These are the third in a series of attempts to find a tasty home-made veggie burger that holds together well and I think in the latter category, these are the best! I think the key might be in using chia egg (chia seeds soaked in water to form a gel) rather than just the chia seeds on their own. In the other recipes, we had assumed that the seeds would soak up any excess moisture in the mix and combined with the chickpea flour, would hold it together. They worked well, but these worked even better.

Don’t be put off by the beetroot, they are peeled and grated and the burgers don’t taste earthy at all. Beetroot are heart healthy, a good source of potassium and good for the circulation. (Read Make Beetroot Your New Veg Friend! for the full benefits of eating/juicing beetroot).

I had a couple of burgers warm with some quinoa and a red- and whitecurrant dressing, with a green salad. The rest were put in the freezer and I had a couple when we had a picnic on a sunny day and they were even better! They held together and tasted amazing – I ate them with my fingers, like a biscuit, and they didn’t break up.

Quinoa is a complete protein and also gluten-free. It can be a little bland unless you add some spices, lime juice or dried fruit for example, here we’ve made a dressing using fresh red and white currants, but you could use defrosted frozen berries or dried cranberries.

Apart from being very tasty, redcurrants are a rich source of dietary fibre, potassium, Vitamin C and Vitamin K – necessary for blood-clotting and for good bone health.

Ingredients – Burgers

1/2 Tin Black Beans, drained & rinsed

1/2 Medium Beetroot, grated

1 Small Onion, chopped

1 Clove of Garlic, crushed

1 Cup Ground Walnuts (you could substitute for seeds or other nuts, but they would give a different texture and flavour)

2″ Slice Marrow, chopped or 1/2 Courgette (Zucchini)

2 Chestnut Mushrooms, chopped

1 Tbsp Chia Seeds soaked in 3 Tbsps Water, stirred vigorously, to form a gel

1 1/2 Cups Chickpea Flour (garbanzo or gram)

A Squeeze of Tomato Purée

1 Tsp Vegetable Bouillon Powder

1/2 Tbsp Cumin Seeds

Handful Fresh Coriander, chopped

Splash of Tamari

Pink Himalayan Salt & Black Pepper

A little coconut oil for frying.

Method

Put everything in the food processor and pulse/slow process until it starts to come together but is still coarse, you don’t want it too smooth & mushy. Scrape it down between each blast.

With floured hands take handfuls of mix and form into burgers on a floured board using a flat spatula to help it come together if necessary. Sprinkle with a little flour before cooking. We made 5.

Melt a little coconut oil in a frying pan, but not to smoking point, and gently cook the burgers. You might prefer to cook them in the oven.

Quinoa

Just before you cook the burgers, put on some quinoa to cook as per instructions, keep the lid on until cooked, about 10-12 minutes – you want the moisture evaporated but the quinoa still keeping its shape, not broken up and mushy. If there is still some moisture, leave the lid off and turn the heat off but keep the pan on the warm plate, or turn it out into a hot dish and fluff it gently with a fork to allow the moisture to escape.

Red and White Currant Dressing

I adapted this from an Able & Cole recipe.

Place about 125g fresh Red and White Currants in a saucepan, add approximately 2 Tbsps water, 1 Tsp Maple Syrup, 1 Tsp Cumin Seeds. Heat slowly until the currants burst slightly. Remove from heat.

Pour half into the quinoa and lightly mix. Check seasoning.

Serve the burgers with the quinoa and a green salad and drizzle over the rest of the dressing.

See Vegan Tiger Nut & Peanut Chilli-Burger (you can use substitutes for Tiger Nuts) and Vegan Black Bean & Walnut Veggie Burger for the other recipes.

Copyright: Chris McGowan