Mexican Bean and Corn Burgers

Ingredients

For the burgers

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 3 cups (or 2 x 400 g tins) cooked black beans, divided
• 1½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• black pepper or red pepper flakes, to taste
• ⅔ cup quick oats or breadcrumbs, plus extra as needed
• ¾ cup frozen or tinned sweetcorn, thawed or drained

For the tomato salsa

• 4 ripe tomatoes, diced
• ½ red onion, finely diced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
• lime juice, to taste
• salt and pepper

To serve

• 4-6 wholewheat or seeded burger buns
• crispy lettuce
• avocado slices
• lime wedges
• Tabasco or hot sauce

Method

To make the salsa, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and set aside to allow the flavours to marry together.

Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over a medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic for 8–10 minutes, or until golden, soft and fragrant.

Add 2 cups of the beans along with all the spices. Stir in the sauté pan until everything is warmed through.

Preheat your oven grill.

Add the oats to the bowl of a food processor and pulse them a few times. Add the onion, garlic and bean mixture. Process everything together until it’s well combined but still has some texture.

Transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the rest of the black beans and the corn and mix well with your hands. Check for seasoning. If the mixture is too mushy to form into patties, add a little more oats or breadcrumbs.

Lightly oil a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper. Shape the mixture into 4 large or 6 smaller patties. Transfer the burgers to the sheet and grill for 8–10 minutes per side, until golden. You can also pan-fry them in light olive oil until golden on each side.

Serve in a bun with the tomato salsa and any topping of your choice.