This post may include affiliate links; see our disclosure policy.
These chickpea burgers are delicious way to eat plant based for dinner! Try them slathered with BBQ and topped with vegan bacon and special sauce.
Eating plant based food doesn’t have to mean giving up the burger! Veggie burgers can be seriously satisfying—and that doesn’t just mean meat substitutes. No, these homemade vegan chickpea burgers are made just with whole foods and so, so delicious!
Alex and I love making these vegan burgers: they’re crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a hint of nuance from smoked paprika. Painted with BBQ sauce and served with shiitake bacon and spicy mayo, they’re pretty darn tasty (if we do say so ourselves!).
Ingredients in chickpea burgers
Here’s a story for you: Alex and I recently tried a vegan burger from one of those popular plant-based meat companies. It tasted good at first—but we both ended up with a stomach ache afterwards! Something did a number on us (maybe because we don’t yet understand the effects of this processed food?).
Anyway, it’s back to homemade veggie burgers over here! Not only are these vegan chickpea burgers tasty, they’re made out of all whole foods. Here are the ingredients you need:
- Mashed chickpeas: you’ll use a potato masher or fork to mash them by hand.
- Onion, carrot and red onion: You’ll grate these down so they integrate well; you can use a hand grater, food processor or high-speed blender
- A little flour: Flour is needed to hold the patties together (trust us!). You can use gluten-free flour or oat flour for gluten-free diets.
- Tahini: This sesame paste holds it all together.
- Cumin and smoked paprika. Big flavor comes from cumin, and a back-end smoky nuance from smoked paprika.
- BBQ sauce, for painting (optional). Use your favorite store-bought sauce or our homemade BBQ sauce. We like to check the label to find an organic version without high fructose corn syrup.
They’re pan fried, then baked
These chickpea burgers are lightly pan-fried to get a crispy crust, then baked to cook them through. Why the two steps? When we tried them baked only, the texture wasn’t quite what we wanted. Pan frying adds a nice crispness to the outside of the burger without it getting too dried out in the oven.
When you make your chickpea burgers, shape them so they’re about 3-inches in diameter and about 3/4-inch thick. This will help them to stay together when pan frying and get an even golden brown. We had a 3-inch round biscuit cutter that we used to shape them this size.
Shiitake bacon takes them over the top
It’s totally optional, but you’ve got some time while the chickpea burgers are on the oven. Why not whip up a unique topping? This shiitake bacon is just that: vegan bacon made out of shiitake mushrooms.
It sounds a little odd, but once you taste the salty, smoky flavor, you’ll understand! Since Alex and I first made it as a loaded potato soup topping, I’d been dying to try it on a burger. It’s only 5 ingredients, and it’s simple to whip up while the burger bake.
Burger sauce ideas
Important note: because veggie burgers don’t have the same natural fat like beef burgers, they can taste dry. You really need to add a creamy sauce to get the right textures on a bun! We like serving with spicy mayo, which also adds richness. Here are a few more creamy sauce toppings you could try:
- This Special Burger Sauce is all your favorite condiments in one, making an irresistible slather.
- Try Yum Yum Sauce for a savory sweet drizzle made with mayo, ketchup and spices.
- This Horseradish Sauce is creamy with a spicy bite!
- Serving burgers with Russian Dressing is basically a Big Mac Sauce!
- We love using guacamole as a creamy, savory sauce to top a vegan burger.
Storing leftovers and make ahead tips
These chickpea burgers save well, making them great for making ahead! You could meal prep them on a weekend and then refrigerate them for eating throughout the week. Here’s what we’d recommend:
- Store in the refrigerator 3 to 4 days. When you reheat them, place them in a 375 oven and reheat until heated through (about 10 minutes or so).
- Freeze for 1 to 2 months. These burgers freeze well, so pack them in a sealed container and store for a few months. You can also make a double recipe if you know you’d like leftovers and do the freezing option. Let them thaw in the refrigerator and then reheat as per above.
Ways to serve chickpea burgers
You don’t have to serve these burgers with BBQ sauce, of course! There are lots of great topping suggestions: here are a few ways we thought of:
- Mediterranean style. If you eat some dairy, top with tzatziki, red onion and feta.
- Mexican style. Top with guacamole and spicy chipotle sauce, and pickled jalapenos for some heat.
- Ranch style. Add pickled radishes, lettuce, and slather the bun with ranch or vegan ranch.
Dietary notes
This recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free. For gluten-free, use gluten-free flour.
Easy Chickpea Burgers
These chickpea burgers are a hugely satisfying plant-based dinner! Crispy on the outside, they’re painted with BBQ and topped with vegan bacon and spicy mayo.
- Prep Time: 14 minutes
- Cook Time: 26 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 burgers 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the chickpea burgers*
- 15-ounce can chickpeas (1 ½ cups cooked)
- 1 large carrot
- ½ red onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup all purpose, whole wheat or gluten-free flour
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup grapeseed or vegetable oil, for frying
For serving
- Your favorite BBQ sauce (optional; check the label to find an organic version without high fructose corn syrup)
- Lettuce, tomato and red onion
- Shiitake bacon (optional but recommended!)
- Spicy Mayo or Special Burger Sauce
- 4 burger buns
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Use a potato masher or fork to mash them in a bowl until they’re mostly mashed with some chunks. Use a large size grater to grate the onion and carrot, then finely grate the garlic OR place them all in a food processor and process until finely minced. Add them to the bowl with the chickpeas. Stir in the tahini, flour and spices. Mix with a spoon and then your fingers until a sticky dough forms. Form 4 round patties and place them on a cutting board, about 3 inches wide by about ¾ inch thick (we had a 3-inch circle biscuit cutter, which you could use if you have one).
- In a medium frying pan, heat ¼ cup oil over medium heat. Carefully add the patties to the pan. If you have one, top with a splatter screen. Fry for about 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown on one side. Flip and fry for another 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown, turning down the heat as necessary.
- Transfer the patties to a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown and baked through.
- Remove the patties from the oven and let them cool for at least 15 minutes to firm up. Paint liberally with BBQ sauce. Top with toppings (make sure to have a creamy rich topping like the Spicy Mayo or Special Sauce to enhance the flavors and textures. The burgers save well in the refrigerator, so they’re great to make ahead and eat throughout the week. They also freeze well!
Notes
If you’d like more servings, double the ingredients and pan fry in batches, then bake 8 burgers on the same tray. The burgers stay well refrigerated or frozen (see Step 6).
I just tried these burgers tonight and they were so good, my mom who has no interest in veggie anything loved them too. I have it with the Special burger sauce and they were so good. I’m glad I Found your website.
Do you think it would work to just bake these (&omit the frying)?
They would end up pretty dry and crumbly.
I’ve used some of your recipes in the past with great success. I was looking for a chickpea burger and decided to give yours a try. I’m SO glad I did!! Followed the recipe to a T and they turned out great, with lots of flavour! In fact, I’m sorry I didn’t make a double batch! I’ll be making these again for sure. Thank you!
Why did you not add sodium to the nutrition information?
Hi! We omit the sodium from our card because many ingredients we use such as beans, soy sauce or broth can have vastly different amounts and we don’t want to give false information. Even different brands of kosher salt can vary. A teaspoon of Morton kosher salt has 1920 mg of sodium.
Hello, new to your page and love the simplicity of your recipes.
When freezing, is that after frying and baking, or should I freeze them raw?
Thank you
You can freeze these burgers after frying or baking them. Thank you!
I made these in a food processor. It turned into a sticky pasty mess. I was sure these wouldn’t turn out based on how they looked precooked. However, I proceeded. I used a cookie scoop to measure them out on a hot cast iron fry pan lightly coated with oil. They cooked up like a patty. I then finished them in the oven as directed. I was so surprised when we ate them. They turned out great with excellent flavor. They were not excessively soft as some veggie burgers can be. We ate them on a bun with sauerkraut. Bull dog sauce would have been great on them too.
Made this as directed. I liked the flavors but found it a little dry and crumbled a little bit. I am at a higher altitude in Colorado and wonder if I should do anything to moisten it up a little. Would more tahini help?
A little more tahini should help!
These are not good. I’m sorry. They are bland. The smoked paprika was a life saver but otherwise I’d leave these burgers alone. Maybe with loads of condiments they’d be ok but not as they are. I’m sorry. And as context, I love chickpeas and I try loads of new chickpea burger recipes all the time. We have to be honest in these reviews because wasting time and ingredients is no longer an option.
Could I make the pattie’s and freeze before I cook? Thought maybe they would be better just cooked once without the reheat part.
We haven’t tested it! I think it would work though.