Cheesy, spicy, goodness!
These vegan cheesy jalapeno burgers are not only totally to die for, but they are gluten-free and filled with protein! These incredibly easy burgers are have a great cheesy flavor and they have pickled jalapenos right in the mix. The mix is made from smashed black beans, brown rice and oats. Healthy and so freaking good.
Top these baked burgers with smoky onion jam that tastes like bacon, some greens of choice, more pickled jalapenos and vegan mayo! I promise that you will get no complaints. Vegan cheesy jalapeno burgers are perfect anytime! Game day, weekends, summers and winters. You can bake them for a bit and then brown them in a pan, or in the summer time, throw them on the grill!
I love the texture of these burgers, they are moist, but still firm enough. They are super quick to throw together and bake in no time at all. While they bake, you can prep the awesome toppings! I definitely recommend making this smoky onion jam! Coconut aminos, maple syrup and liquid smoke make this onion jam irresistible.
These vegan cheesy jalapeno burgers are the best vegan and gluten-free burgers I have ever had. I totally think we will be on the same page once you try them! If you need a gluten-free and vegan hamburger bun recommendation, I love O’Dough Gluten-Free Buns!
Vegan Cheesy Jalapeno Burgers
Ingredients
- 2 Cans(15oz. each) Black beans, drained
- 1 Cup Cooked Brown rice
- 1 Cup Oats processed into to flour, or already processed oat flour
- 1/4 Cup Nutritional yeast
- 1/3 Cup Pickled jalapenos, chopped
- 4 Cloves Garlic, chopped
- 1 Tablespoon Balsamic vinegar
- 1 1/2 Teaspoons Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
- 4 Tablespoon Ground flax seeds
- 6 Tablespoons Water
Smoky Onion Jam
- 2 Teaspoons Olive oil
- 1 Large Sweet onion, sliced very thin
- 1 Teaspoon Liquid smoke
- 2 Teaspoons Maple syrup
- 2 Teaspoon Coconut aminos or soy sauce
For the Burgers
- Burger Buns, I used Trader Joe's Organic Buns*
- Lettuce or Arugula
- Vegan Mayo
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, add the drained cans of black beans. Smash the black beans with a fork or potato smasher. Smash until almost all of them are smashed, you can leave some whole for texture.
- Now, add the cooked brown rice and stir the rice and black beans together.
- Then, if you have whole oats, put them in a food processor. Pulse until they look like crumbs. Make sure you have 1 whole cup of oat crumbs.
- Add the oats to the black bean mixture, and then add the nutritional yeast, the chopped pickled jalapenos, chopped garlic, balsamic, salt and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Next, whisk together the flax and water to make flax “eggs”. Set aside for a minute to let it thicken. Then, add the flax “eggs” to the mixture. Stir to combine everything.
- Chill the mixture in the fridge for 5-10 minutes while you prep the toppings. You can slice the onion, and get all the other toppings together. Now, preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Then, take the black bean burger mixture, and scoop about 1/2 a cup of the mixture out, roll into a ball, then press down and form into a patty. Place the burger patty on a sheet pan sprayed with non stick spray or brushed with a tiny bit of oil.
- Repeat with all of the mixture, you should be able to get about 6 burger patties. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until they are nice and firm. Flip the burgers halfway through baking.
- While the burgers are baking, make the smoky onion jam if you are making it. Heat the olive oil on medium high in a non stick pan. Add the onion, saute reducing heat as needed until the onion starts to brown. This will take 5-10 minutes.
- Then pour the liquid smoke, maple syrup and coconut aminos or soy sauce into the pan with the onions. Toss to coat and continue to saute until the onions are nice and caramelized. This may take another 5-10 minutes.
- When the burgers and onion jam are done, take a bun, spread the bottom and top with vegan mayo, put some greens on the bun, then a burger, then some onion jam, then some more pickled jalapenos. Then EAT THEM!!
Could you substitute quinoa for the brown rice?
Totally! I think quinoa would work great and be delicious!
These were delicious! I had to omit the jalapenos and just use them as a topping for myself and my husband since our kids were eating them as well. My husband ate THREE and the kids ate every last bite of theirs! Full of protein, fiber, and b12! Definitely a win. Thanks for sharing!
I am a new vegan and I somehow stumbled upon your beautiful IG/blog. Your food looks amazing and approachable. So for super bowl I made your burger and girl let me tell you it was da bomb!!! It was so yummy and full of flavor! I didn’t have canned pickled jalapeños so I pickled my own fresh ones I had. All of our meat eaters loved them and asked for the recipe! Oh and the onion jam!!! I think I will put that on everything! So good.
This makes me so happy! I’m so glad you found me, and I am incredibly excited that you enjoyed the burgers!!
My new favorite vegan burger! These were very easy to make, and they tasted exceptional. Even my non-vegan family was impressed. I had mine with some mustard & avocado. They paired great with the onion jam. Thank you, Lauren, for another amazing recipe!
Oh! Yes! Avocado would be awesome!
Lauren! Oh my goodness, these were so delicious! They even held together, unlike so many other vegan burger recipes. I melted a slice of Daiya cheddar on top at the end of baking and this was the bomb, I am telling you!
I LOVED this recipe!!! Delicious, filling and very easy to make.
Has anyone freezed them?
I was wondering the same thing… how well do they freeze? Woukd it be better to freeze before or after baking? I’m thinking.. after baking then pan fry to reheat and crisp them…
These look so good! For the oats… do you mean rolled oats put into a food processor?
Yup! Just rolled oats. I just like to process them so they are a little finer so you don’t have whole oats in the burger.
Thank you! Also.. what brand of liquid smoke do you recommend?
No problem! I use Colgin liquid smoke.
Do they actually taste ‘cheesy’? What would a cheese-hater need to leave out please? They look amazing😍
I don’t think they have a super intense cheese flavor. If you are worried about it, you can leave out the nutritional yeast. They will still be amazing!
This “burger” was really, really good. I got 8 patties out of mine and thought I made them large. I’ll definitely be making these again. Everything I’ve made from your recipes has been delicious. The only thing I’d like to see is the nutritional breakdown. Thanks.
Definitely one of the best “burgers” in terms of both flavor and mouth feel. They weren’t mushy at all like most of the vegan burgers I’ve tried. The flavor was great and I didn’t even make the onion jam topping. I topped them with a thin slice of red onion and some romaine lettuce. I also cut the recipe in 1/2, measured out the 1/2 cup portions and I got 4 generous burgers out of half of the recipe. I put them in my cast iron skillet with a bit of oil on the bottom and baked them right in there per the instructions. Then I gave them 2 minutes per side on the stove top after taking them out of the oven. Perfect! Thanks so much! Great recipe!
Hi Lauren, So okay, I have made these burgers 3 times now, so I can firmly say they are XLNT!! I am able to get 8 burgers out of each batch by measuring generous 1/3rd cup portions and then I bake them. Before serving, I always brown both sides in the fry pan to heat them up. Also, since you mentioned Trader Joe’s…Trader Joe’s sells a sweet and spicy pickled jalapeno that is absolutely delicious in and on these burgers. I just wanted to thank you for the creativity you put into your recipes.
Absolutely delicious! I’ve made a lot of burgers searching for the perfect one. This is it!!!
We’ve made it now five times. We’ve used both rice and quinoa both turned out amazingly delicious. I honestly can’t tell a difference between the two. Thanks for a new favorite. Excited to try this out in the summer on the grill!!!!
I made these burgers last night and they are so good! My whole family loved them, in fact, one of my daughters asked if we could have them again for dinner tonight! Great recipe!
I only have 1 can black beans , can I substitute for a can of red kidney beans or anything else you can suggest.
Thanks
I think 1 can of black beans and 1 can of kidney beans would be totally delicious!!
Delicious! I used cooked cauliflower rice since I didn’t have any brown rice. It also made 7 big burgers for me, which is awesome! These burgers are thick, meaty, they don’t fall apart, and that smoky onion jam is absolutely amazing.
If I wanted to use eggs how many would I use?
The flax and water mix is the equivalent of 2 eggs, so I recommend using 2 eggs. I hope you enjoy!
This is the end of a search mission for me! Looking for the best “veggie” burger is now over!
This is the BEST!!!
I actually followed the recipe (well, maybe a little more garlic) and the result is soooo delicious!
I ended up getting 9 quarter # burgers. I’m freezing 5 for the future. I will check back wiht a report on how well they freeze, but I really can’t imagine a problem.
Thanks for giving me the recipe I’ve been looking for!
You totally made my day! Thank you for sharing this!
OMG Good! I was intrigued by the addition of all that chopped garlic and jalapenos. The results didn’t disappoint. I didn’t make the onion jam, but instead I used Trader Joe’s roasted onion and garlic jam from a jar. I spread my homemade vegan mozzarella on the bottom of a Trader Joe’s whole wheat burger bun, topped that with the burger, added avocado, tomato, more jalapenos and the TJ’s jam. This is my new go to burger recipe. I’m oil-free so I cooked my burger in my air fryer. Thank you!
These were delicious! Followed the recipe as stated – the pickled jalapenos and onion jam made these a real treat! My son liked them too – and suggested we possibly add corn to the burgers next time. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
Ok I’ve been recommended your recipes as I have M.S and need to basically become more sensible about my lifestyle…all sites with recipes made me actually sad..lol. then I come across this and you know what….the future is looking a bit more positive lol.
Umm.. this literally made me grin enormously! I’m so happy my recipes can make you feel better about eating some plant-based food! I really hope you enjoy anything you make, and let me know if I can help with anything!
I have read through all the comments and a couple people asked if they freeze well. I really need to know as my daughter is having her birthday BBQ and l need to make these for a crowd. Has anyone froze these? Did they hold together after being frozen and then thawed and put on a grill?
I have frozen them and they are just as yummy. I separated them with wax paper and then slipped the “pile” of them into a big ziplock bag. They are just as good after being frozen. I have cooked them on the grill as well as in the frying pan. I think we over cooked them a bit on the grill. So watch your time.
Good luck! And happy birthday!
Made these burgers last night. I was pleasantly surprised.! I was expecting a strong black bean flavor but not at all. Taste pretty close to the real thing. Will definitely be making these again.
I’m not vegetarian or vegan but have been trying to incorporate a lot more plant based meals into my diet. These are seriously amazing. Best veggie burger I’ve ever had. I want to make them for everyone so they can experience the goodness :))
My family doesn’t seem to digest black beans well…. do you think lentils would be a good substitute?
I haven’t tested these with lentils, but I do think they would work well! Let me know if you try it out!
Another question – I am not a spicy person…but if i just leave out the jalepenos in the burger I’m assuming it will be too dry. How do I adjust the moisture level accordingly?
I had a friend make them without the jalapenos because her husband doesn’t like spicy food, and she said they still turned out perfect and she’s had them with the jalapenos too! So they should be fine just to leave them out.
These were AMAZING.Thank you!!!!
These burgers tasted fantastic!! Left out the jalapeños and used 1 can of kidney, 1 can of black beans. Used brown rice and half oat flour, half regular rolled oats. I figured the whole Oats would provide some additional texture. The onions were a flavor explosion! My kids loved them as well- will definitely make again. Thanks so much for all you do with this site- you’re very talented!
I’ll be trying these for sure, and am excited about the onion jam recipe as well :^) Thanks! Love your IG account, glad to have the recipes here as well
I have made a lot of veggie burgers, and I have to say, these are amazing! They have a great firm texture, whereas others tend to be mushy or fall apart. Also very easy. I used forbidden rice and made a chia seed “egg” since was out of flax. The onions were also easy to make and such a great addition – will definitely make again!
Wanting to make these soooo badly! Quick question- do you mix 4 tbsp of flax SEEDS or flax MEAL with the water? Thanks! Ps… Love your recipes! They really are amazing.
Nevermind… just saw it says ground which means the flax meal! Sorry!
Yup, you’re right flaxmeal!
this is an excellent burger and the onion jam is what makes it superior. I added some garlic and onion powder to it and also sautéed mushrooms to onion jam. I also melted s slice of chao cheese over the onions and burger, The best thing about this burger is that it doesn’t fall apart like most homemade vegan burgers. I kind of gave up on making them myself and was buying processed burgers until now. Delicious!
Wow!!! I am not a person who gets a ton of recipes from blogs but I’ve literally never left a comment before, but today I had to! These are delicious and awesome in every way, plus they’re pretty easy to make and are made from ingredients I mostly have on hand typically. Thank you!
Best vegan recipe EVER, thank you so much for sharing your talents!
Oh and I definitely give it 5 stars!!!!!
I have been vegetarian for over 10 years, and these are in the top 5 veggie burgers I have tried. Thanks for this recipe, it will definitely be a go-to.
OMG, I’ve made A LOT of vegan burgers and these are by far the BEST!! I don’t usually like black bean burgers as they are generally dry and the black beans generally overpower the other ingredients. Not the case with this recipe! Do NOT skip the onion jam – so easy to make and absolutely delicious…I’ll be adding the onions to many other dishes. I got 8 burgers out of the recipe which I baked for 25 mins, then sprayed with a bit of oil and put in the BBQ for a few minutes per side. At the end I threw a piece of Chao “cheese” on to get nice and melty. I topped with Hellman’s vegan mayo, heirloom tomatoes, arugula and of course the onion jam – delish!
I’m a meat eater – burgers, steak, chicken, bacon, etc etc etc.
I tell anyone doubting that I would pay GOOD MONEY for one of these…
The wife is vegan so i am ‘forced’ into this food lane now and again, and I whuffed down the first one and although full, whuffed down another half of one. Just a bit of yellow mustard and some chips and a meat eater like me was happy as a clam. The onion jam was perfect and should not be skipped !!!
By far the tastiest vegan recipe I’ve ever had! So so good! The texture of the patty was amazing and not mushy at all like most veggie patties. And the onion jam – omg, this is def the star of the dish, going to top everything with this goodness!
This is my new favorite burger. It is absolutely delicious! It was so easy to make. It wasn’t mushy but tasted meaty. The onion jam was outstanding! Great job!
Best burgers ever!! Thank you so much for this recipe. I used vegan cheddar and banana peppers cause I couldn’t find jalapeños. Didn’t put them in the mix just as a garnish because my daughter doesn’t like spicy… sadly! They held together so nicely and tasted amazing. The onions are essential in my opinion and bring it to the next level. This will be my go to burger recipe. Love all your recipes btw! Thanks again and again😁
Hello! Oats often upset my stomach. Would you suggest an alternative to the oat flour? Would almond flour work? I’m so excited to make these and don’t want to ruin the recipe!
We actually don’t think almond flour would work. You are welcome to try it but we aren’t sure it would have the same consistency. If you do try it- you might need to add more flour to make sure it’s firm enough.
I make these burgers often. My son has celiac disease and can’t have oats so when he joins us for dinner I use chickpea flour and it works very well. Another trick if you are using a flour that doesn’t bind super well is to add a tsp of psyllium powder. It’s an amazing binder and leaves no taste. I hope you find a way to make them….they are amazing 😍 I’m making them tonight!
Hi June, have you used a 1:1 ratio for the chickpea : oat flour or did you amend the quantity ?
Can you make them a day or two ahead of when you will be Bali g them?
Can i half the recipe?
I’ve been looking for an oil free veggie burger for a while, and now I can stop looking. These burgers are fabulous!! The onion jam is perfect (I omit the oil — still great). Thanks for an awesome recipe!
These are phenomenal burgers! The picture had me drooling and sometimes looks are deceiving, but these are better tasting than I expected! Thank you so much for sharing! We love these burgers (making them as we speak even)!
Love these burgers! Do you have nutritional information?
These are fantastic burgers. I didn’t have flax seeds, only flax meal and that was easier and worked perfectly. I served these with some spring mix salad and cucumbers and avocado on the side. The onion jam really made it. Thanks for all your great recipes!
look I’m not even vegan/vegetarian but these burgers… AMAZING. literally better than any burger I’ve ever had. every time I make burgers that aren’t these, I regret it because these are better. Lauren, thank you SO much for introducing these burgs into my life (this comment inspired by the fact that I decided to give another burger recipe a try… but nope).
Love these (& all your recipes)! I freeze the leftovers for a quick dinner.. I crumbled one up & sautéed with mushrooms, walnuts and taco spices for taco salad. Thanks for all your recipes 😊
I made these last night along with your vegan bacon potato salad. They are delicious, but I found that the burger by itself is a bit bland. The onion jam is delicious! I added more of that to the burger and bun. I think I will add more pickled jalapeños to the burger mix next time. Thank you for this yummy food!
This has been a go to recipe of mine for years! I can’t believe I’m just now commenting to say that these burgers are delicious. It’s not very often that I follow a recipe step by step but I do (almost) with this one. The only addition is adding some liquid smoke to the patty mixture.
This past time my husband heated them up in the air fryer with a slice of tomato on top and some of the onion jam… let me tell you that simple step amplified the flavors so well. Top with a little arugula, some vegan mayo and Dijon and you’re set for a wonderfully filling meal (some potatoes of choice on the side too)!
If I want to freeze these should I cook them first or freeze uncooked ?
I usually just freeze them before I cook them.
This is the best vegan burger recipe ! I used quinoa, as another reader suggested and didn’t have liquid smoke so substituted smoked paprika. The texture of the burger was perfect and the onion jam was delicious.! Highly recommend. Would love to see the nutritional values for this recipe. It is definitely a keeper!!
Can you use red beans instead of black beans?
Yes, that should work out fine!
This is my go to veggie burger recipe. I have tried others and they were okay. Most have mushrooms and rice and that gets expensive and time consuming. I can cook a cup of rice and put in fridge for later in the week and make this in a pinch. We always have beans. I just enjoyed it on a bagel with cheese and avocado. So now I’m thinking of making a small batch and adding sausage seasonings and doing pattie for my breakfast bagel instead of purchasing quorn veggie burgers to get the protein. I have found a 1/3 cup packed makes the perfect size. It makes 10 perfect. Patties not too big or hanging off the bun. Husband loves them. I do leave out jalapenos because I want the kids to try but I do want to try it that way. I do the onions and just saute jalapenos for my husband. I also have done a few tweaks to work for us. I don’t have chia seeds at the moment. So I just add a little bean juice from the can and some extra oatmeal and like it sit. I smash this into the beans so it’s more consistent.. I add the juice from something pickled or reg vinegar instead of balsamic and use garlic powder.Thank you for sharing this recipe . Looking forward to more burger mmm