Vegan Quinoa Beet Burger
on Nov 10, 2020, Updated Aug 28, 2024
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This easy vegan quinoa beet burger recipe holds together well through cooking and has a wonderful flavour and texture.
About the Recipe
These vegan beet burgers are crispy on the outside, soft on the inside and have a delicious flavour you’ll love for burgers, wraps, salads and snacks.
They’re also hearty and satisfying making them a great option for a meatless burger. A few more details about the recipe:
- Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, nut-free, oil-free and soy-free.
- Easy to make with a few simple steps.
- Amazing flavour and texture.
- Hold together well through cooking and eating!
- Great on buns or added to salads and bowls.
- Low in fat and about 100 calories each.
If you enjoy making homemade veggie burgers, you’ll have to try this Vegan Mushroom Veggie Burger, Vegan Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers and Spicy Chickpea Veggie Burgers next!
Ingredients
- Onion: White onion or yellow onion is best. Shallot would also work.
- Quinoa: You can use white, red or tri-colour quinoa. You’ll need cooked quinoa for the recipe, which can be made in advance to save time.
- Flax: Be sure to use ground flax, not whole flax seeds. This is a key ingredient for binding the burgers.
- Oats: You can use quick oats, rolled oats or old-fashioned oats.
- Breadcrumbs: You can use any variety of finely ground breadcrumbs. To make the burgers gluten-free, make sure you use gluten-free breadcrumbs.
- Balsamic Vinegar: This can be substituted with red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar.
- Spices: You’ll need cumin, coriander and salt for seasoning though you can experiment with different flavourings. Try Mexican-inspired spices like paprika and chili powder, or Indian-inspired with curry powder, turmeric, etc.
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.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Before You Start: Chop the onion and garlic. Grate the beet using a box or handheld grater. Cook quinoa according to package instructions if you don’t have cooked quinoa prepared.
Step 1. Add the onion, garlic and grated beet to a pan and cook for 7-10 minutes until softened and fragrant.
Step 2. While the veggies are cooking, add the oats to a food processor and blend them into grainy flour. It doesn’t have to be super fine but they should be broken down into coarse flour.
Step 3. Add the rest of the ingredients, including the cooked veggies from the pan, to the food processor with the oat flour and process to combine.
The mixture should be well-combined and somewhat smooth but not totally processed, a few chunky bits and bites are ok! We want the burgers to have some texture to them so be careful not to over-process.
Step 4. Use your hands to shape the mixture into 8 patties.
Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat and add a light coating of non-stick cooking spray (you may not need any cooking oil or spray if you have a good non-stick pan).
Cook the patties for 5-10 minutes per side until browned and crisped on the outside. I cooked the patties for about 5 minutes per side then continued flipping them every 30 seconds or so for a total of 15 minutes until they were nice and browned. Make sure the pan isn’t too hot so they don’t burn
Enjoy your yummy burgers on a bun with favourites like lettuce, onion, cheese and tomato!
FAQs
Yes, brown rice works in this recipe as an alternative to quinoa.
Yes. Preheat to oven to 375 F and rub or spray the top of the patties with a light coating of olive oil. This isn’t required but it prevents the burgers from drying out in the oven.
Bake them for 15 minutes, then flip and bake another 10-15 minutes.
Storing
- Raw: Raw patties can be prepped and stored in the fridge for 1-2 days before cooking.
- Fridge: Let cool then store cooked patties in a sealed container for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: Let cool then store cooked patties in a sealed container or freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months. I’d suggest placing a square of wax or parchment paper between the patties so they don’t stick together.
- Reheating: Let thaw overnight in the fridge if frozen then reheat in the microwave, stovetop or oven until heated to your preference. Ok to enjoy cold too, they’re great added to salads and bowls!
Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Scroll down to comment section below to leave your star rating and review.
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Quinoa Beet Burger
Ingredients
- 1 white onion, diced (approx. 1.5 cups, 200 g)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 small beets, peeled and grated (approx. 3 cups, 360 g)
- 1 cup cooked quinoa, 150 g
- 2 tbsp ground flax, 12 g
- 1 cup oats, 100 g
- 1/4 cup fine breadcrumbs, 25 g, use gluten-free if needed
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- If you don't have cooked quinoa on hand, start preparing that now. Cook according to package instructions or bring 1 cup of water to a boil, add 1/2 cup quinoa, cover and reduce to a light simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, let sit for 5 minutes then fluff with a fork.
- Add the diced onion, garlic and grated beet to a pan and cook for 7-8 minutes until softened.
- While they're cooking, add the oats to a food processor and process into flour. It's okay if it's a little grainy, it doesn't have to be super fine.
- Add the rest of the burger ingredients to the food processor, including the cooked beet mixture and mix until well combined. It should be quite smooth but not totally processed, a few chunky bits and bites are ok.
- Use your hands to shape the mixture into 8 patties.
- Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat and add some non-stick cooking spray. Add the patties and cook for about 5-10 minutes per side. I kept flipping them over for about 15 minutes until they were nice and crisped on the outside. Just make sure the pan isn't too hot so you don't burn them.
- Enjoy hot on a toasted bun with your favourite toppings like lettuce, onion, cheese and tomato.
Video
Notes
- Storing: Raw patties can be prepped and stored in the fridge for 1-2 days before cooking. To store cooked patties, let cool then store cooked patties in a sealed container for up to 5 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer. If freezing, I’d suggest placing a square of wax or parchment paper between patties so they don’t stick together.
- Reheating: Let thaw overnight in the fridge if frozen then reheat in the microwave, stovetop or oven until heated to your preference. Ok to enjoy cold too, they’re great added to salads and bowls!
I forgot to cook the onion and beets first. Will that mess up the recipe?
They may not hold together as well but if you’ve already blended everything there’s not much you can do! Just proceed as written.
I forgot to cook the onion and beets first. Will that messes up the recipe?
Flavor was awesome! Even my picky son praised and ate. Mine did turn out rather soft and gooey on the inside though. Any suggestions to change the texture a bit?
Any suggestions for swaps on the oats?
You could try breadcrumbs or quinoa flakes but I haven’t tested it. Thanks!
My son sent this recipe to me, and it is wonderful! I eat a plant-based diet, my husband doesn’t, but he still gave it thumbs up. Good texture and consistency, and the flavoring is very nice
So glad you both enjoyed them! Thanks so much for the review.
Oh my goodness! These were amazing! My family (including my young kids) raves over how good they were, claiming them as a “do again!” There was only one small swap 8 had to do, since I don’t keep breadcrumbs on hand (even GF). I subbed 3 tbsp of coconut flour and the texture was perfect, holding together well in the skillet. Thanks for another winner, Deryn!
Awesome! So glad everyone enjoyed them and thanks for adding your note on the swap…glad that worked out!
These are pretty good. A few modifications: I used chopped beets that I had previously cooked in the instant pot. I sautéed the onions and garlic, then added in the beets. I mixed all the dry ingredients in the food processor, then added the beet/onion mixture. I folded in the quinoa (I used 1 cup of cooked quinoa) until it had a nice texture. I forgot about the balsamic vinegar, but I drizzled some balsamic vinaigrette over the patties after cooking. delicious on salad greens, as an alternative to falafel, or on a hamburger bun.
Thank you so much for this recipe, it’s THE VEGAN BURGER. I make it all the time for non vegan friends and family reunions and we all love it! <3
That’s so awesome! Glad to hear it! I haven’t made this one in a while, thanks for the reminder I need to! Have you tried my chickpea veggies burgers? They’re the most popular recipe on my blog, you should check them out!
These might be the best veggie patties I’ve ever had! I swapped out chickpea flour for the breadcrumbs and since I don’t have a food processor I blitzed the oats in a blender then combined everything by hand. I baked them for a long while and they came out with an amazing caramelized onion flavour and held together really well.
Amazing! Good to know that baking them worked out, I haven’t tried that yet. Good call on the chickpea flour!! So glad you liked them!
These look great! Do you know if they freeze and reheat well?
Hmm, I haven’t tried but I’m thinking they would freeze well, yes! Let me know if you try it.