If you make one veggie burger recipe, it has to be this one. These burgers have a wonderful savory flavor and hearty texture. They're grillable, too!
Say hello to the BEST veggie burger recipe! Of course, that’s just my opinion, but once you try it, I think you’ll agree. For one, these patties are grill-able! And if you’d rather be spending time in the sun than in the kitchen, you can even make them a day or two in advance.
But that’s not all. This veggie burger has an amazing meaty texture and savory, smoky flavor. It’ll keep its shape when it’s stuffed inside a bun, and it’s delicious with fancy fixings or with good old ketchup and mustard. Unlike many packaged veggie burgers, its incredible texture and flavor come from simple, plant-based ingredients, so it doesn’t just taste good – it’s good for you, too!
So many readers have made and loved this veggie burger recipe over the last few years. If it’s not already obvious, we’re also pretty obsessed with it. Jack and I are making it this weekend to celebrate the unofficial start of summer, and I hope you will too. Hearty, flavorful, and really darn fun, it’s not a recipe you want to miss!
Veggie Burger Recipe Ingredients
Instead of making a bean-based burger, I make this recipe with shiitake and portobello mushrooms! They give these meatless burgers a wonderful hearty texture and umami-rich flavor. Then, I round them out with these key ingredients:
- Tamari, balsamic vinegar, and mirin bring out the savory flavor of the mushrooms.
- Smoked paprika and sriracha make these burgers smoky and spicy.
- Finely chopped garlic and shallots add depth of flavor.
- Crushed walnuts give them a meaty bite.
- Short grain brown rice, panko bread crumbs, and ground flaxseed help these burgers hold together. DON’T use long-grain brown rice here. It’s not as sticky as short grain rice, so it doesn’t yield cohesive patties.
Even if you’re not a mushroom person, I think you’ll love this recipe. Smoky, savory, and meaty, it makes a darn good veggie burger.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Best Veggie Burger Recipe Tips
- Use rice that’s hot off the stove. The rice has to be sticky in order to bind these patties together. As a result, your rice must be freshly cooked, as leftover rice dries out in the fridge.
- Brush them with vegan Worcestershire sauce after cooking. These veggie burgers aren’t intended to imitate a beef burger by any means, but they do have a wonderful meaty texture and flavor. To add even more flavor and to make them slightly juicy, brush them with vegan Worcestershire sauce (I like Annie’s brand) when they come off the grill.
- Get ahead. You have a few options for prepping this veggie burger recipe ahead of time. The patties can be made up to a day in advance and stored on baking sheets in the fridge until ready to grill. You can also grill them in advance and store them in the fridge for 3 to 4 days – they reheat surprisingly well! If you have leftovers, freeze them in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Veggie Burger Serving Suggestions
Buns out (suns out)! Load your veggie burger up however you like – I like mine with avocado or guacamole, sliced red onion or pickled red onions, mustard, Sir Kensington’s Avocado Mayo (not vegan) or Fabanaise (vegan), sprouts, and a squirt of sriracha or chipotle sauce on a homemade bun. When I’m in the mood for extra heat, I’ll even add a few pickled jalapeños. If you simply like ketchup, mustard, and dill pickles, that’s fine too!
Since you’ll already have the grill going, I recommend serving these with grilled vegetables, grilled zucchini, or corn on the cob. They’d also be fantastic with sweet potato fries or any of these salad recipes:
- Best Broccoli Salad
- Easy Pasta Salad
- Greek Salad
- Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
- Watermelon Salad with Feta
- Cucumber Salad
For more salad ideas, check out these 37 best salad recipes!
More Favorite Cookout Recipes
If you love this veggie burger recipe, try one of these fun cookout recipes next:
- BBQ Jackfruit Sandwiches
- Portobello Mushroom Burgers
- Black Bean Burger
- Crispy Cauliflower Po’ Boy Sandwiches
- Easy Fajitas
- Vegetarian Tacos
Then, find 85 more delicious vegan recipes here!
Best Veggie Burger
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 2 shallots, chopped (⅔ cup)
- 16 ounces mushrooms, mix of shiitake + portobello, stemmed and diced
- 2 tablespoons tamari
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon mirin, or ½ teaspoon maple syrup
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons sriracha, more if desired
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
- ¼ cup ground flaxseed
- 2 cups cooked short-grain brown rice, freshly cooked so that it’s sticky*
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs, divided
- Vegan Worcestershire sauce, for brushing
- Nonstick cooking spray, for grilling
- Hamburger buns and desired burger fixings
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and sauté until soft, 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and a generous pinch of salt, and sauté until soft and browned, 6 to 9 minutes, turning down the heat slightly, as needed.
- Stir in the tamari, vinegar, and mirin. Stir, reduce the heat, then add the garlic, smoked paprika, and sriracha. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool slightly.
- In a food processor, combine the sautéed mushrooms, walnuts, flaxseed, brown rice, and ½ cup of the panko. Pulse until just combined. The mixture should hold together when pinched, but it should still have some texture.
- Transfer to a large bowl and fold in the remaining panko.
- Form into 8 patties, place them on a large plate and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
- If you're grilling the patties, preheat a grill to medium-high heat. Brush the patties with olive oil and spray the grill with cooking spray. Place the patties on the grill and use a spatula to press down lightly. Grill for 7 minutes on the first side, flip, and grill for 6 to 7 minutes on the second side, or until well-charred and cooked through.
- Alternately, cook the patties on the stove. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Coat the bottom of the skillet with oil and cook the patties for 5 to 6 minutes per side, or until well-charred and cooked through.
- Remove from the heat, brush with Worcestershire sauce, and serve with desired fixings.
Notes
I have made this recipe and enjoyed these burgers for years. I opt not to add Sriracha and replace Tamari with Coconut Aminos. I always double the recipe because I freeze them. I form the patties and cook using an iron skillet (don’t brush with Worcestershire at this point). I wrap each individually in foil and freeze. I find that after frozen, they hold together even better when prepared. When ready to use, I put under the broiler until heated through. Then I put together with sliced tomato, sliced red onion, avocado, vegan mayo, dijon mustard, lettuce and sliced pickled on toasted Ezekiel bread. OMG. These look beautiful and are delicious!
Hi Susan, I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed them – thank you for your helpful notes!
Can you use something other than rice to keep it lower carb?
I followed the recipe as written (except for a bit less sriracha and used sushi vinegar as a sub for mirin) and the burgers were delicious. The prep does take some time however it’s worth it. I think one of the keys is not pulsing too many times in the food processor so texture is maintained. This is going to be a staple in our house!
I’m so glad you loved the burgers, Birdie!
A great veggie burger easy to make and loved by all
So glad it was a hit, Michele!
Looking forward to trying these. I’m wondering if I can use regular breadcrumbs instead of panko. I have some fresh ones from a local bakery that I’ve been using for other recipes like Eggplant Parm. I realize it’s a different texture and density, that’s why I’m asking.
Hi Shannon, great question! We’ve never tried making this recipe with a different type of breadcrumbs. It might work, but like you said, the breadcrumbs will have a different texture and density, which could affect the final texture and cohesiveness of the burgers. I’d stick with panko if you want to be fully confident in the results. Or if you try using the other breadcrumbs, let us know how it goes!
Do you think this recipe will still
Work to add lentils for more protein?
Hi Deanna, adding lentils might affect how cohesive the burgers are. For a higher protein veggie burger, I’d recommend making our black bean burger recipe.
Sub for walnuts? Nut and sunflower allergy. Pumpkin seeds maybe?
Hi Brooke, I haven’t tried making this recipe with pepitas, but it might work. I’d use 1/4 cup instead of 1/2. You might also enjoy our black bean burger recipe instead. It’s nut-free.
Hi do you have the info for the carbohydrates in your recipes ?
Hi Roxanne, we don’t calculate nutrition facts for our recipes unfortunately, but you could use an online nutrition calculator to get an estimate.
It would be super helpful to have nutrition facts for your recipes. I want to be able to use them all but when I have to figure it out before making, that’s not cool.
These are fantastic and a welcome change from the black bean burgers I typically make. They are a little time consuming, but totally worth the effort! This is my new favorite recipe and will definitely be making them again. Thank you so much!
Hi Susan, I’m so glad you loved the veggie burgers!
I was quite pleased how well they held up on the grill. I used a medium-grain brown rice as I couldn’t find short grained. My only thought is to add a little more siracha and spices as they were a little bland. I like that they are healthier than the ones from the store since they have simple and healthy ingredients. Even though bland, I liked them as store veggie burgers are bland as well. Of course my meat eating husband wasn’t’ thrilled so I will keep these to myself!
These are SO yummy, have doubled the recipe and frozen them both times I’ve made them and they still go so quick.
Hi Liz, I’m glad you’ve enjoyed them!
The most delicious whole food, plant based burger. These are my go to burger. I cook them on a grill on my stove and they are perfect every time. They REALLY are the BEST!
Hi Elizabeth, thanks for your sweet comment. I’m so glad you love the burgers!
These are seriously AMAZING!!! Thank you!! My son was curios about making them like “meatballs” and I was wondering if you’ve ever tried baking them? I didn’t know if that would make them dry? Or how long to cook them? Please let me know if you have any suggestions. Thanks!! And thanks for this delicious recipe! 🙂
Hi Jenny, we haven’t tried forming this recipe into balls, but I think it would work! In that case, it might work best to cook them like we do these vegan meatballs—searing them in a skillet and then baking them. We’ve tried baking the burgers before but found that they were drier than the ones we cooked on the grill or in a skillet. Hope this helps!
Thanks so much! I’ll check out that other recipe:)
I love the flavor, but mine came out mushy. Any suggestions?
Hi Mary, I’m glad you loved the taste! These burgers won’t be as firm in the middle as a meat burger would be, but they shouldn’t be super mushy. Did you change anything about the recipe? My biggest tip would be to make sure to chill them in the fridge for at least an hour before cooking. It helps them firm up.
Delicious burger. I am vegan and I made them for july4th for omnivore friends and we all agreed that these were the best vegan/ vegetarian burgers we’d ever eaten! They were not hard to make either. I even had to use gluten free panko. Thank you for this fantastic recipe that I will definitely make again!
Hi Stacy, I’m so glad the burgers were a hit!
Hi, making these for my Daughter and son in law. Both non meat eaters. Wantt o make them a few so they can take out of freezer and have when ever. My question is can I freeze them before cooking and they could fry, bake ,grill them from frozen? Or do you recommend cooking and freezing them for later as the best way? Thanks, smell amazing, tastes very good ( Great) love the walnuts and mushrooms, this meat eater approves!!!
Lol
Hi Bruce, I’d recommend cooking them first and then freezing. They reheat nicely in the microwave or oven!
What is the nutritional value?
Hi Lisa, We don’t calculate nutrition facts for our recipes unfortunately, but you could use an online nutrition calculator to get an estimate.
I can’t get short grain brown rice could I sub short grain white? Like a sushi rice or arborio?
Delicious “meaty” flavor, but my results were much too dry. The patties fell apart when I cooked them in a skillet. Any tips for making them moister/juicier?
I am BLOWN AWAY by these burgers!!!
These are the best veggie burgers I have ever had (homemade AND store bought!) When I saw that they weren’t bean based, i felt a little apprehensive because veggie based burgers in grocery stores usually have black beans as the main ingredient or some type of soy protein, but all of the reviews were so positive, I had to try it! The way that the burgers formed together, after the fridge and after being cooked, literally was like the perfect burger texture. Not to mention the flavor! I told my boyfriend that I need to make these again asap but double the batch! I usually eat beyond/impossible burgers, but I’m trying to spend less money at the grocery store and these burgers are out of this world and SO budget friendly!
Hi Shay, I’m so glad you both loved them so much!
This actually IS the best veggie burger! So happy to have found this recipe and all of Love and Lemons.
Thank you!
Yay!! So glad you’re loving the recipes