Sweet Potato Burgers

These gluten-free lentil and sweet potato burgers have both a meaty texture and a strong, savory flavor. Red lentils give them protein and body, grated sweet potato brings a subtle sweetness and a gorgeous color, and a handful of pantry staples holds everything together into patties you can fry in minutes. They are macrobiotic, naturally vegetarian, and easy to make vegan, which makes them one of those quick meals I reach for again and again.

I am crazy about veggie burgers and veggie patties! As you have probably noticed by now, I have tons of veggie patties, creamy soups and hummus recipes on my blog. Those three are my food weaknesses! I always try to come up with interesting and original ingredient combinations, and turn a boring meal into a real surprise for the senses.

I made these sweet potato burgers about two weeks ago. I rarely cook with sweet potatoes, maybe because they are pretty expensive here, or I’m just not that used to using them in recipes. Anyway, I saw some sweet potatoes at a decent price and got the idea to use them in a veggie burger patties recipe. Sweet potatoes have a subtle sweetness I love, plus they have a great color, and they turned these patties into something special. Like all my veggie patties recipes, these are super-easy to make and you won’t spend too much time in the kitchen either.

What goes into these lentil sweet potato burgers

The patty itself comes together from a short list of ingredients, and each one earns its place:

• Red lentils — they cook fast and break down into a soft, almost paste-like base, which is exactly what holds a patty together. No soaking needed.
• Sweet potato, grated — raw and grated, it adds moisture, color and that gentle sweetness that balances the savory lentils.
• Onion and fresh parsley — the aromatic backbone. Dice the onion finely so it softens as the patties fry.
• Egg, or psyllium husks for a vegan version — the binder. One egg works, or swap in psyllium husks to keep the patties together without any animal product.
• Nutritional yeast — a few tablespoons add a savory, cheesy depth that makes the patties taste fuller.
• Gluten-free bread crumbs — they soak up extra moisture and give the mixture structure. Regular crumbs work too if you are not gluten intolerant.
• Salt and ground pepper — to taste. Season generously; lentils need it.

For serving, I build them into proper burgers with gluten-free buns (I used Schar), salad leaves, tomato slices, and a little mustard and ketchup.

How to make them step by step

Start by boiling the red lentils: cover them with water, and from the moment they begin to boil, let them go for about 15 minutes, then take them off the heat. If you are using the vegan binder, prepare it in advance so it has time to thicken. Strain the lentils very well, then mash them with a fork or pulse them in a food processor until they turn into a paste. Add the egg or vegan binder, nutritional yeast, diced onion, parsley, grated sweet potato, bread crumbs, salt and pepper, and mix everything together with a fork or your hands.

Form the patties, then fry them in a non-stick pan with just a light spray of oil, about 2 minutes per side, until the outside sets into a golden crust. Assemble the burgers with buns, tomato slices, salad leaves and whatever else you love.

Getting the consistency right

The single most important thing with these patties is the texture of the mixture before you shape it. It has to be sticky and easy to form. If it is not holding together, it almost always means the lentils weren’t strained well enough and the mixture is too wet. There is an easy fix: just add more bread crumbs a tablespoon at a time until it reaches a sticky, dough-like consistency that holds its shape when you press it into a patty.

This is also why red lentils work so well here. They cook down into a soft paste that binds the grated sweet potato and onion, so the patties don’t fall apart in the pan. Letting each side fry undisturbed for those two minutes lets a crust form, which makes the patty easy to flip without breaking.

Make it vegan, make it your own

As written, these burgers use one egg as the binder, which makes them vegetarian. To make them fully vegan, swap the egg for 3 tablespoons of psyllium husks, which gel and hold the mixture together just as well. The bread crumbs are the other variable: use certified gluten-free crumbs (or a little gluten-free flour) to keep the whole recipe gluten-free, or regular crumbs if gluten isn’t an issue for you. Beyond that, treat the patty as a base. If you love these, you might also enjoy my lentil patties with olives and herbs or my lentil and eggplant patties for more ways to play with the same idea.

What to serve with sweet potato burgers

Piled into a bun with salad and tomato, these patties are a full meal on their own, but they are also lovely next to something warm and spoonable. A bowl of vegan red lentil soup doubles down on the lentil theme, while a creamy sweet potato soup with ginger echoes the sweetness in the patties. For something lighter on the side, my sweet zucchini fritters make a fun second little bite on the plate. And if you are cooking for the week, these patties slot neatly into my one-week vegan macrobiotic meal plan.

Storing and making ahead

These patties keep well, which is part of why they make such a good quick snack. Once cooled, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 to 4 days, and reheat them in a dry pan to bring back the crust. You can also shape the patties ahead and refrigerate them raw, then fry them fresh when you want a burger. If you want to bake your own buns to go with them, my gluten-free bread is a good place to start, and you’ll find plenty more ideas among my vegan lentil recipes.

If you make these lentil and sweet potato burgers, I’d love to know how they turned out — did you keep the egg or go for the psyllium version? Please rate the recipe below and leave a comment with your tweaks, especially if you found a serving combination you loved.

Sweet Potato Burgers

These sweet potato burgers have both meaty texture and strong flavor! High in protein, macrobiotic and vegan, these little ones will surely become your favorite quick snack too!

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Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Choose Serving Size 10

Ingredients 

MetricUS (Imperial)

• 200 g red lentils
• 1 sweet potato grated
• 1 bunch parsley chopped
• 1 onion diced
• 1 egg or 3 Tbsp psyllium husks for vegan version
• 4 Tbsps nutritional yeast
• 4 Tbsp GF bread crumbs more or less (or regular ones if you’re not gluten intolerant)
• salt and ground pepper to taste

Assembly:

• gluten-free burger buns I used Schar
• salad leaves
• tomato slices
• mustard and ketchup

Instructions

• Mix the ground flax and water in a small bowl and set aside for 5 minutes to thicken.
• Add lentils in a pot and cover them with water. From the moment they start boiling, let them boil for about 15 minutes and then remove from heat.
• Strain the lentils very well and put them in a large bowl. Start mashing them a little, using a fork, or use your food processor to turn them into a paste.
• Add egg/flax egg, inactive yeast flakes, chopped onion, parsley, grated sweet potato, breadcrumbs/flour, sea salt and pepper into the bowl.
• Using a fork, or your hands, start mixing the composition. It has to be sticky and easy to form. If it’s not it means that you didn’t strain the lentils very well and the composition is too wet. No problem, just add more breadcrumbs/flour until it has a sticky dough-like consistency.
• Spray a non-stick pan with some oil. Not too much. Put each patty on the frying pan and let it fry about 2 minutes on each side.
• Make the burgers with any other ingredients you want, such as GF buns, tomato slices, salad leaves and more!

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