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When it comes to cooking up some tasty vegetarian burgers for your next cookout or family dinner, it doesn’t get any better than this colorful, plant-based Beet Burger Recipe. Cooked beets are mixed with freekeh, quinoa, garbanzo beans, rolled oats, tahini, and seasonings to create the most delicious and satisfying vegetarian beet burger.
Why You’ll Love a Beet Burger?
Whether you’re a vegetarian, vegan, or simply looking to incorporate more plant-based options into your diet, get ready to fall in love with these tasty veggie burgers. Even if you’re not a usual fan of beets, the sweet beets in this recipe are perfectly balanced with so many complementary savory ingredients you won’t even know they’re in there.
Beet burgers are the ultimate veggie burger that will impress your friends and family with their burst of color, flavor, and nutrition. Topped with the most delicious smashed avocado and crispy sweet potato fries, you may never want a real beef burger again.
Freekeh, by the way, is an ancient grain that is a staple in Middle Eastern and North African cuisines. It’s made from the young green durum wheat that is harvested while the seeds are still soft and moist. The wheat is then roasted, giving Freekeh a unique smokey and nutty flavor that is perfect for these vegetarian burgers.
How to Make Beet Burgers
- Cook the Freekeh and Quinoa: Cook the freekeh and quinoa together in a pot according to package instructions. Once cooked, set aside to cool.
- Prepare the Beet Mixture: Roughly chop the cooked beets and add them to a large food processor. Pulse until the beets are chunky. Then add the cooked and drained chickpeas and tahini to the beets. Process again to mix and mash, but be careful not to puree.
- Mix the Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, combine minced garlic, grated ginger, onion, orange zest, chopped cilantro, parsley, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Add the beet and chickpea mixture, lightly beaten egg, and rolled oats to the bowl. Stir until fully combined. If the mixture is too wet, add an additional 1/4 cup of rolled oats.
- Add the Grains: Once the freekeh and quinoa have cooled, add them to the beet mixture. Mix well.
- Preheat and Shape: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Shape the mixture into patties by hand and carefully transfer them to the lined baking sheet.
- Bake: Bake the patties for approximately 25-30 minutes or until they have a crisp outer layer. Cooking times may vary based on the size of the patties.
- Prepare the Sweet Potato Fries): Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, toss the cut sweet potatoes with olive oil and spices to coat. Transfer the sweet potatoes to the prepared baking sheet, arranging them in a single layer. Bake for 25 minutes or until crispy and slightly browned at the edges.
- Assemble: To assemble the burgers, top the patties with sweet potato fries, mashed avocado, and microgreens. Feel free to add your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Beet Burger Recipe
Ingredients
FOR THE BURGERS
- ½ cup cracked freekeh
- ½ cup red or white quinoa
- 3 large beets, cooked
- 15 oz chickpeas, 1 can, drained
- 2 tablespoon tahini
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoon ginger, freshly grated
- 1 medium onion, minced
- 1 orange zested
- ½ cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
- ½ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- Generous pinch of salt + pepper
- 1 egg, beaten
- ⅓ cup rolled oats
FOR THE SWEET POTATO FRIES
FOR THE BURGERS
- 12 Buns, I used pretzel buns
- 3.5 oz microgreens, or your favorite greens
- 2 Avocado, smashed
Instructions
FOR THE VEGETARIAN BEET BURGERS
- First prepare the freekeh and quinoa. I cooked these two separately; however, I realized after that they have the exact same cooking method and time, so I am going to assume that they can be cooked in one pot (don’t quote me on this though 😉
- As the grains cook, roughly chop your beets and add them to a large food processor. Pulse until the beets until chunky. Add the cooked and drained chickpeas and tahini to the beets and process again to mix and mash (but take care not to puree).
- In a large mixing bowl add the minced garlic, grated ginger, onion, orange zest, chopped cilantro, parsley, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Mix well to combine. Add the Beet and chickpea mixture, as well as the lightly beaten egg and rolled oats, to the garlic mixture and stir well until fully combined*
- Once the freekeh and quinoa have finished cooking and have cooled(!), add to the beet mixture and mix well.
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper (you may need two baking sheets).
- Shape the mixture into patties by hand and carefully transfer to your lined baking sheet.
- Bake the patties for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until they have a crisp outer layer (cooking times may vary depending on size of patty).
- *If mixture seems particularly wet or soggy, add an additional 1/4 cup rolled oats
FOR THE SWEET POTATO FRIES
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl toss the cut sweet potatoes with the olive oil and spices to coat. Transfer to your prepared baking sheet and arrange them in a single layer (as best you can, or use two baking sheets). Bake for 25 minutes or until crispy and browning at the edges.
ASSEMBLE
- Assemble your burgers. I topped mine with a few sweet potato fries, mashed avocado and microgreens, but feel free to add your favorites!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More Delicious Vegetarian Recipes
- Vegetarian Butternut Squash Black Bean Soup
- Vegetarian Stuffed Acorn Squash
- Vegetarian Enchiladas
- Best Veggie Burger
- How to cook Beets
We’ve made this recipe in the past but to our surprise it appears to have been changed, haven’t tried the current one but was wondering if you had the old recipe still, with the black beans. Thank you.
Hi Lauren, I think you are referring to this Veggie Burger 🙂
If I don’t have freekeh or quinoa what is the substitute.
Great question Carol. Common substitutions for the grains in veggy burgers are rice, bulgur, buckwheat, and millet – but I have not tried substituting any of those for the quinoa and freekeh in this recipe 🙂
Can these patties be frozen? Is it better to freeze patties without baking, or after baking?
Thank you.
Hi Katherine,
While I have not tried freezing this beet burger patty, I would bake them, then freeze them and reheat when ready to enjoy 🙂
my partner and i found this recipe simply delightful