Black Bean Burgers

Guys! Okay, so I usually don’t have any new posts over the weekend, but I just tried this recipe and I’m too excited NOT to share it!

So it’s Saturday morning and I get up, make my tea and some breakfast, then go sit in the living room and watch TV with Mom. All of my TV shows are on hiatus right now, so the only channel I’ve been watching is FoodNetwork. One of my favorite shows on that channel is The Pioneer Woman, and that’s what I was watching this morning.

The Pioneer Woman was making stuff with black beans. She made pizza, burritos, and burgers. As Mom and I were watching her, we both commented that we wanted to try her burgers. I’ve never actually made any of her food, so it was just wishful thinking. Still, the burgers looked really good.

After the show, I went to go do homework (which is what I’m supposed to be doing right now… oh well, it can wait a few more minutes). The closer it came to lunchtime, the more I found myself wanting to try making black bean burgers. So, after mustering my courage, I headed into the kitchen to try my hand.

Sadly, I couldn’t find the Pioneer Woman’s recipe on her blog, so I went ahead and made stuff up as I went. (Besides, since when do I follow someone else's recipe??) Thankfully Mom trusts my judgment enough and let me do it without an actual recipe.

First, take a can of black beans, drain them, pour them in a colander and rinse. 

Once they’re rinsed, pour them in a bowl and mash ‘em up so that they’re pasty, with just a few chunks.

When your beans are mashed up good, add the seasonings, breadcrumbs, and eggs. Then it’s time to get your hands dirty.

If you read my post about my family’s meatloaf recipe, you know that I hate mixing meat with my hands. The good news is that even though the beans feel kind of like meat, they aren’t meat! They’re beans! (I’m probably way more excited about that than I should be, but whatever. Who’s judging me?)

Once everything is mixed up, form them into patties and place them on an oiled skillet. Bake until done and build your sandwich.

Because we hadn’t been planning on having burgers anytime soon, we didn’t have any buns. But that’s okay! I grabbed a slice of multigrain bread, toasted it, then spread a mayonnaise/Greek yogurt mixture on its surface and cut it in half. The burger fit nicely, then I topped it with some lettuce and it was ready to eat!

Here’s where I’m going to tell you how skeptical I was. I’d already tried my hand at spaghetti squash and was disappointed with the result (do NOT let people fool you! It does NOT taste like spaghetti!) If this recipe didn’t turn out, I’d just wasted a perfectly good can of black beans. Not to mention, I’d also wasted a good chunk of my time.

The burgers were AMAZING. Mom and I LOVE them. They had great flavor, good texture, and they’re cheap and pretty easy to make! Plus, they’re pretty dang healthy! Black bean burgers are now on my list of favorite dishes, and that’s why I decided to share my recipe with you this weekend.

I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

Black Bean Burgers

Ingredients

1 can (15 oz) black beans

½ cup bread crumbs

1 egg

1 tsp Tastefully Simple’s Garlic Garlic (or one medium clove of fresh garlic)

1 Tbsp Tastefully Simple’s Onion Onion (or 6 Tbsp of fresh grated onion)

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp ground red pepper

Black pepper for taste

2 Tbsp olive oil

Directions

Pour oil in skillet and set aside.

Drain beans. Pour the beans into a colander and rinse. Once rinsed, pour beans into a bowl and mash. I used a masher, but you can use a fork (it will probably just take more effort). Mash until the beans are pasty with only a few chunks.

Once the beans are mashed, add your spices, the bread crumbs, and egg. Mix with hands until all ingredients are incorporated. Form into patties (my recipe made three, but your number will depend on the size you want).

Heat oil in skillet. Once it’s heated (you’ll know it is when it moves around fast when skillet is tipped), turn the heat down to medium-low and place patties in the skillet. Bake on one side for 4 minutes, then flip and bake on the other side for another 4 minutes. Flip and bake for about 2 minutes, then flip and bake for another 2 minutes.

Build your sandwiches however you like and dig in!