Lentil Burgers
These meatless lentil burgers are hearty, tasty and hold their shape well. They come together easily in the food processor. Bake them to golden perfection!
Posted by Kathryne Taylor on October 2, 2025
Lentil lovers, these lentil burgers are for you! These hearty meatless burgers are made with familiar and wholesome ingredients, unlike many store-bought options these days. My Favorite Veggie Burgers are still my go-to, but these lentil burgers come in second.
These burgers are flavored with grated carrot, fresh cilantro or parsley, onion and garlic, and spices, including chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Two eggs are optional (omit them for vegan burgers), but they provide extra moisture and a lighter texture.
The recipe comes together beautifully in the food processor. Like my veggie burgers, these lentil burgers turn out best when baked in the oven, which is a more efficient and less fussy method than cooking them in a skillet. They turn out nicely golden and firm enough to hold their shape in between a bun.
Lentil Burger Serving Suggestions
These burgers taste best with boldly flavored toppings, like an herbed avocado sauce and pickles. You could also serve these burgers without bread, perhaps on a green salad or over cooked brown rice, farro or quinoa with some of the topping suggestions provided below. Freeze your leftover burgers for a quick protein and fiber-rich addition to future meals.
- Buns or bread of choice, like hamburger buns, English muffins or even flatbread. Lightly toast them for some extra texture.
- Sauce, such as guacamole (shown here), avocado pesto, avocado dip, green goddess tahini dip, ketchup, mayo or mustard.
- Greens, like crisp lettuce, arugula or spinach.
- Add some crunch with dill pickles, quick-pickled red onions, or thinly sliced radishes or cucumbers.
- Sliced ripe tomato, only when tomatoes are in season!
Lentil Tips
This recipe calls for 2 1/2 cups regular greenish-brown lentils. You can cook them yourself, or use canned lentils or steamed lentils from Trader Joeโs. Regardless of the cooking method, youโll need to spread them across a paper towel to absorb excess moisture before using them. If you have any extra lentils, add them to a green salad this week.
More Hearty Meatless Mains
Here are a few more bean and lentil-based recipes to try:
- Best Lentil Soup
- Crispy Falafel
- Favorite Veggie Burgers
- Homemade Vegetarian Chili
- Mujadara (Lentils and Rice with Caramelized Onions)
- Roasted Cauliflower and Lentil Tacos with Creamy Chipotle Sauce
Please let me know how your lentil burgers turn out in the comments! I love hearing from you and hope this recipe becomes a new staple for you.
Lentil Veggie Burgers
These meatless lentil burgers are hearty, tasty and hold their shape well. They come together easily in the food processor. Bake them to golden perfection, and freeze the leftovers for later. Recipe yields 8 veggie burgers.
Ingredients
Lentil Burgers
- 2 ยฝ cups cooked regular green lentils*
- ยฝ medium yellow or white onion
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 large eggs (optional*)
- ยฝ cup old-fashioned oats
- โ cup fresh cilantro or parsley leaves
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
- ยผ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and grated on a box grater
- Up to ยฝ cup flour of choice, if needed (oat flour, all-purpose, etc.)
- Avocado oil or extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing
Burger assembly suggestions
- 8 buns of choice (hamburger buns, English muffins or flatbread), toasted
- Sauce: Guacamole, Avocado Pesto, Avocado Dip, Green Goddess Tahini Dip, ketchup, mayonnaise or mustard
- Greens: Lettuce, arugula or spinach
- Add some crunch: Dill pickles, quick-pickled red onions, or thinly sliced radishes or cucumbers
- Tomato slices
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy clean-up.ย
- Drain the lentils very well in a colander, then measure 2 ยฝ cups and spread them across a lint-free tea towel or paper towels to help dry them (if you have extra lentils, reserve them for another use).ย
- To make the burgers: Cut the halved onion into a few slices before adding the onion and garlic cloves to the food processor. Pulse until the onions are roughly chopped, but no more.
- Add to the food processor: towel-dried lentils, eggs, oats, handful of herbs (optional), chili powder and cumin, salt and black pepper. Process until the mixture has the consistency of chunky hummus (err on the side of caution here). Stir in the grated carrot by hand.
- To prepare the burgers: Divide the lentil mixture into 8 equal portions using about ยฝ cup each. Shape them into patties about 1-inch thick. (If your mixture is unmanageably wet to shape, stir in a couple of tablespoons of your flour of choice, or more as needed.)
- Brush both sides of each patty generously with oil and place them on the lined baking sheet, leaving a few inches of space around each one. Bake until the patties are deeply golden on the outside, about 35 minutes, flipping halfway.
- To assemble the burgers: Toast your buns if youโd like. Top the lower bun with lettuce, if using, then a veggie burger patty, then spread a generous amount of guacamole or sauce on top. Top with crunchy condiments and tomato, and enjoy!
- Leftover burgers keep well, refrigerated, for 4 days. Or, freeze them in a freezer bag for up to 3 months (thaw in the microwave for about 1 minute or in a 400 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until warmed all the way through).
Notes
Recipe adapted from Lentil-Chickpea Veggie Burgers with Avocado Green Harissa.ย
*To cook the lentils: Fill a medium-to-large saucepan with water, leaving several inches of room at the top. Bring it to a boil over high heat. Sift through 1 cup lentils for debris, then rinse them well. Add the lentils and ยฝ teaspoon salt to the boiling water and set the timer for 13 minutes. Reduce the heat as necessary to prevent overflow but maintain a lively simmer. Once your timer has gone off, use a fork to scoop out a few lentils and test for doneness (careful, theyโre hot). Your lentils are done when they are pleasantly tender throughout. If your lentils arenโt fully cooked yet, retest every 1 to 2 minutes until they are. Once cooked, immediately strain off all the excess water.
To cook the burgers on the stove: Heat a thin layer of avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, cook the veggie burgers in batches. Cook until the burgers are crispy on the bottom and the mixture holds together, about 3 to 5 minutes. Flip the burgers carefully with a spatula and continue cooking until the second sides are firm and brown, about 3 to 5 more minutes. Transfer the burgers to a plate, then add more oil to the pan and repeat with the remaining burgers until they are all cooked through.
Make it gluten free: Use certified gluten-free oats and oat flour or gluten-free all-purpose flour (if needed).
*Make it egg free/vegan: Omit the eggs. It will be a little more challenging to achieve a hummus-like texture, but the burgers will come together!
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionistโs advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Hello Kate. I love all your great recipes but I donโt have a food processor. Will I have to break down and buy one for this recipe ?! I have a blender but I know itโs not the same. Thanks :)
Hi Margot! Iโm so happy that you enjoy my recipes. I would be lost without my food processor and I think itโs a gadget worth owning, for sure. I donโt think you could achieve the desired texture with a blender or by hand, unfortunately. Cuisinart food processors last forever and Iโve even found good machines at estate sales if you want to try buying secondhand. :)
Yes, I really should have one as a vegetarian ! Iโll look at the mini Cuisinartsโฆthank you for your encouragement.
Hi, Kate,
Would there be a textural (or other) penalty for using other than green lentils? I have red, beluga, Umbrian, de Puy (yeah, I also like lentils).
Thanks,
Joe
Hey Joe! Umbrian lentils might work. Red lentils would be too mushy, I think. I have recipes for beluga and de Puy lentils on the blog if you want to check out my other lentil recipes. :)
Thanks, Kate, that helps.
That collection of lentil recipes looks enticing. I think Iโll make the lentil soup tonight.
Joe
Can we use canned lentils? I canโt find gluten free dry lentils here.
Yes, you may! Lentils should be gluten-free by nature, although I suppose they could be contaminated during processing.
Thank you for the reply!
Yes, thatโs exactly the problem. All the dried lentils I look at say โmay contain traces of wheat.โ โโ๏ธ Too risky.
Hi Kate, do you think the brown lentils can be substituted for red lentils?
Hi Maggie, red lentils are much softer so you may end up with mushy burgers. I would recommend using the regular brownish-greenish lentils.
Can these be frozen. Iโm just feeding me, so freezing is necessary.
Hi Mary, yes, they can! Youโll find details in the final recipe step.
Hi, can the burgers be frozen? Thanks
Yes, they freeze well! Youโll find details in the final recipe step.
These sound great! I am wondering about baking them in an air fryer instead of conventional oven. Any suggestions on temp and time? Maybe 385 degrees for 20 min, flipping halfway through. If anyone tries, I would like to know.
Hi Lisa, Iโm sorry, I donโt have much experience with air fryers, but it sounds like you do! Please report back if you try it. You could just bake one or two first. I appreciate that I can bake all of the burgers in the oven at once on a large baking sheet, though.
This recipe is really delicious.
I made these and they were delicious! Came out great. I do think I will add even more seasoning in them next time though as I love the flavors. I ate them without bread. Just put some homemade mayo on top then a topping of chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, onions and cilantro with honey and lime mixed in. They are delicious like this without the bread. I will make them again! Thanks!