The Best Chickpea Burgers
on May 23, 2013, Updated May 19, 2026
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These spicy chickpea burgers have been a reader favourite since 2013, and for good reason. They’re easy to make with everyday ingredients, they hold their shape, and they work for everyone at the table, vegans, vegetarians and meat-eaters alike.
Build them as a classic burger, stuff them in a wrap, add them to a salad, or make them as sliders or nuggets for a party. A solid veggie option for BBQs and weeknights all year long.
5-Star Review
This is an absolutely killer veggie burger recipe. The burger holds it shape well when cooked. The peanut butter adds a nice depth of flavor and the sriracha gives just enough zing to the burger. Topped with a slice of avocado it really shines. One of the best, if not the best, veggie burger i’ve had. Thanks for sharing this great recipe!
Why You’ll Love these Chickpea Burgers
- Vegan, with easy swaps for gluten-free and nut-free.
- Grill, pan-fry or bake, all three methods work well.
- Hundreds of 5-star reviews from readers who’ve been making these since 2013.
- Simple ingredients you likely already have on hand.
- The patties hold together through cooking and eating.
- Make ahead and store in the fridge or freezer.
- No eggs required.
If you’re looking for more veggie burgers that don’t fall apart, these mushroom veggie burgers are excellent.
Ingredient Notes
Below is a quick overview of what you’ll need to make the recipe and any substitutions you can make. Use the recipe card with the full list of ingredients and measurements at the bottom of the post when you’re ready to make the recipe.
This list is not complete. Please see the recipe card at the end of the post for the complete ingredient list with measurements and detailed instructions.
- Chickpeas: The recipe uses 1 19 oz can, or 2 cups of cooked chickpeas. Rinse and drain well if you’re using canned chickpeas.
- Red Onion: Red onion adds the best flavour to the patties. The next best option is shallots, followed by white or yellow onion, or green onion (scallion).
- Zucchini: You’ll need 1 small zucchini or about 1 cup lightly packed. You do not need to drain or peel it.
- Cilantro: If you don’t like cilantro, you can substitute fresh basil or parsley.
- Red Wine Vinegar: I like red wine vinegar best in these but you can substitute balsamic vinegar, white vinegar or apple cider vinegar.
- Sriracha: Adds a bit of heat to the patties. They aren’t overly spicy but you can omit this if you’re sensitive to spice. Chili garlic paste or sambal oelek would work as a substitute, otherwise, you can use any hot sauce you enjoy such as Frank’s or buffalo sauce.
- Peanut Butter: Substitute almond butter for a peanut-free recipe. For a nut-free recipe, you can use tahini or sunflower seed butter. I prefer the flavour of sunflower seed butter over tahini in these.
- Spices: You’ll need cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Note it’s a full 2 teaspoons of black pepper which adds quite a quick so considering starting with 1 tsp and adjusting to your preference.
- Oats: Quick oats are used because they’re finer than rolled oats so they help the burgers hold together better. You can also use instant oats. If you only have rolled oats, those work too but I’d suggest letting the raw mixture sit for at least 10 minutes so they have more time to absorb moisture. Note the burgers are naturally gluten-free but be sure to use gluten-free certified oats if needed. Do not use steel cut oats.
How to Make Chickpea Burgers
Step 1: Prepare the chickpeas. You can either mash them in a bowl with a fork or pulse them a few times in a food processor.
You just want to break them down a bit and create texture, not pulverize them or turn them into a paste.
Step 2: Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. I’d suggest doing this in a bowl and using your hands, though you can use a food processor if you like.
Just be sure you don’t over mix it. It should have some texture to it and not be totally smooth.
Step 3: Form 6-8 patties using your hands. You can do 6 large burgers, stretch it to 8 smaller patties or even make 12-16 slider or nugget-sized patties.
Step 4: Cook the patties on a BBQ or grill, in the oven or in a pan on the stovetop.
- Pan-Frying: Heat oil or use a little cooking spray in a large skillet or cast-iron pan. Cook the patties for about 5 minutes per side until browned and firm.
- Oven Baked: Preheat oven to 400 F then cook the patties for 20 minutes, flipping once halfway through.
- BBQ/Grill: Heat the BBQ then cook the patties for 10-15 minutes, flipping occasionally until browned and crispy.
Serving Chickpea Burgers
- Low-Carb Option: Wrap in lettuce with mustard, onion, tomato and any other burger toppings you enjoy.
- Classic Burger: Stack on a toasted bun and top with ketchup, mustard, onion, lettuce, tomato and any other burger toppings you enjoy.
- Try quick pickled red onion or roasted red peppers for toppings.
- Wraps: Try a patty in a wrap with spinach, avocado and any sauce you enjoy.
- Appetizer Option: For a party appetizer, use the mixture to make nugget-sized patties and serve with honey mustard, sweet chili sauce or plum sauce for dipping. This also works to make sliders.
- This homemade cashew spicy mayo, vegan tzatziki, cheese sauce or chipotle sauce make a yummy sauce for your burger.
- Burgers are always delicious served with a side of fries!
Recipe FAQs
The peanut butter acts as a binding agent and adds moisture and flavour. If you can’t use peanut butter, you can substitute it with almond butter to make the recipe peanut-free.
If you have a nut-allergy, use sunflower seed butter or tahini instead for a nut-free recipe.
You can but quick oats are used because they’re finer than rolled oats so they absorb more moisture and help with binding the burgers.
If you’re using rolled oats or old fashioned oats you can either pulse them in a food processor a few times to break them down before use, or let the batter rest for 10-15 minutes before forming the patties to allow the oats to absorb moisture.
You can but I prefer the texture with oil. If you omit it consider adding an addition tablespoon of nut or seed butter to account for the moisture.
Some readers have used aquafaba (chickpea cooking liquid) to replace the oil, so that’s an option as well.
Yes, these freeze really well. Let the patties cool completely, then layer them between sheets of parchment and store in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Reheat straight from frozen in a pan over medium heat or in the oven at 375°F until warmed through.
Usually it comes down to too much moisture in the mixture. If your patties aren’t holding together, try draining and drying your chickpeas well before mashing, and give the mixture 10–15 minutes in the fridge before forming patties.
Yes. They actually are gluten-free as written, just make sure you use gluten-free certified oats if needed.
No. A fork or potato masher works fine. You want the chickpeas mostly mashed with some texture remaining, not a smooth paste.
Making Ahead & Storing
- Fridge: Cooked patties can be stored in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: Cooked patties can be frozen in a sealed container or freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw briefly at room temperature or in the fridge before reheating.
- Reheating: Reheat your burgers in a pan or in the oven for 10-12 minutes at 350 F until heated through. They can be reheated in the microwave but get a bit soggy. You can also enjoy them cold.
- Make in Advance: Raw patties can be prepared 1 day in advance and stored in the fridge in a sealed container or covered on a plate until you’re ready to cook them.
If you make this recipe, please consider leaving a comment and a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comment section below. It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe, and I love to hear from you. Thanks for trying my recipes! – Deryn
The Best Chickpea Burgers
Ingredients
- 19 oz can chickpeas, drained, well-rinsed and mashed, 2 cups
- 1/2 red onion, finely diced, 50 g, approx. 1/3 cup
- 1 small zucchini, grated, 100 g, approx. 1 cup lightly packed
- 3 tbsp finely chopped fresh cilantro, 15 g
- 3 tbsp red wine vinegar, 45 mL
- 1 tbsp sriracha sauce, 15 mL
- 2 tbsp peanut butter, 30 g
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup quick oats, 100 g
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 30 ml
Instructions
- After draining and rinsing the chickpeas, place them in a bowl and mash them with a fork or pulse a few times with an immersion blender.
- Add all the other ingredients to the bowl and use your hands to mix very well.
- Use your hands to shape the mixture into into 6-8 patties.
- Cook on the BBQ at 400 F for approximately 10 minutes per side or heat 1-2 tsp oil in a nonstick pan over medium heat and cook the burgers for about 5 minutes per side until browned and firm. The patties can also be oven-baked at 400 F for 20-30 minutes, flipping half-way through.
- Serve on a toasted bun with your favourite burger toppings like lettuce, onion, tomato, ketchup and mustard.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published May 23, 2013.
What can I substitute for the oats? I don’t have any oats and need to make these tonight
I wouldn’t recommend anything other than quinoa flakes and I even has not been tested, the oats are a key part of the recipe. Thanks!
OK my wife and I rate this as EXCELLENT. I was cooking a big pot of chickpeas for hummus so I decided to throw this together for dinner tonight. What a wonderful surprise – we have two bags of Gardien Beefless burgers in the freezer and once they are used up no more processed burgers for us. This is the answer.
As usual I cannot follow a recipe exactly. Although we love and eat Siracha all the time our bottle was essentially empty but I had a freshly opened can of harissa sauce which I use in my hummus. The harissa was not too spicy so I added 3 TBLS of harissa. I added extra Cumin and extra garlic powder (about double recommended). I did not use any oil or salt either as I figured the harissa would fill in for them. I mixed it all together and then put it in the refigerator for a couple hours as we ran errands. The patties formed very easily and held together better than any veggie burgers we have made to date. I grilled them on a very hot grill using a grill mat. Watch them closely as I almost burned them but they held up great.
Sorry but I had to steal another of your ideas for topping we used the remaining red onion (ours was very big and I only used 1/4 in the burger) thinly sliced and you guessed it some more harissa. All this on a toasted onion bun on the grill plus a bowl of air fried potato fries and our dinner was complete.
I think the ultimate compliment was my wife ate two of these burgers which is amazing. Thank you for this great idea.
Could I substitute something other than zucchini?
Hi Ang, I haven’t tested this recipe with anything other than zucchini, however, some readers have used celery and I suspect grated carrot would work well too. I can’t guarantee results because I haven’t tried it myself but if you you want to give it a go, those would be my suggestion. Let me know if you try it!
I tried the grated carrot and loved the little bit of sweetness for the carrots! 🥕
Great! Good to know! Glad you enjoyed them.
I’ve made these so many times over the years but the consistency is always different. How do you keep the zucchini from making it too mushy?
If you like, you can add the grated zucchini to a colander with a pinch of salt and let it sit for 10 minutes. Place the zucchini on top of a flat dishtowel and wrap the towel around it so you’re able to squeeze out any excess moisture. That being said, I have never taken this step for this recipe and they don’t come out mushy. If they’re mushy, it’s probably just too much zucchini. Use about 1 cup of grated zucchini. Thanks!
Would flax meal work for a binding agent? I don’t have any oats.
I wouldn’t recommend replacing all of the oats with flax. You could add a little bit of flax but they won’t be good with a cup of it. I would wait until you’re able to get some oats. Thanks!
Hello. Do you think it would work out make them a day before, store them in the the fridge and grilled them the next day?
Cheers!
Yes that’s fine. Enjoy!
Great recipe. Super delicious! Added 1 small shredded carrot, some ground flax and little bit of aquafaba. Came out really good. Thank you
Wonderful! Glad you enjoyed them.
I have been making black bean burgers forever…and this time had a can of chickpeas in the pantry instead of black beans. I was in burger mood and decided to look up a recipe to see if I could use chickpeas instead of black beans. Voila! These were super amazing, perfectly spiced, and DID stick together …. and my husband thought these were waaayyy better than the black bean ones I had been making. So, Thank you Deryn!! Job well done!
We don’t have 19 oz cans of chickpeas, only 15 1/2 oz cans. But I usually start with dry chickpeas. How many cups should I use after I’ve cooked them?
2 cups.
This is one of our go-to dinners during this stay at home period! Delicious and easy to make. We are baking them in the oven. I’m no longer missing restaurant veggie burgers. Thank you so much Deryn!
You’re so welcome! So glad you’re enjoying them, thanks for letting me know!!