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Spiced Lentil Walnut Burgers. Easy Flavorful Burger patties with avocado ranch. Vegan Burger Recipe. Soyfree Easily gluten-free. Serve as burgers or over salad.
These scrumptious and filling patties have lentils, rice, walnuts and loads of flavor in them. It’s been a while since I made burger patties. I am hoping these fantastic burgers will be magical enough to get us some sunny days in the cloudy PNW. Am I ready for warmer days with loads of sunshine. The grey starts to depress even the chirpiest of the people and birds around.
I use cumin, coriander, garam masala in these. Feel free to use your own combination of flavors such as cumin + chipotle + oregano, or coriander + berbere, or a chili powder blend of choice. Add some coarsely ground fennel seeds for a sausagey flavor. Since the burger mixture is cooked, you can fix and adjust the flavors before committing to the patties!
I served these Lentil Walnut Burgers /patties with my avocado ranch, lettuce, juicy tomatoes, onions, pickled jalapeno and a melted chao cheese slice! I am topping he next batch with a load of caramelized onions. The sweet onions go really well with the earthy lentils. Use any vegan ranch or mayo, some ketchup or bbq or other sauces of choice. To troubleshoot any veggie burger patties(crumbly, too soft etc), see my tips on this burger round up post. Happy Burgering!
More burgers from the blog
- BBQ Veggie Burger with Mango Carrot Cabbage slaw
- Spicy Chickpea yellow Lentil Burgers
- Bean Broccoli Lentil Burgers
- Amaranth Black Bean sliders with roasted red pepper sauce
- Red Lentil and Cauliflower Burger with Onion rings and Chipotle Habanero Mayo
- Grill-able Artichoke Cauliflower Spinach Bean Burger
- and a 35 Veggie burger collection round up!
Lately the facebook page has been getting angry non vegans asking me to change the name of the food to something other than burger, as Burger always equals meat. Well, please see this definition on Mirriam Webster. I did not make that definition. Burger is a generic term for a sandwich type food, that can be a hamburger, other meat burger, made with tofu, veggies, beans etc. Lentil Walnut Veggie Burgers!
Reading for the day-
Catch my interview at MasalaMommas this week.
Videos to watch
- This beautiful Indian wedding. It is big, long, cultural and vegan, does not use flowers, non biodegradable waste/plastics, no silk, pearls, leather. Amazing!
- This video shot at Pasado’s safe haven with Children and the sanctuary animals
- Cost of cheap clothing on the people and the planet
The burger patties can also be baked. I prefer to cook them on a pan for a crispy exterior and moist juicy interior. Baking can dry the patties out a bit. If you use a good non stick pan, oil might not be needed for the roasting.
If you try these patties, leave me a comment, rate the recipe(when you try it), tag me on Instagram #veganricha, let me know what you think, love, not like, suggestions. Feedback keeps me motivated (esp in this grey weather) and helps me improve!
Video:
Lentil Walnut Burgers
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup chopped red onions
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1/4 inch ginger
- 1/3 cup walnuts
- 1/4 cup packed cilantro
- 3/4 tsp salt or more, depends on if the lentils were salted
- 3/4 tsp each of ground cumin, coriander
- 1/2 tsp garlic
- 1/2 tsp cayenne, hot! or use sweet paprika + a good dash of black pepper for less heat
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 3-4 basil leaves, optional
- 3/4 cup cooked brown or white rice
- 1 1/2 cups cooked brown lentils or 1 15 oz can. I used Indian brown lentils
- 2 tsp ketchup or bbq sauce
- 1 tsp oil
- 1 flax egg, 1 tbsp flax seed meal mixed in 2.5 tbsp warm water, let sit for 2 minutes
- 3-4 tbsp breadcrumbs or flour, use gf breadcrumbs or flour to make gf
Instructions
- In a processor, process onion, garlic, ginger, walnuts and cilantro until finely chopped. Alternatively, cook the onions and garlic in 1/2 tsp oil until they are golden and then add to the processor.
- Add the spices, salt, basil, rice, half of the cooked lentils and pulse a few times until well combined. Transfer to a bowl with the rest of the lentils. Add ketchup, oil, flax egg and mix everything until evenly mixed in. Mash a bit if needed and mix in. Taste and adjust salt, spice, herbs if needed. Add in the breadcrumbs or flour and mix in. Let the mixture chill for 10 minutes.
- If the chilled mixture is too wet, add in more flour or breadcrumbs. The amount needed depends on the moisture in the veggies, the kind of lentils and just general mood of things in the mixture. Add more breadcrumbs or flour if too sticky wet. Add another flax egg if too crumbly to make patties.
- Shape into 4 large patties. Pack well. Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Add a drizzle of oil and spread it around. Place patties on the skillet and cook for 4 to 6 minutes per side.
- Serve with vegan ranch/avocado ranch or mayo or ketchup, mustard or other dressing of choice. Add some caramelized onions or other toppings.
Video
Notes
Add 2 tbsp nutritional yeast. To Bake: I normally bake lentil burger patties at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes, then flip and bake another 10 or more minutes until golden. I haven't tried baking these particular patties. Let me know if you do.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
hi there, just found your blog, i was wondering do you think these will hold up to the grill? I’m always looking for soy free veggie burgers since im allergic, but so far all the one’s I’ve tried have fallen apart on me :/ These look so delicious though!
Hi Jaime, add some more wheat or all purpose flour to the mixture and form very tight smaller patties. You can also use a cookie cutter to pack the mixture in to make even patties. Chill the patties well and use.
These are absolutely amazing! I’ve been making them for a few weeks now and just freezing them and I pull them out when I need them. I’ve also been using them to make veggie tacos and I’ve been adding a curry hummus with my tacos and it’s so delicious! You really changed my mind about veggie burgers because I’ve never been the biggest fan of them and it’s nice to find a recipe without soy, since I’m allergic to it. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Thats awesome! so glad you tried them and love them!
What’s up, I read your blogs daily. Your story-telling style is awesome, keep doing what you’re doing!
First try, I kinda burned the first side of the first two patties on the skillet haha. It still turned out alright. The other 2 patties turned out perfect. I sliced up some avocado and used a bit of Ring of Fire hotsauce… sooo good. Can’t wait to make it again.
oops. you can scrape off the burnt skin and he patties should still be ok. Yay for the rest of the patties. Ring of fire! yes! you think like me.
Hi! I love the flavor and textures of this burger. ….but…lol I made all my lentils and rice in a pressure cooker and drained the lentils after. But seems like there was way too moisture left in them I added flour but I had so much mixture I would’ve had to add a lot. Is it a bad idea to use the pressure cooker or should I use less water? I love them tho! Ps it says 4 burgers I could for sure get 8. Did I misunderstand the rice is it 3/4c cooked or raw then cooked?
The 3/4 cup rice is cooked measure. With pressure cooking it is easy to overcook the lentils. Overcooked lentils even when drained mash very easily, will make the mixture soft and add more moisture to the burger mix. Drain them really well before using in the burger. If the lentils have dissolved into the water(the broth will be thick and the color of the lentils), you can make it into soup. I usually pressure cook for al dente lentils (less time). It depends on the type of lentils and how old they are etc.
I got about 4 inch big and fat burgers. 4 to 6 depending on the size.
Also, wetter mixture will do well baked because baking dries up a lot of the moisture. Drop the mixture through a cookie cutter to shape and bake.
Went to a Brazilian bbq party last night and made these as an alternative. They were a hit! And they made for a good conversation starter about veganism.
Thats awesome!
Very good burgers! We baked them per the instructions in the notes and they turned out great. Will definitely be making these again!
Awesome!