Yes, I put fries in a burger.
I love these burgers, and it’s not even burger season yet. You might be thinking – that’s not a burger, there’s no meat, but trust me, these burgers are super tasty (and healthy).
These burgers also do not fall apart easily since I know many veggie/quinoa burgers do, which in my opinion, is why they might have a bad wrap (no pun intended). The key to keeping these burgers together is to add no more than one egg to the mix. On the other hand, prevent the mix from being too dry (and therefore crumbling) by adding one large egg or two smaller eggs to the mix. In this case, a little goes a long way.
Speaking of a little amount, I highly recommend just adding a little bit of chili hot sauce to the burger mix. This way you can add however much you like on top of the burger after you prepare the individual burgers.
Let me tell you that adding sweet potato fries to a burger is ten times better than adding just normal russet potatoes. To me, sweet potatoes just have so much more flavor, not to mention they’re healthier for you. Don’t you think?!
And finally, that egg. How can I forget it? It just adds another dimension to the burger, sandwiched between the fluffy burger bun (I recommend pretzel!) and the soft quinoa burger. Yum!
Black Bean Chili Quinoa Burgers with Garlic Sweet Potato Fries
Garlic Sweet Potato Fries
- 3 large sweet potatoes
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
- 1 tsp ground cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- pinch of salt
- pinch of ground black pepper
- 3 tbsp olive oil
Burger
- 2 cups cooked quinoa ((I used a blend of brown, white, and red quinoa.))
- 3/4 cup black beans, mashed
- 2 tbsp chili hot sauce ((I used the brand Cholula.))
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 tsp chili powder ((optional))
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large egg ((optional))
Toppings
- pretzel bun
- 1 large egg
- lettuce
- 1 slice American cheese
- Preheat oven to 400? F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Cut sweet potatoes into thin strips (your desired thickness for fries). Place the strips on baking sheet, and sprinkle on minced garlic, cayenne pepper, paprika, salt, and black pepper. Drizzle on olive oil, and toss with hands until everything is evenly coated. Bake fries for 20 minutes, tossing occasionally to prevent sides from becoming too burned. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add quinoa, black beans, chili hot sauce, the egg, cheddar cheese, bread crumbs, chili powder, salt, and pepper, making sure all ingredients are well distributed. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
- Take about 2-3 tbsp of burger mix, and form into burger shape. Add burger to heated olive oil, and cook for about 5 minutes on each side. Add slice of cheese (optional) to burger, and heat until cheese is just about fully melted. Fry an egg in the remaining olive oil (sunny side up).
- To assemble, place burger on bun, add lettuce, sweet potato fries, and fried egg. Serve warm!
