Note: I have since created a new and improved recipe. Please see this post for the updated recipe! Enjoy.
Yeah, I get it. Weekend’s over. But what if I told you the fun doesn’t have to end on Sunday? What if you had legitimately meaty burgers to look forward to at dinner tomorrow night?
A couple years back, I recall sharing a video on Facebook about a certain plant burger that “bleeds” beet juice. Naturally, it garnered a fair amount of interest.
That burger was the now-famous Beyond Meat burger. And while I can appreciate the difference that Beyond Meat is making in the fast food industry, I also couldn’t help but wonder if it would be that difficult to create a recipe for a homemade version that looks and tastes just as “meaty,” but with fewer processed ingredients.
To my delight, it wasn’t difficult at all. And here, my friends, is the delicious result of my long-simmering idea.
The secret to a meaty veggie burger, it turns out, is a tempeh and chickpea base combined with a flavourful beet puree, amped up with my favourite flavour makers: tamari, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and barbecue sauce. The binding agents here are ground walnuts (or any nut or seed you have on hand) and flax.
While they don’t ‘bleed’ beet juice, the beet puree certainly adds a red hue, reminiscent of red meat, to these delicious burgers.
In short, these burgers won’t disappoint. They:
-Hold together perfectly
-Are full of umami, that elusive fifth taste typically associated with meat
-Are ‘meaty’ in texture
-Come together quickly
-Are affordable
-Contain plenty of protein
-Bring that ‘wow’ factor to vegan dining
-Satisfy even the staunchest of carnivores
Making these burgers couldn’t be easier. As long as you have a food processor, they come together seamlessly.
While self-promotion has never really been my forte, I do believe that this recipe will change your life, and I really can’t come up with a reason for you not to make it.
Let’s do this thing!
Homemade ‘Beyond Meat’ Burgers
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 burgers 1x
Description
Meaty beet, tempeh, and chickpea burgers that come together quickly. Delicious on their own or on a bun with all the fixings. Best accompanied by sweet potato fries and craft beer!
Ingredients
- 1 flax egg (1 tbsp flax + 2.5 tbsp water)
- 1/2 cup walnut halves
- 8 oz tempeh, cubed (1 standard package=8 oz)
- 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (or 1 14-oz can, drained and rinsed)
- 1/2 cup finely diced red onion
- 3 medium cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium beet, finely chopped (about 3/4 cup)
- 3 tbsp barbecue sauce
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire sauce (I use Wizard’s brand)
- 1 tbsp hot sauce
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For serving:
- Vegan cheese of choice
- Pickles
- Sliced tomato
- Lettuce
- Mustard
- Barbecue sauce
Instructions
- Whisk together flax and water in a small dish and set aside to thicken. Place the walnuts in a food processor fitted with the S blade and process until ground into a meal. Empty walnuts into a large mixing bowl.
- Place the tempeh and chickpeas in the food processor and pulse until crumbly. Do not over-process: you want the burgers to have some texture! Add the tempeh and chickpeas to the bowl with the walnuts, along with the flax egg, onion, and garlic.
- Place the chopped beet, barbecue sauce, Dijon mustard, tamari or soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and hot sauce in the food processor. Process until smooth (the beets might not be completely pureed, but this is okay).
- Pour the beet mixture over top of the other ingredients in the bowl. Add the cumin, smoked paprika, and salt and pepper (I added 1/4 tsp of salt and a few generous grinds of pepper). Stir to combine.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Using a 1/2-cup measure, divide the mixture into 6 equal patties.
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until crispy around the edges.
- Serve on buns with vegan cheese, pickles, tomato, lettuce, mustard, and additional barbecue sauce. These burgers are best accompanied by baked sweet potato fries and your favourite craft beer!
- Category: Dinner, Entree, Main Dish
- Cuisine: American, Vegan
If you make these burgers, tag me with #upbeetkitchen and @upbeet.kitchen on Instagram! Enjoy!
Isabel
Hey there! I just got all of my ingredients right now to make this recipe, I just wanted to ask if I can substitute tempeh for extra firm tofu since the store I went to only had a seasoned tempeh and I didn’t want it to disrupt the recipe’s flavor. Thanks so much if you can answer this. Excited to try.
Allison
Hi Isabel! I have a feeling that extra firm tofu will work in the recipe, but I haven’t tested it myself! I do find that tempeh helps bind the burgers, so you may need to add additional ground flax if you are using tofu. Let me know how it works, and I can always add that as an option to the recipe notes! I hope you enjoy!
Jo
The taste is outstanding! Add some peas for extra flavor!
However, the texture is still too mushy.
Allison
Thank you for your feedback, Jo! I will keep trying to tweak it to improve the texture. 🙂
Sara
These burgers are delicious in their own right. They are not as meaty textured as Beyond Meat, though. I’ll still make them again, but maybe next time I would add some mushrooms.
★★★★
Marc-André
This recipe turned out well. My only issue is that the patties fall apart very easily. Great flavour though!
★★★★★
Allison
Thank you for the feedback! I appreciate it. I’m glad that you enjoyed the flavour, and hopefully I can come up with an updated recipe that holds together better soon!
Marc-Andre Michon
I think it would make great “Beyond Meat Balls” if paired with a good savoury sauce/gravy. Thanks!
Allison
Oh, that’s a great idea! Thank you! 🙂
KT
We enjoyed the patties and will make them again. However, the texture and taste do not replace the Beyond Burger. Bonus is the calories, and sodium levels are much improved than the Beyond Burger. It is a keeper
★★★★
Allison
Thank you so much for your feedback! I appreciate it. I’m glad that you still enjoyed them and that you will be making them again, and thanks as well for taking the time to comment! 🙂
Tom
Hi Allison,
Do you have the updated recipe?
Thanks!
Allison
Hi Tom! Thanks for your interest. I haven’t shared the updated recipe yet, but I can tell you that it is very similar to my Homemade “Beyond Meat” Meatloaf recipe (https://upbeetkitchen.com/2019/12/21/homemade-beyond-meat-meatloaf-with-miso-gravy/), only shaped into burger patties instead of baking in a loaf pan.
I do plan to share the updated burger recipe in the first week of February, though! 🙂
Tim
My son has a nut allergy. Are the walnuts important to the recipe? Can they be substituted with almonds? He’s ok with those.
Allison
Hi Tim! Almonds will work fine. I also have an updated/improved version of the recipe if you’d like to try it- you can swap out the walnuts for almonds in it, too. https://upbeetkitchen.com/2020/02/08/homemade-beyond-meat-burgers-copycat-recipe/
Andrea Christensen
The original Impossible Burger available in restaurants contained wheat and got at least some of its chewy texture from wheat gluten. Gluten is yummy and has a stiff and stretchy texture ideal for making faux meats unless you re one of the many people who are sensitive to it. This entire batch of DIY Impossible Burgers cost about $6.00 and makes 6-8 burgers. That s right around $1 per burger or less. What a bargain!
Allison
Hey Andrea! Yes indeed, this recipe is quite a lot more affordable than the faux meat burgers available in stores and restaurants! Healthier, too! 🙂 Hope you enjoyed them.
Sassy
Hi, I just found your blog. I am a relatively new vegan and prefer to make my own things as ai just do not trust big businesses. I like knowing what my ingredients are. Anyway, beetroots are one of the very few veggies I despise (they taste like dirt smells to me). Is the beetroot in the burger simply for the red color or is it actually essential? And is it a prominent flavor or is it not really detected? I am hoping to find a decent burger recipe to entice my husband to the green side but I want to be able to enjoy them too. No point making 2 different meals, right? Thanks for your help!
Allison
Hi Sassy! First of all, thanks for finding my blog! 🙂 I think you could get away with making the burgers without the beets, since they are mainly used to provide colour. They also provide a bit of moisture, but I have a feeling the burgers will still turn out without them. I hope you enjoy!
All the best,
Allison
Shawn
This was a spectacular tasting burger, truly. No, it doesn’t taste like a Beyond Beef, it actually tastes better. I think, like many others, we are expecting the texture to be like meat and maybe that isn’t possible with a veg/veg burger, I don’t know. I might play with some other binders but I don’t want to lose the flavour, maybe an egg in addition to or instead of the ‘flax egg’?
I thought I would try frying it as opposed to baking and DAMN do they absorb oil during cooking. Perhaps this is why our author suggests baking. I found it held together really well during cooking and eating and the only change I made was I used half black beans and half chickpeas.
Moving forward, this will be the only veggie burger I will have. Thanks for the great recipie!
★★★★★
Allison
Hi Shawn! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave such a kind and thoughtful review. It means so much! I’m glad that you love these burgers. 🙂
Isaiah Medina
Hey does this recipe have any nutrition facts ?
Allison
Unfortunately not, but you can try using verywellfit.com’s nutrition facts calculator! 🙂 https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
deb
Do you have a similar recipe that doesn’t use soy products? Many of us who have food sensitivities (gluten, soy, corn) look for good burger recipes which are difficult to find. Thanks in advance!
Allison
Hi Deb! Unfortunately not at this time. While I haven’t tried making a soy-free version of this recipe yet, you might be able to use an extra 1 1/2 cups of chickpeas to replace the tempeh, and use coconut aminos in place of the tamari! Hope this helps, and thanks for the suggestion- I’ll work on a soy-free recipe! In the meantime, I do have a very good chickpea burger recipe that is free from gluten, corn, and soy. It’s not “meaty,” but it does hold together perfectly and is very tasty: https://upbeetkitchen.com/2020/05/27/buffalo-chickpea-burgers-with-garlic-dill-ranch-vegan/
Gabi
I loved this vegan beet burger. I do like the suggestion of adding a bit of wheat flour for the glutin, it may make it a bit denser and more like the beyond burgers. But just as is it’s delicious and I will definitely make this recipe again. Thanks for showing us how!
★★★★
Allison
Thank you so much for letting me know how you liked them, Gabi! 🙂 And my pleasure!