Easy Black Bean Burgers
Easy Black Bean Burgers- all you need is 10 ingredients to make these simple black bean burgers. Perfect for grilling all summer long! (vegan + gluten-free)
I have tons of delicious veggies burger recipes on this site but I always find myself going back to the old tried and true black bean burger. They’re just so simple to make and pair well with pretty much any sort of toppings.
With Memorial Day coming up, I thought it would be a good time to share this version with you as it’s grill-friendly and perfect for prepping ahead. The trick to getting these burgers to hold together is so well is using the bean’s own natural starches. There’s no need for flax eggs or anything fancy.
By using canned beans, we can reserve the starchy liquid that the beans soak in. Think of it as though it were it were reserved pasta water. To the liquid, we add a tablespoon of flour to help it thicken and that’s it! You’ve got your binder.
From there we slightly puree one can of the beans along with jalapeño and garlic. I like to use 2 jalapeños (without the seeds) for a mild spice. If you don’t like any spice at all, you can just leave them out.
After the beans are pulsed, you add them with the remaining ingredients into a large bowl, stir to combine, then form into patties. That’s pretty much all there is to it.
If you plan to prep these in advance, I recommend storing them in an sealed container in the refrigerator. They will keep this way for at least 2 to 3 days.
I hope you all are able to enjoy the long weekend with plenty of delicious summer-inspired foods!
Easy Black Bean Burgers
Yield: 6 burgers
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:
- 2 jalapeños, cored and roughly chopped
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed with 2 tablespoons bean liquid reserved
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon flour (I used chickpea flour)
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup corn
- 6 whole grain buns for serving (plus desired toppings)
Directions:
In a food processor, add the garlic and jalapeño then pulse until finely chopped. Add 1 can of the drained and rinsed black beans (reserve 2 tablespoons of the liquid from the can). Pulse for about 10-15 seconds, until the beans are somewhat mushy. Transfer mixture to a large bowl.
In small bowl, add the reserved bean liquid, 1 tablespoon flour and the tomato paste. Whisk until smooth.
To the large bowl with the beans, add the remaining can of black beans, cumin, oregano, and salt. Stir everything together until combined. Pour in the breadcrumbs and corn then continue to stir until well combined. If mixture is too wet, add more flour.
Using your hands, form the mixture into round patties roughly 1/3 cup in size. Add them to a lightly greased skillet over medium heat and cook for about 5 minutes on each side, until light golden brown. Serve warm on a toasted bun with sriracha mayo, mashed avocado, red onion, and/or any other desired toppings.
Did you try this recipe? Please let me know how it turned out by leaving a comment below or sharing a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #makingthymeforhealth. I love hearing your feedback!
I’m definitely pinning these for this weekend! I love black bean burgers. There’s a place near my house that made an awesome black bean and chickpea burger that was to die for and I’ve been meaning to recreate that as well.
These look amazing and will be making these this weekend! What spread did you use in the picture and where can I find the recipe?
Thanks Mary! It’s just dairy-free mayonnaise with sriracha. Sorry, I should have listed that in the notes! :)
The sauce on these looks so tasty!
Thank you! I thought the color would help the photos pop a little more. :)
I just made my own veggie burgers at home a few weeks ago which is so sad. I love veggie burgers and can’t believe I waited so long! These look so easy and I’ll be grilling these up all summer long!
I’m so excited to have a black bean burger that sticks together so well, doesn’t crumble, and is even grill friendly?! Perfect!
You know, it’s been far far too long since I’ve made black bean burgers! I make other meatless burgers all the time but I usually forget about the humble black bean in them haha ANYWAY these look awesome! Hope you have a wonderful long weekend Sarah!
These look SO GOOD!! Could I use rolled oats in place of the breadcrumbs?
I think that would work!
Black bean burgers are definitely my favorite kind of veggie burger! Loovvinggg all the ingredients you used in these. Definitely pinning to try soon — maybe to freeze pre-baby!
Did you end up freezing? I’d love to know if they held up! Thanks!
Yummmmmm, black bean burgers are one of my favorites too! I love how easy this ingredient list is. I’ll be whipping some burgers up with this recipe soon lady!
I made these with my son. They were tasty. They stuck to the pan a bit as I was trying to not use a lot of oil, but tasted amazing. Will definitely makecthem again!
Marti. Vegetarian newby. These were my trial run at making something other than salad. Loved them. Next time I will make a larger batch. I froze one to see how it works and it worked well. I wrapped it in foil so it wouldn’t stick to the wrap.
Love your site.
Thank you so much for the kind review, Marti! I appreciate the tip on freezing and am glad these were able to give you a break from salad, haha!
I like this one a lot. My husband was not as certain. But was his first experience with a bean burger so that might contribute.
These were so easy and flavorful! Even my two year old scarfed it down!
Yay! Just made this. My daughter liked it AND ate it! If you knew my daughter, you would know how much of a compliment that is. THANK YOU!!! I will add this to the rotation.
Looking forward to trying this. Looks yummy !
So good!!! 100% recommend it!!! Every part was good. I am a vegetarian so it was perfect!!! Just add a little onion on top and you are set! Kids loved it. Very juicy and delicious!
I love these! Easy to make, extremely tasty, and a win even for the meat eaters in the family. Thanks for the great recipe!
So happy to hear that! Thanks for leaving a review, Beth!
Gluten free? with breadcrumbs? I saw someone used oatmeal instead, I usually use chickpea crumbs – but they are more crunchy than crumby. So not sure which would be better. Any ideas?
I feel like the chickpea crumbs could work, however you could also use gluten-free panko breadcrumbs: https://amzn.to/2ZvRYm6
My family loves these burgers! I cook up a pound of black beans until the water is pretty much all absorbed and the beans are good and soft … draining off any excess water if any. Then I follow right down your recipe … omitting the flour and corn, but doubling the bread crumbs and adding 1/2 tsp liquid smoke. This will make about 12 firm patties. Which I then put each between wax paper and place in a ziplock bag and pop into the freezer. On weekends I can just thaw out 3 patties and bingo! We’ve got burgers! Corn on the cob and a fresh salad is a perfect complement.
Can we bake these instead of frying? Can’t wait to try!
Yes! They hold together well enough so that should be fine. I will say that I recommend frying them because the golden brown crust that forms is delicious but it’s totally up to you. :)
Amazing! Just baked them and they were fab! Thank you!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for the review!
What do I do with the ingredients I mixed together in the smaller bowl? I must have missed that part.
Hello, newbie here. I don’t use canned beans, so don’t have access to the liquid to use in the binder. What could I use instead? The flax egg you mentioned isn’t needed? :) Thanks very much!
Yes I would try using a flax egg in place of the reserved liquid/flour combo :)