This chipotle black bean burger recipe comes together in under 30 minutes! Make it once, and it'll have a permanent place in your regular rotation.
This black bean burger recipe is going to be your new best friend. The hearty patties are charred on the outside, tender in the middle, and packed with bold, smoky flavor. But that’s not all. They’re also easy to make! You won’t need to haul out the food processor or dirty 3 pans to whip them up. Nope – this black bean burger recipe comes together in one bowl in under 30 minutes, cooking time included.
Lately, Jack and I have been cooking the burgers outside on the grill, but they come out just as well in a cast-iron skillet on the stove. Make them for a laid-back summer cookout or for a quick weeknight dinner at any time of year. They’re the newest addition to our regular recipe rotation, and once you try them, they’ll have a permanent spot in yours, too.
Black Bean Burger Recipe Ingredients
Another great thing about this recipe? It uses basic ingredients! You likely have all of them on hand already:
- Black beans, of course! Use canned, or cook your own.
- Onion – I grate the onion on the large holes of a box grater before mashing it with the other ingredients. When you grate it, the onion will release a lot of liquid. That’s normal! Add the moist onion pulp to the black bean mixture, leaving excess liquid behind on your work surface.
- Garlic – Along with the onion, it gives this black bean burger recipe sharp depth of flavor.
- Canned chipotles and adobo sauce – They add smoky flavor and a little heat.
- Balsamic vinegar and tamari – They make the patties tangy and savory.
- Panko bread crumbs – They give the burgers their hearty texture.
- An egg – To bind everything together!
- And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Combine the black beans, onion, garlic, chipotles and adobo sauce, cumin, balsamic, tamari, salt, and pepper in a large bowl.
Use a large fork or potato masher to mash the mixture until it starts to hold together but still has visible chunks of black beans. Fold in the egg, followed by the panko bread crumbs.
Form the mixture into 6 patties, about a heaping 1/3 cup each. Then, cook! You can use a cast-iron skillet or an outdoor grill for this step. Either way, the patties should be well-charred, crisp on the outside, and tender in the middle. Enjoy!
Best Black Bean Burger Recipe Tips
- If the black bean mixture is too wet to handle, pop it in the fridge. It firms up nicely after chilling for just 20 minutes!
- Or mash it more. The mashed black beans play an important role in making these patties firm and cohesive. If your mixture won’t hold together, continue to mash the beans until you’re able to form patties.
- Can’t flip them? Keep cooking. If you’re grilling your patties, make sure to cook them for a full 8 minutes on the first side. If they’re sticking to the grill, keep cooking! Chances are, they’ll be easy to flip in a minute or two, once the first side is nice and charred. I also recommend brushing the patties with olive oil before putting them on the grill to prevent sticking.
- Charred burgers are better burgers. This black bean burger recipe comes out best when the patties have a really nice char. If you’re cooking them on the grill, look for distinct grill marks and crisp edges. If you cook them in a skillet, each side should be crisp and blackened. For the best results, make sure your skillet is hot when you add the patties, and cook them for 4-5 minutes on each side.
- Get ahead. This is a great recipe to make in advance! If you want to cook the burgers right before you eat, mash together the beans and seasonings, fold in the egg and panko, and form the burger patties. Then, transfer the patties to a baking sheet, cover, and refrigerate them for up to a day before cooking. Otherwise, cook the patties in advance and reheat them before serving. Store the cooked patties in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Black Bean Burger Serving Suggestions
Once you’ve cooked your patties, it’s time to eat! I love to serve this homemade black bean burger with chipotle sauce, lettuce, tomato, red onion or pickled red onion, and dill pickles for crunch. Use your favorite burger buns, or make homemade hamburger buns to take your black bean burger over the top.
Round out the meal with mixed grilled vegetables or grilled zucchini, corn on the cob, or a summer salad. Any of these 37 Best Summer Salads would be great, but I especially love these salad recipes with this black bean burger:
- Mexican Street Corn Salad
- Best Broccoli Salad
- Creamy Coleslaw
- Italian Chopped Salad
- Cucumber Salad
- Summer Fruit Salad
- Watermelon Salad with Feta
And of course, you can’t go wrong with fries! My air fryer French fries or sweet potato fries would both be delicious with this chipotle black bean burger. Grilled potatoes would be a great choice too.
More Favorite Veggie Burger and Sandwich Recipes
If you love these homemade black bean burgers, try one of these veggie burger or sandwich recipes next:
- Best Veggie Burger
- Quinoa Burger
- Falafel Burgers
- Portobello Mushroom Burger
- BBQ Jackfruit Sandwiches
- Crispy Cauliflower Po’ Boy Sandwich
- Caprese Sandwich
Best Black Bean Burger
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked black beans, drained and rinsed
- ⅓ cup grated yellow onion*, (about ½ medium)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 chipotle peppers from a can of chipotles in adobo, diced
- 2 tablespoons adobo sauce
- 1 tablespoon tamari
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large egg**
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing
- Cooking spray, if grilling
- Hamburger buns, for serving
- Desired fixings, for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the beans, onion, garlic, chipotles, adobo sauce, tamari, balsamic, cumin, salt, and pepper. Use a potato masher to mash until the mixture holds together but still has some visible chunks of black beans. Add the egg and use a spatula to fold until combined. Then, fold in the panko.
- Use your hands to form the mixture into 6 patties. The mixture should be cohesive and a little wet. If it’s too wet to handle, chill in the fridge for 20 minutes to firm up or mash your beans a little bit more.
- Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Brush with a little oil and cook the burgers for about 5 minutes per side, until charred on both sides, turning the heat down as necessary. The exact timing will depend on the heat of your stove and cookware.
- Alternatively, preheat an outdoor grill to 400°F. Lightly brush the patties with olive oil, spray the grill grates, and grill for 8 minutes on the first side and 4 minutes on the second side.
- Serve with hamburger buns and desired fixings.
I just use made them. They are delicious 😋thank you!
I’m so glad you loved them!
These are the best! Simple to put together using basic ingredients. These will now be my go to bean burger recipe.
I’m so glad you loved them!
I’m on a weight loss and generally be more healthy journey. I was looking for a substitution for ground beef patties. I’m far from being a vegetarian, but I wanted options. I googled for recipes and I found this one! I loved everything on the list of ingredients and aside from the tamari, I had everything in my cupboard. Only thing I did differently was use a food processor for the beans (didn’t have the patience to mash them) and I also sautéed the onions before putting them in the mix (I hate crunchy onions in my hot food). These came out PERFECT! The flavor is definitely giving! With fresh toppings and a thin bun, this is an awesome substitute for the fatty original. I only wish I could upload photos! Thank you so much ?
These were delicious! I didn’t have adobo sauce, instead I soaked a couple of dried chipotle peppers in hot water to soften before blitzing and adding this to mixture, and I used a flaxseed ‘egg’ instead of a real egg. I also used a mix of black beans and butter beans as it’s what I had in the cupboard. I was surprised at how easy these were to form into patties and cook – they held together super well and didn’t stick. I did find the resulting burger to be soft and squish easily when trying to eat them between buns – not sure what would give them more strength… But they were delicious and easy and I’ll make them again.
Can these be prepared and frozen then cooked right out of the freezer?
Great flavour but very crumbly. Was it a mistake to put olive oil in the skillet instead of brushing the patties with olive oil? Also, not a fan of much heat so I cut the adobo sauce in half.
Hi Brenda, glad you loved the flavor! In terms of texture, it’s possible you needed to mash the black beans more. The patties can be crumbly if the beans aren’t mashed enough. It could also be that the mixture was a bit dry without the full amount of adobo sauce. In the future, you could replace it with tomato paste or ketchup.
I’m always looking for a good black bean burger recipe, and this did not disappoint! Amazing depth of flavor, a little heat from the adobo sauce, and letting the burgers develop a nice char in the pan make these burgers something special! Also, they’re very easy to prepare. I’m gf, so I used rice panko, and I I roasted portobello caps for “buns”. This is a keeper!
What do you recommend using in place of chipotle’s and adobo? I have a huge allergy to any spice.
I’d do 2 tablespoons of tomato paste instead. Hope that helps!
Maybe smoked paprika? You’ll get Smokey flavor without the heat.
These burgers are delicious! I’d never made black bean burgers before and I’m so glad I found this recipe for my first go at it. I used gluten free bread crumbs and they hold together perfectly. I serve as a burger bowl atop greens, tomatoes & onions. I make this almost once a week. Thanks so much!!
Hi Cindy, I’m so glad you love the recipe! Love the burger bowl idea. 🙂
Hello, all. I love black bean burgers and want to learn to make them myself and this recipe looks delicious. Where can I buy adobo sauce? I see chipotle peppers in adobo sauce made from Goya but not adobo sauce on its own.
Hi Tony, the adobo sauce here is referring to the liquid that the chipotle peppers come canned in (the Goya chipotles come in adobo sauce too). Hope that helps!
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