This Moroccan chickpea burger has it all: warm Harissa spices to add spark and sass, and delicious chickpeas and bulgur for flavor, texture and protein. Serve atop a wholegrain bun. Patty is soy-free and nut-free, and can be gluten-free.
You can have too much of a good thing -- like all of this beautiful snow we've been digging ourselves out of in the Northeast -- but that maxim just doesn't apply when it comes to my Moroccan Chickpea Burger. With this one, you are allowed to eat all you want and then some more.
I am a huge fan of Moroccan food, both while eating in and dining out. For one, the food is really vegetarian-friendly, which means there's no need to go looking for too many substitutions and alternatives. For another, it's extremely delicious with all of those spices and herbs and beans and grains. What's not to love?
For my Moroccan Chickpea Burger, I used chickpeas and bulgur as the base for the patty and then built up a ton of flavor using the ingredients in a Harissa paste-- a flavoring of oil, garlic, chilies and cumin often added to Moroccan stews. Because I wanted to make the burger patty fat-free I skipped the oil. You can use an oil spray to coat the pan when you cook the patties.
The buns were made with my own, foolproof recipe for Whole Wheat Burger Buns. If you are still buying hamburger buns, please, stop and try these just once. You'll never want to buy bread again.
I slathered my burger with a vegan mayonnaise, called Nayonnaise, into which I mixed in some harissa paste for some added zip. You can absolutely leave it out or use another chili flavoring, like the adobo sauce from a can of chipotle chilies. Your imagination's the limit. For some green muscle I added baby spinach, but feel free to use mixed greens or lettuce or even baby kale.
This burger patty has a wheat product-- bulgur-- but you can easily make it gluten-free by using quinoa instead, like I did in these quinoa and bean veggie burgers. This recipe is also extremely easy to make and really fast-- you can go from start to done in 30 minutes or less-- which makes it perfect for weekday and weekend eats.
Is everyone looking forward to the weekend? I know I am because Desi and I are seeing some old and very dear friends after a long time. May yours also be filled with friends, sunshine and fun.
Now here's the recipe for my Moroccan Chickpea Burger.
Related recipes
- Sprouted Mung Bean Burger with Mint Cilantro Chutney
- Vegan Tandoori Naan Burger
- Chana Masala Veggie Burger with Mint Chutney Mayo
- Vegan Chickpea Quinoa Burger
- Vegan Barbecue Meatballs
- And check out this post on Veggie Burgers for the Grill.
Vegan Moroccan Chickpea Burger Recipe:
Vegan Moroccan Chickpea Burger
Ingredients
For the burger patty
- 2 cups canned or cooked chickpeas, drained of all liquid and rinsed
- ⅓ cup bulgur or cracked wheat (sub cooked quinoa for gf patty)
- ¼ cup chickpea flour or besan
- 1 large carrot, grated
- 1 teaspoon allspice powder (use a combination of cloves and cinnamon if you don't have this)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoon finely chopped coriander leaves
- Salt to taste
To build the burger
- 6 whole-wheat burger buns
- Tomato, onions, greens to top the burger
- Vegan mayonnaise mixed with some Harissa paste or adobo sauce
Instructions
- Cook the bulgur by placing it in a saucepan with salt to taste and ⅔rd of a cup of water, bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, slap on a lid, and let the bulgur cook 15 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- Place the chickpeas in a large bowl and mash with a heavy ladle or potato masher. Leave some larger pieces in for some texture.
- Add all of the other ingredients for making the burger patty, including the bulgur, and mix them well. You should have a mixture that holds together when you press it into a patty.
- Make six patties, each about 2 ½ to 3 inches in diameter.
- Spray a nonstick griddle or cast-iron skillet with oil. Cook each patty for about 3 minutes on each side over medium-high heat or until charred and golden-brown.
- To build your burger, cut each hamburger bun along the middle, and then slather on some vegan mayonnaise. Add greens, an onion ring, top with the burger and more veggies if desired, and serve.
Ally
Hello
Can u tell me what in the ingredients brings the moisture.. I have made the mixture without the grated carrot.. As I have non in the house at the moment..
So it is a very dry mix and the only item that would bring moisture is the carrot juice from the grated carrot....
Is this sounding correct!!!
Otherwise I am a little perplexed how they stay together at all?‼️?
Ally
Trying to make them xx
Vaishali
You need the carrots for moisture but you can add mashed potatoes or sweet potatoes instead.
Adrian Gonzalez
Made this for lunch yesterday and absolutely loved it. Didn't have chickpea flour so substituted with half the amount of coconut flour which made the mix too dry so I tried salvaging with a flaxmeal and water mixture for moisture. They held together and I cooked all the patties and froze the leftovers. Reheating them didn't work out as they fell apart on the skillet when I tried to flip them, but it struck me that the broken pieces looked very much like ground beef so I added sauteed onions to the crumbles and put it on some corn tortillas, topped it off with some shredded lettuce and diced tomato... best vegan tacos ever!!!!!!!
Vaishali
Hi Adrian, what a wonderful idea to turn the burgers into beef crumbles. 🙂 So innovative.
Sonal
Dear Vaishali,
We made this awesome burger for lunch and are absolutely happy with the result! We've recently moved back to Singapore and for the next week have printed out and planned the WHOLE menu from your blog. It should give you an idea of where I place your food blog in my firmament. 🙂
I have passed on your blog name to my cousins who share a similar taste in the food department around the globe! Will keep visiting for new, new and old, new twists to your food tales.
Thank you!
Sonal
Vaishali
Hi Sonal, what a lovely message-- you are so kind. 🙂 Thanks for holding my blog in such esteem, and I am a little intimidated that you chose the entire week's menu from the blog. 🙂 I hope I do not disappoint! Happy settling down in Singapore!!