Crispy and delicious, this plant-based alkaline burger is made even better when piled with toppings and served with sweet potato fries. It’s made quickly with garbanzo beans, walnuts, and red quinoa and can be made ahead of time to free you up when entertaining.
You can grill, bake, or fry the burgers and the mixture also freezes well. Healthy eating in the summer is easy when you have alkaline recipes like this, and kids love this burger, too.
These burgers are vegan and gluten-free, too, so they’re great to serve at a gathering where you’re trying to keep all types of eaters happy and well fed.
Alkaline Plant-Based Burger
Ingredients
- ¾ cup chopped red onion
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup raw walnuts
- 1 cup cooked red quinoa (made from 2/3 cup uncooked)
- 1 can garbanzo beans, drained (1 ½ cups)
- 3 tablespoons tapioca starch dissolved in 3 tablespoons alkaline water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon sriracha (use ketchup for a less spicy version)
- 1 tablespoon low sodium tamari
- spelt buns
- sweet potato fries
- lettuce, red onion slices, ketchup, and tomato slices for toppings
How to Prepare
Prepare the quinoa according to the package directions. Chop the walnuts into small pieces and heat them gently over medium-low heat until lightly toasted. Sauté the onions in the olive oil until softened and slightly browned.
Add to the bowl of a food processor: the garbanzo beans, toasted walnuts, cooked quinoa, onions, salt, pepper, sriracha, smoked paprika, tamari, and the tapioca starch mixture. Pulse the mixture a few times until the ingredients are well blended but not pureed.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Form each burger by scooping 1/3 cup of mixture and with your hands, make a ball and then flatten it gently into a burger shape. Place the burgers on the baking sheet and chill them for at least 15 minutes before cooking.
For the crispiest burgers, heat a few teaspoons of grapeseed oil in a frying pan, and fry the burgers for about 2 minutes on each side or until nicely browned. Serve on toasted spelt buns with lettuce, tomato, red onion slices, and ketchup. Sweet potato fries go great with these burgers.
If you prefer the no oil method of cooking these burgers, bake them at 375 degrees F on a parchment paper or Silpat lined baking sheet for 8 minutes. Turn them over and cook for another 5 minutes.
For grilling, grill on medium for 5 minutes on each side. Make sure the burgers are well chilled and firm before grilling.
