Are you looking for the perfect Mediterranean-inspired weeknight meal that’s as easy to throw together as it is delicious? Well, look no further than these fantastic vegetarian chickpea burgers without a food processor! Taking about fifteen minutes total to prepare, they are a healthy, flavourful and easy meal to prepare on any day of the week.
Far too many chickpea burgers require you to take out a food processor or call for odd or hard-to-find ingredients to make them. Or, you go through the effort of putting together a recipe only for the result to fall flat and lack any kind of discernable flavour. Well, not this one! Not only is this chickpea burger recipe easy to make, but they are also deeply flavourful and are sure to please all those in your family!
So if you’re looking for a great vegetarian meal perfect for any night of the week, then I’ve got you covered. These Mediterranean chickpea burgers without a food processor are topped with a zingy tzatziki sauce that is sure to be a hit!
And if you’re interested in other great vegetarian main meals, you’re sure to love my chipotle black bean burgers, my red lentil burgers and also make sure to check out some of my Georgian recipes like chashushuli or ojakhuri!
Mediterranean Chickpea Burgers Without a Food Processer Recipe
When making these chickpea burgers without a food processor, I recommend starting off with making the tzatziki sauce because it can benefit from sitting for even a little bit before eating – the flavours just get better the longer it sits!
You can always buy a tzatziki sauce, but it is so easy to make (and then you know what goes into it, as well!) that it’s worth simply whipping it up at home.
First off, you need to peel and grate a small cucumber. I simply use the large holes on a box grater. Add the cucumber to a small bowl with some plain Greek yogurt (I recommend using full-fat yogurt here because it does taste better, but it is your own choice) and grate in 2 cloves of garlic using a rasp style grater.
If you don’t have one, you can just as easily add in some very finely minced garlic. All we’re trying to avoid is large chunks of raw garlic in your sauce as this can be quite unappetizing.
Now, drizzle over a couple of tablespoons of a tasty extra virgin olive oil, season liberally with salt and pepper and stir to combine. Taste to make sure you’re happy with the level of seasoning and set the sauce aside while you’re prepping the burgers.
And to do that, we need to start with the binding that holds them together! In a small bowl, add your eggs, olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, cumin, salt and chili flakes and whisk together until thoroughly combined. Set this aside for later.
Next, drain and rinse your canned chickpeas thoroughly. Transfer them to a large mixing bowl and, using a potato masher, mash them until about three-quarters of them are pureed. I like to keep a few chickpeas whole because it lends to a nice texture in the finished burger.
In the bowl with your chickpeas, add a finely diced onion and grate in a couple of cloves of garlic. Again, if you don’t have a rasp-style grater, then just finely mince them or use a garlic press. Then, finely chop a good amount of fresh, flat-leaf parsley and add it into the bowl as well.
Mix all of this to combine and then pour over your wet ingredients. Use a spoon or silicone spatula to fold this all together until it’s homogenous and give the mixture a little taste to adjust for seasoning. Then, sprinkle over your panko-style breadcrumbs.
I recommend sprinkling over less than what I call for initially because different brands of breadcrumbs hydrate at different rates. It also can depend on how humid the day is or not. Gently mix the breadcrumbs in until the mixture forms a uniform mass that easily holds together and doesn’t crumble.
Be careful not to overmix here because it can lead to a tough burger, so simple mix enough just to make sure the breadcrumbs are evenly incorporated.
Now, all you have to do is divide the mixture into patties. Each burger should weigh about 200 grams each if you want to make sure each one is even. I then use my hands to roll each patty into a ball and then flatten it into a disc. Again, I advise against manipulating it too much to avoid tough Mediterranean chickpea patties — that would not be good!
Moving to the stovetop, heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat until shimmering. Gently add your burgers and cook on one side until it is crisp and browned, about five minutes. Carefully flip the burgers over and cook on the other side for a further five minutes.
You can opt to serve your chickpea burgers on a traditional hamburger bun (a good option), in a pita or some lavash (an even better option!) or simply on its own topped with a generous amount of your homemade tzatziki sauce. The latter option is how we typically do it and it’s absolutely delicious!
Mediterranean Chickpea Burgers Without a Food Processor
These burgers are the perfect, easy weeknight meal. Combining bright, Mediterranean flavours with a simple preparation method, these are sure to become a mealtime favourite.
Ingredients
Burgers
- 2 400g (2 15oz) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 cloves garlic, grated or very finely minced
- 1 small red onion, diced
- 20g parsley, chopped
- 30ml (2tbsp) lemon juice
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 30ml (2tbsp) tahini
- 2tsp ground cumin
- 1/2tsp salt
- 1/4tsp chili flakes
- 15ml (1tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
- 75g (1 cup) panko breadcrumbs
Tzatziki Sauce
- 200g (7oz) plain Greek yogurt
- 1 medium cucumber, peeled and grated
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- 30ml (2tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
- Salt & pepper
Instructions
Burgers
- In a large bowl, mash chickpeas until about 3/4 of them are completely pureed. Add onion, parsley and lemon juice.
- In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, tahini, garlic, cumin, chilli flakes and olive oil. Season liberally with salt and pepper.
- Pour egg mixture over chickpea mixture and stir until well combined. Sprinkle over breadcrumbs and stir just until well combined and the mixture completely holds together.
- Divide the mixture into four equal patties. In a large skillet over medium-low heat, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil until shimmering. Add the patties and cook until crisp and browned, about five minutes. Flip and cook on the other side, another five minutes. Serve immediately topped with tzatziki sauce.
Tzatziki Sauce
- Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 405Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 93mgSodium: 999mgCarbohydrates: 53gFiber: 11gSugar: 8gProtein: 19g
Nutritional information is automatically generated and provided as guidance only. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
Making vegetarian chickpea burgers without a food processor is an incredibly easy task. However, don’t let the simple recipe lead you to think that this delicious dish lacks flavour or complexity. These Mediterranean chickpea burgers are sure to become a new favourite vegetarian recipe to add to your repertoire!
Are you looking for the perfect chickpea burger recipe? Have any questions? Let me know in the comments!
