The Best Vegan Pico de Gallo Burger
The BEST Vegan Pico de Gallo Burger - a black bean burger with spinach, avocado, sweet potato, vegan chipotle mayo, and of course, fresh pico de gallo. You’ll never need another vegan burger recipe again.
Burgers are like ice cream. Everybody likes theirs a little different. Cheese or no cheese? Tomato or no tomato? Ketchup? Mustard? Maybe even mayo. Sometimes, however, there comes a burger that everybody loves. And that’s this one. A black bean burger with spicy vegan chipotle mayo, avocado, fresh pico de gallo, and melt in your mouth sweet potato. What’s not to love?
Jump ahead to any part of the recipe by clicking on the links below:
Before We Get Started
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 5-10 Minutes
Total Time: 25-30 Minutes
Yield: 5 Burgers
Ingredients
Vegan Black Bean Patties
1/3 cup Split Red Lentils (uncooked)
1 can Black Beans
1/2 cup Bread Crumbs
2 tsp. Onion Powder
2 tsp. Garlic Powder
1 tsp. Cumin
1 tsp. Chili Powder
1 tsp Curry Powder
1/4 cup BBQ Sauce
2 tsp. Soy Sauce
Pinch of Cayenne
Salt + Pepper
Vegan Chipotle Mayo
1 cup Vegan Mayo
1/2 Chipotle Pepper
1 Garlic Clove
1/2 Lime (Zest and Juice)
Salt + Pepper
Vegan Pico de Gallo
1 Beefsteak Tomato
1/4 Red Onion
2 Garlic Cloves
1 Lime (Zest and Juice)
1/2 Jalapeno (seeds removed)
Kept in if you like spicy
1 tbsp. Cilantro
Salt + Pepper
Other
Burger Buns
Avocado
Spinach
Sweet Potato
1 tsp. Garlic Powder
1 tsp. Onion Powder
Pinch Cayenne
Recipe
Preheat your oven to 400°F.
Dice your sweet potato into small pieces (smaller than a game dice), then add them to a bowl with 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1 tsp. onion powder, a pinch of cayenne, salt and pepper, and a glug of oil. Toss them around to evenly coat, and place on a lined baking tray.
Throw your lentils into a sieve, and rinse them under cold water for 2-3 minutes. Then, put them into a pot, and fill with cold water that rises approx. 1 inch above the lentils. Begin to bring them to a boil, and when they reach a boil, reduce to a simmer. Then set a timer for 6-7 minutes. Once that timer has expired, drain your lentils and rinse with cold water.
While your lentils are cooking, drain and rinse a can of black beans, shaking them about to get rid of any excess water.
When your oven is pre=heated, throw your sweet potatoes in and set a timer for 12 minutes. When that timer is up, set a timer for another 10. Cook for longer if needed.
Add your drained black beans to a bowl, and using a fork, potato masher, or simply your hands, mash the potatoes until there are few whole black beans left.
It’s okay if there are some black beans remaining. It would take forever to get them all.
Add your bread crumbs, lentils, soy sauce, bbq sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cumin, curry powder, and a good pinch of salt and pepper to the bowl, and mix to combine. Take a small handful and form into a patty shape. Repeat with the remaining mix.
In a blender, add your mayo, chipotle, lime zest and juice, garlic cloves, and salt and pepper, and blend until smooth.
Dice the tomatoes, onion, garlic, jalapeno, and cilantro for your pico de gallo, and add them to a small bowl. Zest and juice your lime, then season with salt and pepper. Mix, taste, and season more if needed.
Place a pan over medium heat, with a bit of oil. Allow it to preheat, then place your buns inside side down in the pan and toast until golden brown.
Keep an eye on them, as they can burn quickly.
Add a little bit more oil to the pan, and put your black bean burgers in. Hit them with a little bit of salt, then sear on each side for 3-5 minutes.
I like to push them past golden brown when searing to get a really crispy exterior on the burger.
Assemble - place a dollop of vegan chipotle mayo onto the bottom bun and spread with a spoon. Put your lettuce on top, followed by your pico, your black bean burger, sweet potato, and the top bun, also with a spread of chipotle mayo on it.
Enjoy.
Spruce it Up
Leave the jalapeno seeds in if you like a good kick of heat.
Instead of using garlic and onion powder in the burger, you can alternatively dice some onion and garlic and cook in a pan for a few minutes before adding to the bowl.
The fresher your ingredients, the better the pico will taste.
Toasting your buns is the KEY to a good burger. Don’t skip this step!!
You can’t go wrong adding a slice of vegan cheese.
If you wanted to add vegan cheese, I would keep my oven on after using the sweet potatoes, and throw the black bean patties with the cheese on top into the oven for a couple minutes until the cheese has melted.