15 Best Homemade Vegan Burger Recipes | Aglow Lifestyle (2024)

FAQs

How do you make vegan burgers taste better? ›

Spices and tomato paste: Smoked paprika, chili powder, salt, and pepper combine to make these burgers a little smoky and incredibly delicious. Tomato paste adds color, sweetness, and an umami flavor to the burgers (highly recommended!). Cooked rice: Adds more texture to the veggie burgers.

Use Silken Tofu, a Flax Egg, or Aquafaba as a Vegan Binder.

It is nice and thick, firms up similarly to how an egg cooks, and it's almost impossible for anything to fall apart when using it. It does need to be blended with water first; not a big deal, just a little less convenient.

Eggs are the most common and effective binder, and egg replacers are an excellent alternative for vegan burgers. Other common binders include wheat germ, bread crumbs, oats, and ground flaxseeds. These are dry ingredients, though the recipe's other ingredients often add just enough moisture to make a sufficient binder.

Umami is what gives savoury dishes that meaty, brothy taste – typically found as MSG. Some manufacturers will use what you might call an “umami bomb” to give plant-based applications the hearty, meaty taste consumers want from traditional meat.

Researchers at Impossible Foods discovered that by adding heme to their plant-based burgers, they could capture a lot of the aromas we associate with meat. They call it their "magic ingredient," and, combined with yeast extract, it does seem to do a pretty good job.

Mashed Avocado Makes the Best Veggie Burger Binder

Avocado is also a great choice for vegan burgers, when using an egg as a binder isn't an option, as well as gluten-free burgers. And because of its mild flavor, you won't actually taste the avocado, you'll simply be taking advantage of its great binding abilities.

Way 1: Using Eggs to Bind a Burger

Using of egg to bind a burger is the most common and simple process. Start by adding one egg to the mixture for every pound of ground beef. You can use the whole egg or just the egg white based on your needs.

What can you use to bind burgers instead of egg? In theory, you could use bread crumbs—I recommend using coarse, crustless fresh white bread crumbs—or even grated Parmesan cheese. The best way of getting your burgers to hold together is by using a medium grind 80% beef 20% fat ground chuck and a burger press.

Ground flax – Once it's mixed with water, ground flaxseed takes on the same consistency as real eggs. They bind the meaty mixture together and help prevent the patties from falling apart.

You can use a binder in burgers to help hold them together. Common binders include eggs, breadcrumbs, or ground flaxseed mixed with water. These ingredients help to bind the meat, seasonings, and other ingredients together, making the patty more stable and easier to handle while cooking or grilling.

Can you freeze homemade vegan burgers? ›

Freeze the patties for about 45-60 mins or so. Once the raw patties are frozen, place them in a freezer safe bag. If there are any ice crystals on the burgers, scrape them off first. I use Ziplock BPA-free large freezer bags (with the zipper).

Common binding agents include flax eggs (a mixture of ground flaxseed and water), chia seeds, mashed potatoes, tapioca flour, or even your favorite nut butter. These ingredients help hold everything together and prevent your burger from crumbling.

If they aren't bound well, the patties will start to fall apart as soon as you start cooking them. The most commonly used binding agent for hamburger patties is eggs. They work well with ground meat and are easy to incorporate into the rest of your ingredients.

To elevate the taste of your veggie burger, it's crucial to build a well-balanced flavor profile. A good place to start is by sautéing a mirepoix – onions, celery, and carrots. And, I like to toss in some garlic.

As soon as you flip the burgers, sprinkle them with the garlic powder and salt and pepper to taste. Put the onions and barbecue sauce on top. Then seal all of those in by topping with the cheese.

Once the 15 minutes have elapsed, grab the burgers from the fridge. An eighth of a teaspoon of table salt and a quarter teaspoon of pepper should be enough for four 4-ounce patties, Bishop says. The plant-based beef already has some salt, he says. Bishop says you can add as much or as little pepper as you like.