you continued success, Sam!
Yay!! Thank you so much, Karen!! Love that you loved this burger oh so much 😀
I used 75% of the amount of all purpose flour required for the recipe. The pulse flours are denser than all all purpose what flour. I used horseradish to taste. I like a good kick of horseradish, personally- 1 tablespoonful. If you want just a hint you could try 1 teaspoon. It all depends on the potency of the horseradish itself. You could use Japanese horseradish, as well.
Hi there,
When you substituted the chickpea flour for all-purpose flour, did you use the same quantity? Also, how much horseradish did you use?
Thanks!
I used 75% of the amount of all purpose flour required for the recipe. The pulse flours are denser than all all purpose what flour. I used horseradish to taste. I like a good kick of horseradish, personally- 1 tablespoonful. If you want just a hint you could try 1 teaspoon. It all depends on the potency of the horseradish itself. You could use Japanese horseradish, as well.
Nina thanks for fan recipe. I keep reading about using. vital wheat gluten Inn burgers etc., do you have any idea if this would work in this recipe.
Goi g to try it as it is anyway. Looks amazingly. Glad I read comment so as your mentioned 230g weight of beetroots. Really helpful to UK readers.
I am assuming you peel the beetroots and grate them raw thank sure again
Hi Nina! I wouldn’t recommend adding vital wheat gluten in this recipe as that is a whole other product that would dramatically change the results. I hope you enjoy the burgers!
Hi Sam thanks for the advice I will try it as per the recipe – thanks again
Enjoy!
Hi! Can you tell me the ingridients in grams and not in cups?
Thank you
Hi Sofia! Cups are volume measurements, and grams are weight measurements, so one does not equal the other. I know a couple of my UK readers have picked up a set of measuring cups and spoons online so that they could easily make any Canadian or US recipe without the need to convert. Hope that helps!
Mmm these look delicious, and a perfect use for the humongous beets I’ve grown this year! I’m thinking of substituting the lentils for canned chickpeas so I can also try your Marshmallow Fluff recipe. 🙂
I’ve just found your blog and have bookmarked a bunch of your recipes. Thanks for sharing your vegan creations!
You’re most welcome, Christina! Just make sure the chickpeas get mashed fairly well so the burgers hold together. I hope you enjoy the recipes 🙂
Would it be omnomnom if I used canned beets?
Hello! Imagine not a fan of beets at all but by reading the comments and just because this looks amazing I am going to give these burgers a try today!
But quick question, on your previous recipe for these burgers you used pickled beets, I just so happen to have some, do you think I could use those in this version or no?
Thank you for all the amazing recipes!
Hi Cassandra,
Haha I wonder if you will like these then? Hmmm… Haha. I would stick to fresh beets for this recipe as the flavours and textures are balanced here. Enjoy!
Hi Sam,
Quick question, I plan on making these tonight and just wanted to check if the oat should be cooked or are they raw?
The reason I am asking is because I have large oat flakes (I don’t know if it’s considered rolled oats or not), and wanted to make sure if these are added raw or cooked 🙂
Hi Tilou, raw large oat flakes are perfect! Rolled oats are just a different name for the same thing. Enjoy!
Hi Sam,
I made these and substituted chickpeas for the lentils and the burgers came out great! Thanks so much for sharing it!!
I omitted the peanut butter and
added olive oil for the fat!
So happy you enjoyed them, Barbara! 🙂
Hey, hope you are well! 🙂
Loved that recipe, it’s the easiest and best beetroot burger recipe I could find, I was just wondering if you ever tried with those vacuum packed beetroots instead of raw, or if you think it would work along with the other ingredients? Thanks in advance!
Yay! So happy you enjoy the recipe, Fernando. I’ve actually never seen vacuum packed beets! I’m sure any beet would work ok, as long as they aren’t too wet. 🙂
Crazy question but I’m a non meat eater for ethical reasons but I do love the flavour and texture of meat. I’m trying to find a good burger recipe ave this loons like a winner to me except my partner doesn’t like beetroot. This will sound ridiculous but how obvious is the flavour of betroot here? Thank you in advance.
There is an earthy taste of the beets, for sure, but if you scroll down a little, there is a comment from another reader, Srivani, who doesn’t like beets, but who loved this burger. So maybe your partner will like it too! 🙂
Hi I have a question. Can I make it without peanut butter and any other nut butter at all? Or how can I replace it?
Hi Anna, the peanut butter adds a bit of fat, flavour, and stickiness. If you don’t want to use it you could try just skipping it. Hope that helps!
I am no fan of the beets! Don’t get me wrong, I do try periodically, thinking maybe it’s just PTSD from my childhood and being “forced” to eat beets. But alas, every time I try anything with beets, I just taste yucky beets. So I wasn’t too keen when my husband said he wanted to make these burgers. In preparation for not liking these, I made myself an Yves Veggie Patty instead. After I ate my burger, and hubby started his second Beet burger, I asked to try a bite… well, I ate half that burger! I probably would have eaten an entire burger if I hadn’t already had one. It was pretty good! I kept waiting for the “yucky beet” taste, but it never came. I can’t comment on the process of making them, since hubby made them; but it appears “Sam-simple”. And the colour is stunning (I do appreciate the colour of beets). I’m not a beet-convert, but if he chooses to make them again, I’ll have a full beet burger. (Sorry, 4 stars – it has beets, otherwise, it’d be 5 stars, but then it wouldn’t be a beet burger!)
Haha! So happy I am slowly wooing you to the beet side, Srivani… one day 😉
While I was reading this I started to dream about “Cottage Pie”. Question: Do you think the mixture would cook up in a skillet like ground beef or crumbles? To use as a base for the pie.
Hi Cindy! I wouldn’t recommend that, but you’re in luck! I have a recipe for Seriously the Best Lentil Shepherd’s Pie (same thing as cottage pie). So, hopefully you will enjoy that 🙂
Oh. My. Gosh. These were amaaaaazing. I made a few changes, subbing walnuts and chia seeds instead of flour. I also used cooked beets from Trader Joes, the kind that are in a plastic vacuum sealed package in the cooler. I didn’t really measure the oats, I just made the mixture without oats and then added oats until the mixture felt right. They had a great texture, held together well, and got a thumbs up from my non vegan husband.
I am so impressed!
Yay!! So happy to hear that, Michelle. Very glad you both enjoyed them 🙂
HI, I have previously cooked beets. Could I use them in this recipe or do they have to be raw?
I’ve never tried the burgers with previously cooked beets, but my guess is it might make them a bit mushy.
Can white beans be substituted for lentils, or would they be too soft? Thanks!
I think that should work just fine. Enjoy!
These were absolutely amazing. I seriously couldn’t believe how much I liked them. I at this on a toasted whole wheat English muffin. I know this is a vegan recipe, but for those who are not vegan, I found a little Sriracha mayo went well on it and have a feeling some nonfat plain Greek yogurt with a squeeze of lime might go well too! Thanks again. So good!
So happy you enjoyed the burgers so much, Dan! Just in case you were interested there are many vegan mayonnaises available such as Vegenaise, Hellmann’s vegan, or Earth Balance mayo, and I even have my own recipe in my cookbook. To make Sriracha mayo you could just mix Sriracha with vegan mayo to taste. 🙂
These burgers were fantastic. I found I had to cook them longer to get them drier. I was wondering if you can make them a day ahead then, cook in the oven and then just heat up on the grill for a char flavor. Have you had any experience freezing these after cooked so you could heat them up later. This really is the first veggie burger that has not crumbled. Thanks for the recipe.
I’m so happy you loved them, Richard! Low and slow is the way to go 😉 From my experience, I don’t love the texture of them when they are left for a day, as they tend to get a bit chewy and bready. However, maybe you will like them like that. If you wanted to prepare them ahead of time, I would form them, and drop them onto parchment paper, and pop in the fridge uncooked, or maybe even the freezer (I haven’t tried that). Then just heat up the grill or frying pan when hunger strikes. Hope that helps a little. Enjoy!
A little update, a reader said on my facebook page: “We just cook them a bit less than we do when we eat them and let them cool. Wrap them in cling wrap and then into a freezer bag (we get the really big ones and put them in that) and freeze them. Works like a charm”. She then just reheats them in a pan. 🙂
Hi
I made this burger and it came out excellent, My husband loved it and wanted more so he bought more beetroots. Thanks for this awesome recipe.
Geetha.
Woohoo! So happy to hear that you and your husband loved it so much 🙂
These look great. What sort of lentils did you use?
I used pre-cooked canned brown lentils, but any cooked lentil will work 🙂
Can you make a suggestion for an oats substitution? We’re gluten free with oats sensitivity.
You could try cooked brown rice, I’m pretty sure that should work well. Enjoy!
I attempted to make this recipe tonight and failed miserably:( I must have added way too much beets because it was a soupy mess. I tried to double the recipe- still soupy… At that point, I gave up. I guess, I’m not familiar with what a medium size beet is. Oops. Next time I’ll slowly add the beets to make sure I have the correct texture.
Oh no! so sorry to hear that. I will test these again pronto and measure the grated beets in cups to help you out, but I don’t think it would affect the burgers too much if there was a little more or a little less beets. The beets are grated raw on the large grate hole so they are quite dry actually and not add too much moisture until cooked in the burger later… I will re-test and let you know.
I retested this recipe, and my 2 medium beets made 2 cups grated or 230 grams. With those measurements they worked out perfectly! If you try them again, make sure to pulse the burger mixture only a couple of times, stopping to scrape the sides as needed. You still want the burgers to have a bit of texture. Hope that helps!
Did you maybe use canned or jarred beets instead of fresh? I’m thinking about trying these soon. I’ll use fresh, raw beets and let you know how it goes!
Hey Sam, do you think these would hold up on the grill?
They are very sticky before they are cooked, so I think if you oil your grill well, and keep the heat fairly low that they would probably work! Let us know if you give it a try and how it goes 🙂