Oh I most certainly did eat that. The ‘that’ in question is a crispy edged, deliciously spiced, sweet potato and chickpea burger slathered in tahini yoghurt. This recipe is based on one that my mum makes for sweet potato fritters – they are delicious and we used to eat them with poached eggs and hollandaise sauce for a funky take on eggs Benedict.
I decided to burgerize those light, herby fritters and this is what I came up with! The burger version turned out so well that it’s now a regular in my kitchen. Here’s hoping it can become a regular in yours!
And yes, this is a totally vegetarian dish. Not vegan, though. Can I be honest with ya’ll? I’m 24 and I live on a budget. Eating something that tastes this good, which has plenty of protein and doesn’t include expensive meat just makes sense.
If there are members of your share-house, family or just your partner who are iffy on skipping the meat, then I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that making a meatless burger is the way to go! Especially if it’s crispy and has plenty of texture and flavour like this baby. And it’s so easy! A 30-minute meal MAX. Here’s how it’s done!
The burgers come together super quickly, so I like to make the tahini yoghurt first. It’s my new condiment obsession – on a piece of grilled salmon, or on felafel, or just to dunk an entire bowl of sweet potato chips into, it’s SO GOOD. And it’s as simple as dumping some yoghurt, tahini (aka sesame seed paste), salt pepper and lemon juice into a bowl and stirring it together. Sometimes I add a little garlic, and sometimes I don’t – totally up to you.
Then I throw some rinsed, canned chickpeas into a bowl, grate up a sweet potato – you want about 2 heaping cupfuls, and crack in an egg.
To that mixture, I add some flour, ground coriander, smoked paprika and dried oregano. A little chopped fresh parsley or some sliced spring onions are great if you have them, but today I went without.
From there, just squelch the mixture together with your hands, aiming to break up some of the chickpeas and leave others whole for a nice variety of textures. Then shape the mix into four patties and cook in a little olive oil in a frying pan until golden brown and crisp on both sides.
Then it’s time to build your burger! I always like to let people assemble their own burgers, firstly because it means they can customize it however they like. And secondly because it’s super fun, and I would feel bad hogging all of the stacking good times to myself.
These patties are really delicious, and I like to taste the sweet potato, so I make mine fairly simple with just the yoghurt, some rocket (aka arugula) and red onion. But hey, throw on hot sauce, sliced tomato, coleslaw, mayo, barbecue sauce or whatever you like! I don’t want to tell you how to burger. Just know that you should burger. You should THIS burger.
xx Sarah.
P.S. Burger is a verb now.
- ¾ cup greek yoghurt
- 2 tbsp tahini
- juice of half a lemon
- salt and pepper
- optional: 1 small clove of garlic, grated or minced
- 1 medium sweet potato
- ⅔ cup canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 egg
- ⅓ cup flour
- 1 + ½ tsps smoke paprika
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- pinch of salt
- olive oil, to cook
- 4x burger buns
- salad of your choice, to serve
- To make the yoghurt, simply stir all the ingredients together - the sauce may seem grainy and thick at first, but keeps stirring and it will smooth out. If it's too thick, add a little water.
- To make the burgers, wash the sweet potato and coarsely grate it to yield about 2 heaped cups. Place in a bowl with the chickpeas, egg, flour and spices and use your hands to squelch the mixture together. You wan to break up some of the chickpeas and leave others whole.
- Heat a non-stick frying pan with a thin layer of olive oil over a medium-high heat.
- Add the salt to the burger mixture and stir through (you want to add it just before cooking, otherwise it will leech liquid out of the sweet potato, making the mixture too wet).
- Scoop out a quarter of the mixture at a time, shape into a patty with your hands and place into the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes a side, or until deep golden and crisp.
- To assemble a burger, slather on plenty of the tahini yoghurt, add a sweet potato patty and top with the salad fixings of your choice!
GIRL. these look incredible. plus, your photos are looking real fierce!
Why thank you Miss Amber!
Making your own burgers is the best!! Definitely going to make these and assemble them myself ASAP. Oh my!
Please come over and make this for dinner? Thanks.
Oh so yum! Making your own burger makes you feel so good ( esp. with the chickpeas), no wonder you eat this all the time.:)
Oh my – this is awesome. Your mom is a genius.
Why didn’t I ever think of making sweet potato burgers before? Sweet potatoes are like the perfect sweet, starchy binder that many veg burgers are missing. Thanks!
My mum is a genius! It’s true!
I can’t tell you how excited I am to try out these burgers! Good veggie burgers are surprisingly hard to come by sometimes. Thanks!
I know exactly what you mean! These are great because they’re a little less heavy than a full-on bean or grain based burger.
I made them last night, I couldn’t wait. They were delicious!! And you’re totally right, not heavy at all.
YAAAAAY! I’m so glad you tried these out, and LIKED them!! That makes me so happy.
These sound delish! Sweet potatoes and chickpeas are two of my favorite ingredients.
As a fellow girl on a budget, this burger looks like the bee’s knees. I’m gonna have to whip up this recipe when I get a free night.
These look so tasty! I think I’d prefer them with the eggs benny though–sounds delicious! (trying to cut down on the bread and all that… I’m sure they make lovely burgers too ;) )
If you’re going down the eggs benny route, then I like to add a bunch of chopped fresh herbs (parsley, basil or dill are great) and some sliced spring onions and leave out the chickpeas and spices. IT’S SO GOOD!
I’m so glad I found your blog, because not only that burger is a verb now, it is a thing I must made and eat asap :)
This is exactly what I’m craving right now! Thanks so much for sharing.
xx Hannah
These veggie burgers sound amazing – especially with the adition of the tahini yoghurt sauce!
I’ve never wanted anything as much as I want this righ t now. Do you think they’d be okay to have next day as a lunch?
Absolutely! They won’t stay crispy, but they’d still taste great.
Now I have to burger! Maybe I will make an all sugar hit dinner this weekend. These burgers, the peach dessert. Omg! Drool…..
Love everything about this, lady!! As a 1) vegetarian, 2) someone who wants my pals to know that not eating meat is stilllllll fun, and 3) someone who’s on a budget too, this recipe is perfection! Can’t wait to try it. Especially with that fabulous yogurt sauce. Yay!
Thanks Sophie! The sauce is SO GOOD!
Miss lady, you’ve done it again! I’m always on the hunt for veggie burgers that don’t fall apart and don’t taste like sawdust. This one’s shot to the top of my list.
I’ve never been so excited about a meatless burger before! Sweet potato AND chickpeas AND tahini? Seriously drooling over here!
I love a good sweet potato burger and these look perfect!
I seriously need to make burgers soon! This looks amazing!
OMG this looks like an awesome mouthful!
This is HEAVEN.
Made these tonight – so, so good and loved how quick I was able to get dinner on the table! and your post had me adding an egg to burger, which was Divine!
YESSSS! An egg would be PERFECT! So glad you liked these!
Wow – it looks delicious, and sounds so easy. Normally we make burgers only in the weekend, but this is totally doable on a week night!
Hi, Miss Lady!
I’m a first time-visitor to your website and this burger post caught my eye. I do have a question: Does the sweet potato cook thoroughly? I know it’s grated so it’s finer and can cook if on the stove at a low heat for a long period of time, but does is it cooked completely even inside the patty in the two minutes that you recommended?
Thank youuuu! I can’t WAIT to try this because I looove chickpeas, sweet potatos, and tahini! Yummmy!
Hey Sarah (great name)! I’m glad you’re visiting! The instructions say 2 minutes a side – so that’s 4 minutes all up for each patty. Which I know, still doesn’t seem like very long, but the Sweet Potato definitely does cook through. You don’t get the same mushy texture as a roasted sweet potato, but you get a crispy-on-the-outside, soft in the middle thing going on. It’s delish!
xx
Sarah
I made these last night and they were very good. I especially liked the contrasting sweet and savory flavors of the burger. The sauce was good in small doses but I’m not blaming that on the recipe, I’m just not fond of Tahini. Overall, very good and pretty easy to make. I would make them again.
That’s awesome! Thanks for commenting Diana! If you’re not a fan of tahini, I love these with a little bit of sour cream, swirled with some sweet chilli sauce – a different, but still delicious addition!
how many calories does this recipe has?
Sorry Maria – I have no idea!
I just popped the recipe into myfitnesspal.com and came up with 309 calories without a bun (since those vary depending on brand). Hope that helps!
where is the recipe for those beautiful buns??
I made these guys by buying them at the local bakery, unfortunately!
these look amazing, really excited to try them! Just wondering would it be possible to freeze any leftover mix for super quick and easy burgers ? :)
Hiya! I wouldn’t freeze the uncooked mix – but pre-cooked burgers could definitely be frozen and then reheated in the oven until crispy and piping hot!
I cant’ wait to make these – likely tomorrow!!
Really look forward to making these. Do I peel the sweet potato first??
Hi Sarah – no need, just give them a good wash!
Omg!! I made these last night. My husband stated they were his new favorite meal. So simple and relish. Beautiful photos. I look forward to trying more of your creations. Keep up the good work.
ooh that looks so good, definitely have to give it a go.
these are awesome! Thanks for the recipe, it’ll definitely become a regular in our house!
Dayum these pics look good.
These are incredible. Best take on veggie burgers I’ve ever made. Definitely a keeper. Thank you!
Made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious.
That’s fantastic! So glad you liked it Esther! xx
can you bake these? if so, how? thanks!
Hey Dee – I wouldn’t recommend it. A lot of the deliciousness of these burgers is the crispy edges. But if that doesn’t bother you, then I think you could probably just shape them, and then place on a well-oiled baking sheet, and spray the tops with a little extra oil as well, and slide into a hot oven (200C/400F) for around 15 minutes, or until they’re golden brown.
xx
Thanks Do you think i should cook the sweet potato first?
I think you would end up with a completely different product if you did. I wouldn’t. xx
I forgot to share the first time I made these that we LOVED them! Making them again tonight for dinner and can’t wait. The tahini sauce is so delicious (have to make ours with lactose-free “sour cream”, but still good) and my mouth is watering just looking at the pictures again. Great recipe!
I just got back from a massive roaming and shopping day in newtown and i looked in the fridge/pantry, feeling poor, and i saw a can of chickpeas and a sweet potato. i’m so glad i stumbled upon this recipe, I too am a meat minimalist due to my living expenses + i look forward to exploring your website further. I’m 24 on the 24th of this month and my name is Sarah too… I was even more happy to use your recipe when i found this out. Keep up the good work. peace
Girl! Thank you so much for this lovely message! So happy you found me, and so happy you’re here. Poorbys unite! xx
Hi, think I could use chickpea flour in place of the flour? Cheers,
Absolutely! In fact, that’s a brilliant idea! Just make sure you season the mix generously, because chickpea flour can be a little bitter and it needs that salt. xx
Anyone know how these are cold? I’m thinking about taking to an event. Thanks,
Hey Meagan – I’m gonna be honest with you, they’re not amazing cold. Sorry boo! Let me know if you do try it what you think. xx
Oh my goodness Sarah! That recipe is awesome, we SO did burger that (how was to burger not a verb before?) and loved it.
Served two in our case, but only because we used lettuce to replace the upper half of the buns. MORE burgers, what can I say?
These were really good. Made them last night. My meat eating husband ate 2 and took the last one for lunch today. Added some grated onion and garlic into the mix and ate in a wrap vs a bun, but otherwise followed the recipe. Will definitely make again.
hi great recipe! I was just wondering if I could bake instead of fry these it would be easier for me thanks !