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Millet Black Bean Patties – Crisp on the outside, creamy and moist on the inside, these flavorful gluten free veggie patties are sure to please everyone in your family. Serve them with Spicy Chipotle Sauce and Pineapple Avocado Salsa for a flavor explosion!
Hands down, one of the best dinners we’ve had in awhile! I love it when I just start throwing things together on a whim and it turns out fantastic! Lucky for you guys, I wrote it down as I went along. My son claims these Millet Black Bean Patties rank at one million on a scale of 1-10! Now, that’s high praise. Give ’em a try for yourself and I promise you won’t be disappointed.
The patties themselves are flavorful, but top them with this creamy Spicy Chipotle Sauce and fresh and sweet Pineapple Avocado Salsa and you’ve got flavor heaven. I really LOVE the pineapple in this dish. The sweetness from the fruit is really nice in the Spicy Chipotle Sauce to even out the flavors, and avocado and pineapple together – wow, I can’t believe I haven’t thought of this before!
If you have leftover millet, that would work perfectly here, but I quickly cooked some in my Instant Pot. All you need is 10-12 minutes for perfect fluffy millet!
Speaking of leftovers, I’m all about using everything, so after using the pineapple juice from a can and 1/2 of an avocado in the Chipotle Sauce, I knew I had to do something with the pineapple chunks and the other 1/2 of the avocado….thus, the creation of Pineapple Avocado Salsas!
Disclaimer: These are not meant to be burgers. The patties stay together fairly well, but they are delicate. Take care when flipping them in the pan. They are meant to flake apart easily with a fork when eating. If you choose to put them on a bun, just know they will likely squish out when you take a bite.
The Millet Black Bean Patties are pan fried making them crispy on the outside while keeping them creamy and moist on the inside. And they couldn’t be easier to make. Just dump everything in a bowl, mix, form into patties and pan fry. You don’t even have to pre-cook the veggies that are in the patties. The key is shredding the onion. I’m not a fan of raw onion, so I shredded it up and it basically dissolves right into the rest of the mixture, leaving the flavor without noticeable onion chunks. (If you like chunks of raw onion, then by all means, just dice it up.)
These delicious black bean patties are vegan, dairy free, and gluten free. I left the Spicy Chipotle Sauce off of the ones I served to the kids…it’s quite spicy. They gobbled them up two at a time with the Pineapple Avocado Salsa. Such a hit! These are definitely going into heavy rotation for dinnertime around here!
Millet Black Bean Patties
I hope you love these Black Bean Patties as much as we do. If you try them, please come back and leave me a comment below with your feedback. You can also find me on social media. Be sure to tag @veggie_inspired and #veggieinspired so I’m sure to see it. Enjoy!
- 1 cup cooked millet
- 1 15 oz can black beans (or 1.5 cups) (rinsed and drained)
- 1 carrot (shredded) (about 1/2 cup)
- 1/4 cup shredded onion (about one quarter of a medium onion)
- 1/2 cup frozen or fresh corn kernels
- 1/4 cup cornmeal
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp tamari
- salt/pepper to taste
- Oil for pan frying (I used Grapeseed Oil)
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1/4 cup pineapple juice
- 1/2 avocado
- 1/4 cup cashews (soaked for 1-2 hours if you don't have a high speed blender)
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2-3 tbsp water or non dairy milk to thin
- 1 1/2 avocado (diced)
- 3/4 cup diced pineapple chunks
- Juice of 1 lime
- Combine all ingredients, except water, in a high speed blender and puree until smooth. Add water as necessary to thin to desired consistency.
- Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and toss to combine.
- Place black beans in a large mixing bowl and smash with a potato masher or fork. Add all the other ingredients and mix well to combine.
- Take about 1/4 cup of the mix and form it into a patty with your hands. Place on a plate and repeat with the remaining mixtures.
- Heat 1-2 tbsp of oil in a pan on the stove over medium-high heat. Once hot, place 2-4 patties in the pan, spaced evenly (depending on pan size - do not over crowd the pan).
- Cook 4-5 minutes each side until crispy on the outside and heated through. Adjust heat as necessary while cooking....every stove is different. You want it hot enough to crisp up the outside, but not too hot that it burns before the patty is heated through.
Serve with the Spicy Chipotle Sauce and Pineapple Avocado Salsa on top or on the side.
~I like to form the patties first and set them aside to rest while assembling the ingredients for the Chipotle Sauce and Salsa. Pan fry the patties on the first side while making the Chipotle Sauce, flip them and cook on the other side while making the Salsa. Just keep an eye on them to make sure they don't burn.
~Update 7-16-15: I did try baking these a couple weeks ago and they turned out great. I didn't like them quite as much as the pan frying method, but they were still very good. And baking them requires NO oil!! Try it and let me know what you think!
More Delicious Veggie Burgers and Patties to Love:
Baked Red Lentil Quinoa Fritters
Smoky Millet Pinto Bean Patties
Tammy says
There’s nothing in the patties to bind the ingredients together. Once they went into the pan and I tried to turn them, I ended up with a huge skillet full of crumbed, fried “stuff”. I was excited about this recipe, but if I try it again, i’ll add an egg to hold the patties together, because this was a huge disappointment.
Jenn S. says
Hi, Tammy. Sorry it didn’t work out for you. As I say in the post – these are delicate patties that should flake apart easily with a fork. However, they shouldn’t crumble as much as you’re describing. You need to be careful when flipping and don’t flip until the first side has crisped up. Also, make sure to mash the beans well. You can use a food processor to mix everything which will combine the ingredients better – but just be careful that you don’t overmix and turn it into mush. You could also place the mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes before forming into patties which will help them firm up. Of course, if you eat eggs, you can certainly add one, but you shouldn’t need it. I hope you liked the flavor at least.
Kendra says
Is there a substitute for corn meal? Oat flour or something else?
Thanks!
Jenn S. says
You probably sub any flour, but the corn flour give it a really nice texture. If you sub a flour instead, start with less as it will likely absorb more than the cornmeal, and then add more if needed. Let me know how it turns out.
Kendra says
I subbed it with oats and added an egg to make it stick together. Hubby approved! Thanks!
Jenn S. says
Yay! Glad you both liked it! Thanks, Kendra! And oats sound like a good sub.
Maria says
These look excellent, but are you supposed to drain and rinse the black beans first? Thank you!
Jenn S. says
Yes! If you use canned beans, definitely rinse and drain! I will update the instructions. Thanks for pointing that out!
Maria says
You’re welcome! And thanks so much for your quick reply. 🙂
Jenn S. says
You’re welcome. Please let me know how they turn out! Enjoy!
Traci | Vanilla And Bean says
Fabulous recipe, Jen! I’ve just recently discovered millet and am finding new ways to incorporate it into my diet. The flavors you’ve put together in this delectable patty are what I crave! Can’t wait to give this a go…. oh, and that sauce!! 😀
Jenn S. says
Thanks, Traci! Yes, it is super flavorful and everything works so well together! Please let me know if you try it!
Sophia @veggies dont bite says
These look delicious Jen!! I love love all sorts of veggie patties!! YUM
Linda @ Veganosity says
I can honestly say that if your son likes something, then it’s going to be a hit with the masses. I speak from experience. 🙂 These look and sound fantastic Jenn!
Terri Cole says
Jenn, these patties look delicious! I’ve just started cooking with millet (cauliflower-millet mash = YUM). Is the water to grain proportion the same when you cook the millet in the Instant Pot as opposed to stove top?
Jenn S. says
Thank you, Terri! It’s 1:1 2/3 in the instant pot. I haven’t cooked it on the stovetop in so long that I don’t even remember what the ratio would be for that. 🙂 And cauliflower millet mash?? Sounds incredible!!
Terri Cole says
Thank you! It’s 3 to 1 on the stovetop, so definitely different!
Natalie says
I love these not-burger patties! Ever since I was a kid, I never felt the bun was necessary, just give me the pattie, a fork, and something to dip it in 🙂 I think these would be perfect on top of a salad too!
Jenn S. says
Oh me too, Natalie! I often eat all kinds of burgers sans the bun! I think sometimes all that bread takes away from the yumminess of the actual burger/patty! And, I had that EXACT same thought about putting them on a salad. I was wishing we had leftovers so I could crumble them up and do a southwest type salad. Yum!! Great minds think alike!
Nóri @ ingeniouscooking.com says
Hmmm, this sounds wonderful! I always have a hard time with veggie burgers, patties, etc. I’ll give cornmeal and this recipe a try – I have all the ingredients at home, yay! 🙂
Jenn S. says
Thanks, Nori! You do have to be careful with these as they aren’t meant to be sturdy burgers, but they are out of this world tasty!