Mushroom Risotto Burger [GF+Oil Free]

This mushroom risotto burger is hearty and rich, with a “meaty” bite. It’s bursting with umami flavour, loaded with nutrients, and wont fall apart like many other veggie burgers. Bonus, it’s vegan and vegetarian friendly, gluten free, and a great way to use up your leftover rice!

Mushrooms are surprisingly similar in taste and texture to meat once cooked, making it an absolute perfect ingredient for my “meaty” mushroom burger recipe.

I think you’re going to love these ones! Especially if you’re a mushroom lover like I am. (You may have noticed a ton of mushroom recipes on the blog!)

If you haven’t tried a veggie burger with mushrooms yet, please, please try this!

You won’t be disappointed.

It pretty much tastes like mushroom risotto, wrapped up in a bun with all your favourite burger toppings.

Hence, mushroom risotto burger!

Except, it’s even a little healthier.

Yup!

Can you believe that?

Rather than use white arborio rice here (which is also known as risotto rice), I’m using brown basmati rice for a more nutritious and unrefined option. Win!

What goes in to a mushroom risotto burger?

• Cooked rice
• Button mushrooms
• Yellow onion
• Garlic
• Carrot
• Kale
• Peas
• Nutritional yeast
• Oregano
• Salt
• Tapioca starch (also known as tapioca flour)

How to make a mushroom risotto burger

Start by scrubbing your mushrooms and add them to a food processor to get them very finely chopped. If you don’t have a food processor, a shredder works well too.

Work in batches if needed, depending on the size of your processor and scrape down the sides if needed.

Pulse until a very fine chop is reached, without pureeing.

Transfer the chopped mushrooms to a large skillet and dry sauté (without oil or water as the mushrooms will release their own liquid) for about 6 to 8 minutes. Or until all the liquid releases and evaporates.

While the mushrooms are sautéing, add the onion, garlic, carrot and kale to the same processor (no need to rinse it out first) and process until all the veggies are very finely chopped.

Transfer the mixture to your skillet with the cooked mushrooms and add the peas, nutritional yeast, and the seasoning.

Sauté for 2-3 minutes until the veggies are soft. Then remove from the heat.

Of your two cups of cooked brown rice, add 1.5 cups directly to the skillet and blend the remaining half cup in a small blender. Add a tablespoon or two of water if needed to get it going.

Then add the pureed rice to the skillet, and four tablespoons of tapioca starch. Mix well.

Test the consistency of the batter, using your hands. Form a ball or patty to see how well it holds or if it sticks to your hands.

Add another 1-2 tablespoons of tapioca starch if the batter is too sticky and mix again.

How to form your burgers

When your batter is ready, form your patties. Start by rolling a ball in your hand, using a little under ¾ cup worth of the mixture. Press the mixture firmly using both hands into a dense ball to ensure no gaps in between. This will help the patties hold together while baking.

Then, using your hands, press gently into a disc shape and place your patties down on the baking tray, lined with parchment paper.

Since there is no oil in this recipe, do not press the mixture down onto the tray or it may stick during baking. Form it in your hands, and then place the patty down.

Bake your mushroom risotto burgers for 20 minutes and then carefully flip them and bake an additional 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Let them rest at room temperature for 5 minutes before serving.

What toppings go on a mushroom risotto burger?

You may top this burger just like you’d top any other veggie or vegan burger!

Go classic with onion, pickles, tomato, ketchup, mayo and mustard.

Or, sauté some onions, peppers, and mushrooms if you’re feeling fancy. I love adding even more mushrooms to this burger, because I can never have enough mushrooms! Who’s with me?

For the sauce, I use some of my oil free homemade mayo with a dash or two of sriracha to make a chipotle style, spicy sauce. Amazing combo and highly recommend it. 🙂

Expert Tips and tricks to get it JUST right!

1. For even bigger flavour, cook your rice in vegetable broth, rather than water. (If you don’t already have leftover rice in your refrigerator, that is.)
2. When chopping your veggies, make sure everything is very finely chopped. You don’t want large pieces of vegetables or your mushroom risotto burgers won’t hold very well and you don’t want these delicious burgers to fall apart. That’s why using a food processor is best, and quickest.
3. When you’ve made your batter, be sure to test the firmness and stickiness of your mixture. Just because a recipe calls for a specific amount of ingredients, there’s always potential for measuring errors, different brands of ingredients leading to different results, etc. So test it first. Test the batter by squeezing some of your mixture into a ball in your hands to see how well it holds. If it falls apart in your hands before baking, it won’t hold after baking either. Alternatively, if the batter is overly sticky, it may get stuck to the parchment paper on your tray, making flipping your burgers difficult. If the ball sticks to your hands, add more tapioca starch (or tapioca flour) until you have only a slightly sticky consistency.
4. When forming the patties, do so in your hands. Form a ball first, squeezing the mixture together to ensure there are no gaps. You want a dense burger so that it holds together while baking. Then gently press down into a disc/patty shape and place on the baking tray. Do not form the patty on the tray itself, you don’t want to press the mixture into the tray, or it may get stuck to the paper while baking.

How long do they keep?

Store any leftovers in the refrigerator for 3-4 days and reheat in the oven or in a skillet on stove top.

To freeze, do so in a single layer until solid, and then transfer to a freezable container, layering each of the patties between parchment paper to prevent sticking.

You may keep these frozen for up to 1 month and reheat in the oven or in a greased skillet.

More vegan mushroom recipes

• Easy Mushroom Barley Soup
• Chickpea and Mushroom Curry w/ Rapini
• Lasagna Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms
• Vegan Mushroom Soup (Veloute)
• Vegan Stuffed Mushrooms with Italian Style Risotto

More vegan burger recipes

• Pumpkin Black Bean Burgers
• Sweet Potato Bean Burger
• Vegan Chicken Burgers

I do hope you give these delicious burgers a try. They have quickly become a family favourite here!

If you tried this recipe, please let me know about it in the comments below. I always love hearing from you! Don’t forget to Subscribe to This Healthy Kitchen to be among the first to get my new recipes! You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter to see more delicious food and get all the latest updates.

Buon appetito,
Rosa

📖 Recipe

Mushroom Risotto Burger

This mushroom risotto burger has a hearty, "meaty" bite that's bursting with umami flavour, loaded with nutrients, and wont fall apart!

5 from 15 votes

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Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes minutes

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Canadian

Servings: 6 Burgers

Calories: 150cal

Author: Rosa

Equipment

Food Processor

Vitamix Blender

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 cups cooked brown basmati rice
• ▢ 1 lb white button mushrooms
• ▢ 1 yellow onion
• ▢ 4 cloves garlic peeled
• ▢ 1 medium carrot peeled
• ▢ 90 grams kale
• ▢ ½ cup frozen peas or canned
• ▢ ¼ cup nutritional yeast
• ▢ ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ ½ teaspoon sea salt or to taste
• ▢ 5-8 tablespoon tapioca starch or tapioca flour

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Instructions

• If you do not have cooked rice, start by cooking according to package directions while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
• Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
• Add your mushrooms to a food processor and finely chop them, scraping down the sides as needed. If you have a smaller food processor, you may need to do this in batches.
• Transfer the mushrooms to a large skillet and dry sauté over medium heat until the moisture and liquid evaporates, approx 6-8 minutes.
• Meanwhile, add the onion, garlic, carrot and kale to your food processor and finely chop these as well. Scrape down the sides as needed, and make sure there are no large chunks remaining. Transfer to the skillet with the cooked mushrooms, along with the peas, nutritional yeast and seasoning and sauté another 2-3 minutes, then remove from heat. Add 1.5 cups worth of your cooked rice to the skillet, mix well and taste the mixture and add more salt or other seasoning if desired.
• Add the remaining half a cup of your cooked brown rice to a small blender with a tablespoon or two of water, as needed to get it pureed. Once smooth, transfer to the skillet and mix well. Now add the tapioca starch, starting with 5 tablespoons and mix until combined. Form a ball in your hands to test the mixture and see how well it holds. You want the mixture to hold together, but not be overly sticky. If it's very sticky and difficult to form a ball or patty, add another tablespoon or two of the tapioca starch, mix well and test again.
• Now divide the mixture into six patties. You'll use a scant ¾ cup of the mixture per burger. Start by forming a ball in your hands and squeezing gently to ensure there are no gaps. Then flatten in your hands into a patty shape and place down on the baking tray. Do not press the patties into the tray or they may stick while cooking.
• Bake for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven and carefully flip each one. Return to the oven for another 10-15 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let them rest at room temperature for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

For added flavour, cook your brown rice in vegetable broth.

Make sure your veggies are very finely chopped, but not pureed. Large chunks of veggies will not hold well.

When testing the mixture, squeeze some into your hands to see how well it holds together. The pureed rice will make the batter a little sticky, which acts as a binding agent. However, it should not be so sticky that you can't form a ball or patty without the batter completely sticking to your hands. Add more tapioca starch until you reach a slightly sticky consistency. You should need somewhere between five and eight tablespoons. (It will depend on how much water you used to blend your rice.)

When forming your patties, do so in your hands and not on the tray. Since there's no oil in this recipe, if you press them into the tray too much, they will stick to the parchment paper. Squeeze the mixture into a ball in your hands, and then flatten into a patty shape and place on the tray gently. If the patties are still sticking to your hands, use slightly damp hands to form them.

Leftovers keep refrigerated for 3-4 days and you may reheat in the oven or in a skillet on stove top.

To freeze, let the patties cool and then place in a freezable container with your patties layered between sheets of parchment paper to prevent sticking.

Nutrition

Calories: 150cal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 213mg | Potassium: 499mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 3289IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 1mg

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*Nutritional information is an estimate, calculated using online tools and does not include optional ingredients unless otherwise indicated.