Our 13 Best Veggie Burger Recipes (2024)

Double Drive-Thru Veggie Burgers

Vegan chef Chloe Coscarelli is famous for her deliciously charred veggie burgers. For a "special sauce," she swaps out mayo for silken-tofu mayonnaise to make a tangy-sweet vegan take on Thousand Island dressing.

Rajma (Kidney Bean Curry) Veggie Burgers

Your quest for the perfect veggie burger is over. Cookbook author Chitra Agrawal's version uses mashed kidney beans, which get an umami burst with the addition of grated Parmesan and a melty slice of sharp cheddar cheese. Don't skip the piles of toppings: They make this already wonderful burger even more special.

Cumin-Spiced Red Lentil Burgers

The red lentils in these Indian-inspired vegetarian burgers don't need to be soaked and cook super quickly. The cooling homemade yogurt sauce provides a great counterpoint to the spicy patties.

Veggie Burgers with Pomegranate Ketchup

Eating vegan for a month led Top Chef winner Richard Blais to examine his pantry more closely. He discovered that ground porcini mushrooms add a meaty flavor to dishes like his veggie burger.

Black Bean Burgers

If you suspect that veggie burgers are a pale imitation of the all-beef original, try these robust DIY patties. Made with black beans and farro and topped with roasted red pepper spread, they're moist and delicious.

Vada Pav (Potato Fritter Sandwich)

This sandwich is a vegetarian's dream. It's also a nice option for meat lovers looking for a sandwich stuffed with something just as enticing as a burger. Vada pav, one of Mumbai's most popular street foods, is a potato fritter the size of a baseball stuffed into a flaky white bun, smeared with coconut and spicy green chile chutneys, and then squished until it's small enough to fit into your mouth.

Brown Rice Veggie Burgers

Another approach to veggie burgers uses the natural nutty sweetness of brown rice in the patty. Monterey Jack cheese, chipotle and poblano pepper, peas, and pumpkin seeds contribute extra flavor and texture.

Ultimate Veggie Burgers

These veggie burgers hit every satisfying, savory note with a hearty mix of pearl barley, chickpeas, mushrooms, and crispy panko. For the sturdiest patties, evenly distribute the panko by stirring the patty mixture until very well-combined.

Spiced-Tofu Sandwiches

For this fantastic vegetarian spin on a burger, grilled tofu gets marinated in a smoky spice paste, then topped with barbecue mayo.

Roasted Veggie Burgers with Carrot Ketchup

Chef Edward Lee takes a different tack to the traditional veggie burger. Rather than creating a patty, Lee layers roasted vegetables and tops it off with melted cheese. "It looks like a slice of a rainbow," he says.

Beet-Bean Cheeseburger

This exceptional veggie burger, created by chef Dan Barber for his WastED pop-up at Blue Hill in New York City, has a lot of ingredients; each one adds to the taste and texture and makes it exceptional. The key is cooking the burger until it's well-seared, so you get the familiar charred flavor.

Corn and Shiitake Fritters

Sweet corn kernels take two different forms in these crispy cakes. Half the corn is pureed into the batter; the other half is sautéed with shiitake and onion to give the fritters crunch. Serve them on buns slider-style or simple and unadorned.

Crispy Quinoa Sliders

These crispy, light little patties are fantastic as mini vegetarian burgers, and they'd be great served alongside a salad.

Was this page helpful?

Tell us why!