Hearty and healthy Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers with Cilantro Yogurt Sauce. The BEST texture and ready in under 30 minutes!
Hey what’s up hello!
Here we are back in veggie burger land. Now that I’ve nailed the dreamiest veggie burger texture, I want to make three million and five versions.
Today’s recipe is inspired by my Pumpkin Walnut Burgers, which in my humble opinion, totally give new meaning to veggie burgers. No mush allowed! Textural perfection only!
Although it’s been a hot minute since I posted a veggie burger on the blog, we’re no strangers to burgers in the hummus household. These Easy Vegan Black Bean Burgers are a staple for something quick and I do adore these Salmon Burgers to death.
But let me tell you…it’s no easy feat to make ones that stay firm and aren’t hella mushy in the middle.
Until now! I’ve found that the key is drying out the beans in the oven first so there isn’t excess moisture. Toasting the oats along with them guarantees a maximum flavor situation.
The “dough,” once it’s all blended up in the food processor, should stick together easily in your hands. Like cookie dough! We’re basically making savory cookies here.
Key ingredients and substitution ideas
Chickpeas: The base of our burgers, packed with plant plant protein and fiber.
Walnuts: I love walnuts! They help with the “meaty” texture and offer a great flavor boost, too. Full of heart-healthy, plant-based omega-3 fatty acids.
Roasted sweet potato: For a bit of moisture, flavor, and binding assistance. Roasting it before hand means it’ll lend a specifically sweet and smoky flavor that microwaving or steaming will not. I love freezing extra chunks for blending into smoothies!
Old-fashioned oats: A fun twist on breadcrumbs to help the burgers stay together. Use certified gluten-free if needed.
Onion: Flavor town! Red onion would work as well. Make sure it’s finely diced to help everything stick together well.
Cilantro: I love cilantro here for southwestern flavor, but you could also use parsley if that’s your jam.
Spices: Chili powder, garlic powder (or you can use a couple cloves of fresh garlic), smoked paprika, and cumin. You can adjust the amount of spices to your preference and even add a pinch of cayenne or red pepper flakes if you want things spicy.
Yogurt: So simple for a creamy sauce to slather on. Dairy or non-dairy will work. I like Greek here but anything unflavored and unsweetened will do. The higher the fat content, the richer the sauce will be.
I love enjoying these burgs between a nice sesame bun with lettuce, the sauce and a pickle. They’d also be delish with fries, a big salad, Healthy Broccoli Salad, or Grilled Sweet Potatoes.
How to roast a sweet potato
- Preheat oven to 400F. Pierce a sweet potato (or a few) several times with a fork.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until very fork tender.
- Allow potato to cool. Peel and use per the recipe.
More burgers to love:
- Pumpkin Walnut Burgers
- Easy Vegan Black Bean Burgers
- Salmon Burgers
- Avocado Bean Burgers
- Asian Tuna Burgers with Ginger Soy Cashew Cream
If you make these sweet potato burgers, please let me know by leaving a comment and star rating. I’m so grateful for your feedback!
Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers with Cilantro Yogurt Sauce
- Prep Time: 18 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 28 minutes
- Yield: 6 burgers 1x
- Category: Main Meals
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Hearty and healthy Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers with Cilantro Yogurt Sauce. The BEST texture and ready in under 30 minutes! Vegan option and gluten free.
Ingredients
For the burgers:
- 1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup old-fashioned oats (certified gluten free if needed)
- 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
- 1 cup roasted sweet potato (flesh from 1 large sweet potato*)
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
For the sauce:
- 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt (can sub regular yogurt or non-dairy yogurt)
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 lime, juiced (1 tbsp lime juice)
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp sriracha (or your favorite hot sauce, chipotle tabasco is great too!)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Spread drained beans, walnuts, and oats on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 13 minutes. Set aside to cool for a few minutes.
- To the bowl of a food processor, add toasted beans, walnuts, and oats and pulse until broken down but not powder-like. You want some texture!
- Add 1 cup of sweet potato, onion, cilantro, garlic, spices, and salt. Pulse until combined. The mixture should resemble cookie dough and form a ball when processing. It should not be crumbly and should easily form burgers when you pack it together with your hands. If it seems too dry, add more sweet potato until the texture is right.
- Warm a drizzle of olive oil in skillet over medium low heat (I used a large cast iron). Using a heaping 1/3 cup measure, form mixture into 6 even burgers (this helps with a round shape, too). Once hot, cook burgers for about 4-5 minutes per side or until browned, turning down the heat if they’re cooking too quickly.
- Make sauce by stirring together yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, salt, and sriracha in a small bowl. Devour burgers with sauce and toppings of choice.
Notes
*To bake sweet potatoes: Preheat oven to 400F. Pierce a sweet potato (or a few) several times with a fork. Place on a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until very fork tender. Allow potato to cool. Peel and measure flesh per the recipe.
I have made many veggie burgers and can confirm this is a delicious, foolproof recipe! Simple ingredients, minimal steps, and the texture and taste is 10/10. They’re also super customizable depending on what you have on hand. I’ve subbed canned pumpkin once for sweet potato, and added hemp seeds when I ran out of walnuts. I also like throwing in a big handful of spinach or kale for some extra greens. I haven’t made the sauce but I’m sure it’s great as well. Thanks for a new staple veggie burger recipe!
★★★★★
Amazing, so happy to hear you can customize these based on what you have on hand. Thanks, Allyson!
Made these on Saturday and cooked them on the smoker with hickory. They were amazing! I cooked two and froze the rest but I’m not sure if they need to be thawed from frozen before I cook them or just cook them from frozen. This will definitely be my go to black bean burger. The meater hubs even liked it! Thank you for the great recipe.
★★★★★
Wow that sounds INCREDIBLE!! I’d say you should be able to cook from frozen 🙂
LOVED these burgers!! I’ve tried a lot of sweet potato black bean burgers but these are the new go-to. The toasted walnuts/oats combo gives it amazing flavor and texture. And don’t skip the sauce!
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Courtney! I agree that the sauce is a MUST 🙂
This is a great recipe and I can’t wait to make them again!
★★★★★
So glad you liked it, Kari!
So amazing! I made the recipe exactly as instructed. The only addiction I made was alfalfa sprouts on it. I just tagged you in my Instagram photo of it. This recipe is a keeper!
★★★★★
Made these and they are amazing. 🤩 So easy and full of flavor. These will be my go to black bean burgers from now on! Thanks for the recipe!!
★★★★★
Yesss so glad!! Thanks, Jodie!
Made these and they are amazing. So easy to make and full of flavor. These will be my new go to black bean burger. Thanks for the recipe!!
★★★★★
Made these and they are amazing. So flavorful and easy to make. These will be my go to black bean burgers from now on. Thank you for the recipe!!
★★★★★
They are great, thank you for the guidance!
★★★★★
Mmm sounds perfect!
I made these today with a few swaps, and totally making again (a kind of Romano + kidney bean combo instead of black; almonds instead of walnuts; regular yoghurt instead of Greek, and cooked in ghee/clarified butter instead of olive oil). Super easy Alexis, loved making these – my first time making burgers!! woohoo – Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Mmmm sounds great! Let me know if they work the same with almonds. Congrats on a first successful attempt 🙂 Also if you’d be up for clicking a star rating alongside your comment next time that would be MAGICAL, thank you!!
Yummm! I bet these would be delicious on the grill as well! They have such a great texture!
★★★★★
Oh yummmm need to try!!
Sounds delicious but how are you roasting the sweet potato? Peeled? Cubed? Temp and duration?
Just the flesh of a whole roasted sweet potato (measure the flesh after roasting). When I roast sweet potatoes I poke them with a fork and do 400F for about an hour, or until very fork tender. Enjoy!