Black Bean Burgers

Black Bean Burgers

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 onion,

garlic,

1 egg,

1/2 cup bread crumbs,

cumin,

red pepper flakes,

Tabasco,

ketchup.

I bake mine in the oven, so I preheat to 380. Mash the black beans until theyre thick and pasty. Mix all the other ingredients in and blend well. I save the breadcrumbs til last because these are teh most difficult to blend in, much easierif everything else id blended first! I oil my hands with olive oil and form these into patties. I bake them for 10 minutes on each side. [ I guess you could grill these too, but Ive never tried it.]

A good variation is to add some corn in there. Makes kind of a southwest black bean burger. When I add corn I add red bell pepper- so flavorful! =)

Depending on how dry your black beans are you may need more bread crumbs...

This time around I bought the dried beans vs the canned beans :) 1 bag of beans about equaled to 2 cans of beans. So half price!! YAY gotta save where I can!!!

Not sure what to do with the dried beans? This site was helpful :)

Soaking & Cooking:
Black beans, like all dried beans, need to be soaked before cooking. This hydration helps to reduce the cooking time. Because they are small, 2 - 4 hours soaking in cold water should suffice. Drain, and cook as per recipe.

If you don't have the time, boil the beans in water for 1 - 3 minutes, turn off heat, cover the pot and let them sit for one hour. Drain and proceed as per recipe. However, there is a problem with this quick soaking (boiling for 1 - 3 minutes) method. Hot water increases the solubility of the water soluble nutrients, and softens the cell membranes of the beans, further accelerating the loss of these nutrients. This should be a consideration, because of the long cooking time during which more nutrients are lost. Cold soaked and cooked at a very gentle simmer, beans retain most of their nutrients, which are considerable.

To cook, drain the soaking water and add cold water, 1 part beans to 2 or 3 parts cold water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a very slow simmer, so the beans stay in their jackets. Simmer for 2 hours.