Vegan Mediterranean Chickpea Burgers
A handful of you might already recognize this recipe and that’s because I published it on here a little over a year ago. It’s one of my all-time favorite veggie burgers but the pictures at that time weren’t so great and, because it’s a vegan recipe, they didn’t consistently hold together. Sooooo I decided to revisit it and make a few tweaks to assure that they have the puuurrfffect firm texture to go along with delicious Mediterranean flavah.
The ingredient list is practically the same as last time with chickpeas, sundried tomatoes, spinach, lemon and garlic as the main players.
The key to making them extra flavorful is to buy sundried tomatoes that are marinated in oil so that you can use that same oil to cook the garlic and the burgers.
A few tips that I learned help create a firm texture are using a food processor to blend the majority of the chickpeas and to finely chop the sundried tomatoes and spinach.
When you first start to process the chickpeas, they’re a little firm so you want to keep blending until they’re soft to touch. That texture will help bind the burgers.
Another tip is to make sure to drain the oil (but reserve for cooking later) from the sundried tomatoes before finely chopping them. The tomatoes have absorbed enough of the oil on their own and any more would make for a mushy burger.
Lastly, adding flour as you’re combining everything towards the end helps absorb any excess moisture, and refrigerating them for at least 30 minutes prior to cooking allows them to set so that they’re sure to hold together.
The end result is absolutely perfect. I never thought I would be able to get a vegan veggie burger with such great texture and flavor but my friends, these are it!
We especially love eating them on a warm bun with fresh spinach leaves, a little vegan mayonnaise and avocado, but honestly they’re great on their own if you don’t want to fuss with anything else.
Let me know if you get a chance to try them! I have a feeling you’ll love them as much as we do!
Ingredients
2 (15 ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 cups baby spinach, finely chopped (about 1 cup chopped)
1/2 cup whole wheat or gluten-free panko breadcrumbs (could also use ground oats)
4 garlic cloves, minced (about 1 heaping tablespoon)
8.5 ounces sundried tomatoes, marinated in oil (about 12 or 1 cup)
Zest and juice of 2 lemons
2 tablespoons ground flax + 3 tablespoons water
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons flour of choice (I used brown rice flour)
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (optional)
lettuce/avocado for topping
Instructions
- Start by combining the flax and water in a measuring cup and then set it aside to thicken.
- Next warm one tablespoon of the oil from the sundried tomatoes in a skillet over low to medium heat then add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, being careful not to overcook. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Place one cup of the drained and rinsed chickpeas into a large bowl and then put the rest in the food processor. Zest both of the lemons into the bowl with the chickpeas and then squeeze the juice of one lemon into the food processor with the chickpeas. Pulse until they are soft (similar to picture in post) but not pureed, about 20 seconds, checking intermittently. Transfer them to the large bowl and set aside.
- Add the spinach to the food processor and pulse until it’s finely chopped then add it to the bowl with the chickpeas. Drain the sundried tomatoes (reserving excess oil to cook the burgers later) and then place them into the food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
- Transfer the sundried tomato mixture into the large bowl along with the sautéed garlic, the breadcrumbs. the nutritional yeast (if using) and the flax-water mixture then stir until well-combined. Squeeze in the juice of the second lemon and add 1/4 cup flour then stir together. Add 2 more tablespoons of flour while continuing to stir until evenly combined. If the mixture is still too wet, add another tablespoon of flour at a time until it is firm enough to handle.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Using your hands, scoop about 1/4-1/3 cup of the mixture out of the bowl and then form them into separate patties, placing each one on the lined baking sheet as you go.
- Refrigerate the burgers on the baking sheet for 30 minutes to an hour before cooking. This helps them set so that they hold together better. Once you’re ready to cook, warm the reserved oil from the sundried tomatoes in a skillet over medium heat. Then cook the burgers for about 5 minutes on each side, until golden brown.
- Serve immediately on a warm bun with vegan mayonnaise, avocado and spinach.
- Store uncooked in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutritional Facts for One Mediterranean Chickpea Burger
I am blown away buy the texture of these burgers – simply fabulous! Love the extra spinach sneaked in too!
Unfortunately, I still have no TV (or cable), so I didn’t watch the Oscars…although I did briefly scan yahoo news and saw something about Sean Penn being a douche? Didn’t click to read, but I am bummed I missed the show. And I’ll definitely have to check out Boyhood!
I love the idea of Mediterranean-izing these banzo burgz! Just so much flavaaaaah!
Isn’t Sean Penn always being a douche? haha
Birdman actually won Best Picture but I haven’t seen it yet. Boyhood was good but American Sniper was definitely my favorite of what I’ve seen so far!
These look amazing! I’ve been on a falafel kick recently (mostly because I can’t get enough tzatziki) but this would be a nice way to switch things up! Thanks for sharing!
Yum! I’m not a vegetarian/vegan, but I love veggie burgers anyway. I didn’t make it to the end of the Oscars cause I got tired. I called it a day around 11 so I missed all the “big” awards!
You didn’t miss very much! :)
MAKING THESE!! I love chickpeas, like I’ll eat a whole can on my own in one sitting. I also happen to love Mediterranean flavors, so these are a double whammy in love department. So pretty too!
Yum! We’ve been all about “veggie” bean burgers lately and these look perfect. I love when bloggers go back and perfect some of their previous recipes too. It gives me a reminder to try them and ideas on how to make a few of mine better as well :)
I knew these sounded familiar! Soooo yummy and healthy. I didn’t watch the Oscars last night! But I did check out the outfits today. Hope you have a great week, Sarah! :)
I absolutely love making chickpea burgers! You’re right though, usually when I make them, it is a bit tough to keep the patties together. I’ll have to reference these tips the next time I make em for better texture!
Chickpeas are definitely one of my absolute favorite beans to make veggie burgers with. I love the Mediterranean twist that you put on these!
I must have missed these the first time you posted them, so I’m glad you did a repost. These look so delicious! I’m a sucker for anything with sun dried tomatoes.
I fell asleep halfway through the Oscars, haha. :) These buyers sound great. I’ve been wanting to make a batch of vegetarian burgers and stick some in my freezer. How long do you think they’ll keep frozen?
I know, I ended-up fast forwarding to the end! :)
They should keep for up to 3 months but I’ve never waited that long. I usually eat all of them within a few weeks. :)
I always love hearing about blogger’s favorite recipes – ones they’ve made and shared for a blog post, but continue to make over and over again at home. That’s when you know you’ve got a winner recipe! I love veggie burgers, but I don’t like black beans in my burgers, so I can’t wait to try this!! :)
I love the fact that these chickpea burgers are so easy to make and freeze really well too – this is the perfect recipe for me to make for myself and vegetarian family!
CHICKPEA BURGERS sounds so delectably yummy. Would love to give it a try soon! Pinned! :)
Somehow I don’t remember these chickpea burgers??? Which is slightly crazy because I tend to make all your burgers! haha These look so good! I love all those mediterranean flavors going on!
How amazing are these?! Dying over the firmess! I see these happening in the very near future.
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These look SO good! I need to make them!
Thanks, Kristine! They’re one of my favorites! :)
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This site… these recipes!! My Pinterest is getting flooded with things I NEED to try and this… wow. It’s 5:30 am here and I am already considering making these… They would rock for breakfast too, I am sure!
I came here via a back bean soup for slowcookers, and I stayed for the BAZILLION fab recipes that make me soooo very hungry… LOL.
Thank you so much for all the foodie inspiration! :D
Thank you, Zarah! I’m so happy you are enjoying my site and recipes! And I love your name, it is so beautiful! :)
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Just put these in my fridge to set but I noticed the recipe doesn’t say when to add the nutritional yeast. I added it when I added the flax/water mix but I wasn’t sure if that was right.
Sorry about that, Rebecca! That was a good time to add it. I hope they turned out well for you!
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Can you help me figure out how to adapt this recipe without flour of any kind? My food program restricts the use of any flour. I don’t think it would have the right texture without flour. I will use the ground oats though in place of the breadcrumbs
You could try adding more oats! Or maybe almond meal which is just ground up almonds. Let me know if you give it a try!
These are gorgeous and very flavorful. I loved them! Thank you for the recipe
You’re so welcome, Rachel! Thank you for taking the time to comment. :)
Hi! I’m making these now. Can they be baked? I’m staying away from any extra oil so I would prefer to not cook them in the oil. Thoughts? Thank you.
Yes! You can bake them at 400°F for about 7 minutes on each side. :)
Do we need to refrigerate them if we plan to bake them?
You can prob skip that step if you like. I hope you enjoy them!
I made these tonight and these are amazing! Love the taste and the sundried tomatoes and the oil make this delicious. I want to experiment with different herbs maybe add a little green onion, but these are fabulous – THANK YOU so much for this amazing recipe. Do these freeze well?
Yes, they do! Allow them to cool to room temp before freezing and use parchment paper or tinfoil in between each one to keep them from sticking together.
Made these last night for the family and they came out great. The family loved them and the kids ate two! The only thing I would add to the recipe is some salt. I made it without the nutritional yeast. That may have been the difference.
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Hi Sarah,
Sounds like a great recipe. Can i substitute sundried tomatoes without oil? I do not eat added oil. I got a little lost with the chickpea separation versus food processing part?
Thanks Norman
Hi Norman, you could try using sun-dried tomatoes without oil but you may need to add something for moisture. Possibly another flax egg. I can’t say exactly without testing it myself.
As far as the chickpeas, you will measure out 1 cup from the can and place them in a large bowl. Then you put the remaining amounts of what’s left in the can (plus the second can) in the food processor and blend until they stick together between your fingers. I hope that helps!
I did this today and liked very much. Made 10 cooked and frozen. Next time will lessen the dried tomatoes.
Tks.
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