Hairy Bikers veggie burgers are black bean patties held together with brown rice, breadcrumbs and an egg, with a quick homemade burger sauce. So this Veggie Feasts recipe makes 4 burgers at about 450 calories each with bun and sauce, in 90 minutes with chilling, by my estimate.
“It’s quite a simple recipe,” Si and Dave say of these, “and the better for it we think.” So in this latest veggie burger the onion goes in raw, almost puréed, while the baked version on their website fries it first.
The mix feels very wet at first, but kneading it for a few moments is what makes it start to firm up. Then chill the patties for at least an hour, or 15 minutes in the freezer, which in my experience stops them breaking in the pan.
Hairy Bikers Veggie Burgers Recipe
Description
Mashed black beans, cooked rice and dried breadcrumbs get seasoned with ketchup, soy and a touch of smoke, then shaped into four patties. After a spell in the fridge they fry in a little oil, and the buns toast in the wiped-out pan. Use leftover or ready-cooked brown rice, because the timings assume it’s already cooked.
Ingredients
For the burgers
For the burger sauce
To serve
Instructions
- Mix the burgers: Put the onion, black beans, rice, both ketchups, soy sauce, garlic powder, liquid smoke, breadcrumbs and egg in a bowl. Then season well with regular or smoked salt and black pepper, and mix thoroughly.
- Knead and shape: The mix will feel very wet, so knead it for a few moments until you feel it start to firm up. Then divide it into 4 equal patties.
- Chill the patties: Put the patties in the fridge for at least an hour, or in the freezer for 15 minutes if you’re short of time.
- Make the sauce: While they chill, mix the ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard, pickle juice and onion powder, then season, taste and adjust. Keep it in the fridge until you need it.
- Fry the burgers: Heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a non-stick frying pan, then fry the burgers until they’re well browned on both sides. That takes about 4 to 5 minutes a side by my timing.
- Melt the cheese: For cheeseburgers, add a slice of cheese to each burger once you’ve flipped them. Then cover the pan with a lid, or an upturned wok, until the cheese starts to melt.
- Toast and build: Wipe the pan clean and lightly toast the buns cut-side down, which helps stop them going soggy. Then build the burgers with the sauce, red onion, tomato, gherkins and lettuce, and serve straight away.
FAQs
Can I bake them instead of frying?
They only fry this Veggie Feasts mix, but the vegetarian burgers on their official website, from Hairy Dieters Go Veggie, are baked instead. And those 8 patties of about 100g each go onto an oiled tray at 200°C, Fan 180°C, for 20 minutes.
That mix adds grated beetroot and fries the onion first, then chills for about two hours, at 412 calories a serving. And for the freezer, they open-freeze the shaped patties until firm, then box them up. But I’d guess these Veggie Feasts patties freeze the same way, though they don’t say so for this one.
How do I make them vegan?
Leave the egg out and skip the cheese, then use vegan mayo in the sauce, which is their own Veggie Feasts tip. And check your buns too, since some contain milk or egg, though that’s my note rather than theirs.
If you’d rather skip egg, the Big Tof tofu burgers in Eat Well Every Day use chia seeds, though they’re served with yoghurt or kefir. And they write “do be sure to include the chia seeds in the mix, as they help to bind everything together”.
Which beans work for veggie bean burgers?
Their chilli bean burgers in Everyday Winners take black, pinto or kidney beans, plus jalapeños, cumin, cinnamon and chilli paste or hot sauce. And they fry a spoonful as a tester first, so you can fix the chilli and salt before shaping the rest. And the same book’s vegetarian chilli uses all three beans at once.
In Veggie Feasts, Si and Dave write that a 500g bag of dried black beans makes about 1.2kg cooked, salted from the start. And they call salting only at the end “an old wives’ tale”, because the beans come out more tender and creamier. And by my maths one drained can is roughly 240g, so a bag covers about five batches of these.
Can I cook them on the barbecue?
Their aubergine and black bean burgers in Our Family Favourites come with barbecue instructions, and the aubergine and onion are roasted first for smokiness. Then the 6 patties sit on a foil tray over a medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, turning once, until crusted and piping hot.
I’d put the Biker burgers on a foil tray too, since the mix is softer than a beef patty, but that’s my call, not theirs. And if someone wants meat, their beef burgers with chuck steak cook on the same barbecue.
Is there a Hairy Bikers halloumi burger?
Yes, their halloumi burgers in Everyday Winners use two blocks, each cut into 4 thick slices and coated in oil, lemon and oregano. Then each slice is griddled for 2 to 3 minutes a side, and two slices go in every burger, sandwiching chilli jam and red onion.
The dressing is Greek yoghurt strained for half an hour, then mixed with mint, oregano and sugar, and the buns are ciabatta. And if you were after mushroom burgers, I haven’t found one in any of their books, though their halloumi tray bake is another meat-free dinner.
