Black Bean Burger Salad (gf+vo)

You read that right, a burger salad. Turn a burger into the ultimate healthy food while holding onto all of those delicious flavors. Image a burger – black bean specifically – deconstructed into a salad. You know what, just try it.

This recipe is PERFECT for black bean burger leftovers. That’s usually how I make this salad – use the leftovers to make this salad the next day(s).

Just want black bean burgers? Check out: Global Black Bean Burger Recipe

Recipe Tips:

• Dry: Pat black beans dry before anything. Too much moisture can prohibit the burgers from sticking together and they’ll fall apart.

• Binding: The egg is vital to bind everything together. If you are vegan you can use a flax egg, but beware it will be more difficult to bind and may require a little more almond meal.

• Flavor: Simply plain black beans, egg, and almond meal together can lack flavor. To combat this, adding spices is a delicious and healthy tactic. If you don’t have all the spices listed in the recipe, don’t worry, but do try to implement as many of them as you can.

• Dressing: You may be used to having a simple salad dressing to add to salads. This recipe is a little unique, which happens to also make it extra easy. There’s no formal dressing to buy and use nor is there one to make. Instead the core sauce of many “junk foods” – ketchup and mustard – will be your friend. If you don’t like adding so much oil to salads, this is perfect for you since you only need oil to make the burgers, not for the dressing.

Looking for more vegan food ideas? Try this Vegan Bowl Guide: Simple & Healthy

Ingredients

Black beans: The star of the show. If you’re worried about protein in this plant-based burger, these beans have you covered since they provide a healthy protein portion.

Egg (or flax egg): This is the primary binder, and is quite adjustable to your dietary preferences. See “Binding’ above for notes on this.

Almond meal: This is NOT the same as almond flour. The difference is almond meal still contains the peal of an almond and is less finely ground up. It is important to use this since it is vital to bind the burger correctly and firmly.

Spices: Sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, onion, chipotle chili, cumin, smoked paprika, and yellow mustard are recommended spices for this recipe. You can customize this based on what you have available.

Oil: For the healthiest option use oil such as avocado oil and avoid ones such as vegetable or soybean oil. You will only be needing oil to fry and crisp the patties.

Romaine lettuce: I highly suggest this particular lettuce, since it is compatible with both burgers and salads. To optimize the flavors spreading around, chop the lettuce into thin strips.

Tomatoes: If you can’t have a burger without a slice of tomato like me, include some chopped ones in this deconstructed version. They also provide a nice juice to this “dressing-free” salad.

Ketchup: Many kinds of ketchup can be quite sugary and even include high fructose corn syrup. If you truly want this to be healthier I suggest True Made Foods No Sugar Veggie Ketchup or Primal Kitchen’s Organic Unsweetened Ketchup. You can find them in stores such as Sprouts and Whole Foods.

Mustard: Similar to the ketchup, check the ingredients to ensure you are getting the healthiest version. Aim for mustard with just mustard seeds, spices, and vinegar, which should be easy to find.

Lime/lemon: To add a little zing! But only add very little, as this is a burger salad.

Add: Feel free to add more of your salad staples such as onion or mushrooms to this dish. This recipe includes minimal add ons for simplicity – but is still yummy!

Live in San Diego and don’t feel like cooking? Check out 5 Best Gluten Free & Celiac Friendly Eateries in San Diego

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