This recipe is from my new cookbook, At My Table: I make these burgers with black beans because they are packed with protein and fibre. If you don’t have black beans, then kidney beans are a great alternative. I love them sandwiched between a burger bun with all the toppings – sliced pickles, tomato, onion, lettuce, melted cheese, Thousand Island dressing (or mayo and ketchup) and mustard. My advice is to never skimp on the toppings!

Makes: 6 Burgers approx. 8cm wide and 1.5cm thick (1 inch thick & 3 inch wide)
Prep time: 20 – 30 minutes

Chilling time: 1 hour minimum
Cooking time: 5 – 10 minutes

Gluten free, Vegan, Dairy free option

Ingredients

400g tin (14 ounce can) black beans or kidney beans, drained

2 tablespoons light olive oil or 30g (2 1/2 tablespoons) butter

1 medium red onion, finely chopped

140g (1 2/3 cups) mushrooms, finely chopped

2 tablespoons tamari (the gluten-free option) or soy sauce

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley, or 1 teaspoon or dried mixed herbs

1 spring onion, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes (optional)

4 tablespoons buckwheat flour (the gluten-free option), or plain or spelt flour

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes, or 1/2 teaspoon of marmite (optional)

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

3 tablespoons vegetable oil (if not cooking on the barbecue), for frying.

Method

• Put the beans into a large bowl and roughly mash them with a potato masher, or blend them in a food processor for a few seconds. You want them to keep some texture, so do not over-mash.
• Heat the olive oil (or butter) in a medium frying pan, then sauté the onions for 3 minutes.
• Add the mushrooms and tamarin (or soy sauce) and fry for a few more minutes, until more of the mushroom juice has evaporated.
• Stir in the garlic, herbs, spring onions, chilli flakes and mashed beans, then allow the mixture to cook for about 2 minutes, stirring often.
• Transfer the mixture to a bowl and leave to cool slightly before mixing in the flour, nutritional yeast flakes (or Marmite) and black pepper to taste.
• Divide the mixture into six portions and, using your hands, mould each portion into a patty shape (about 1.5 cm thick & 8cm wide/1 inch thick & 3 inch wide).
• Leave to chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
• To fry the burgers, heat the 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a medium-large frying pan and cook the burgers over a medium heat for about 2 minutes on each side, or until cooked through.

If cooking on the barbecue, chill the burgers in the fridge or freeze them for a couple of hours so they become firm. Then grill on both sides until golden brown and cooked through.