These homemade BBQ Lentil Burgers are full of flavor with a sweet and tangy sauce that’s ready in under 30 minutes. Gluten free + vegan friendly!
Free from: Wheat, gluten, dairy, casein, eggs, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, coconut, fish, shellfish, crustaceans, mollusks, celery, corn, sesame, lupin, sulfites, and more
Optional Free From: Tomatoes, Nightshades, Refined Sugar
These Lentil BBQ Burgers are an explosion of sweet, tangy, spicy flavor all wrapped up in a toasty bun! Cooked to perfection in a homemade bbq sauce, topped with cool coleslaw, they are a quick and easy dinner recipe that any vegan or vegetarian will love!
Who doesn't love lentils!? They are so healthy, loaded with iron and fiber, and can magically transform into any style of cuisine.
This lentil bbq burger can be the base for so many delicious toppings, letting you customize it to make your best burger recipe!
It’s a great vegan dinner idea for feeding a crowd and with only 5 simple ingredients, you can’t really beat this recipe.
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Why You’ll Love these BBQ Lentil Burgers
- Simple ingredients
- Quick to make
- Full of sweet and tangy flavor
- Packed with protein and iron
- Perfect for vegans and vegetarians
- Dairy free, Egg free, Soy free, Gluten free, Top 9 Friendly
Ingredients
Here is a quick rundown of what ingredients you’ll need to make this BBQ Lentil Burger recipe. See the recipe card for the exact measurements and the allergy substitutions for how to adapt this recipe for your unique needs.
- Lentils: Using premade lentils is a total time saver for this recipe. Trader Joe’s sells my favorite premade lentils, but any brand of pre cooked lentils works. If you can’t find a good option near you, use brown lentils and prepare as directed on the package so that you end up with 2 cups of finished lentils.
- BBQ Sauce: You can totally use your favorite store-bought brand of bbq sauce, but I really recommend that you make up this quick and easy brown sugar bbq sauce! It’s ready in just a few minutes and is my family’s favorite sauce we put on everything.
- Carrots + Bell Pepper: They add a bit of sweetness and crunch to each bite!
- Onion: For added flavor! You can use onion powder, but it tastes the best with a fresh onion.
- Cooking Oil: Any neutral flavored oil works great in this recipe. I do have oil-free instructions in the Notes section of the recipe card below.
Allergy Substitutions
The majority of the allergens would be found in the sauce. Make sure that the sauce you are using is safe for you to enjoy.
To make this nightshade free, use my tomato free bbq sauce in this recipe and omit the bell pepper. Add additional carrots to replace the pepper.
Variations
The best part about making these bbq lentils at home is the ability to customize them to suit you and your taste buds! Here are a few ideas to get you started.
- Make it smokier: Add up to ½ teaspoon smoked paprika when adding the bbq sauce into the pan for some light smoky flavors. I don't typically like to add liquid smoke, as they contain a lot of artificial colors and flavors.
- Make it spicy: Add up to ½ teaspoon chipotle powder when adding the bbq sauce into the pan for some spicy flavors. You can make this as spicy as you like.
- Refined Sugar Free: Making the bbq sauce at home is a great way to reduce the sugar content. A simple method is to replace the brown sugar with an equal amount of coconut sugar. You can also add in some maple syrup in place of the brown sugar, however, this can make the sauce a little less thick.
Topping Ideas
- Coleslaw: I love LOVE the combination of cool coleslaw with these lentil bbq burgers. You can do either a simple dairy free coleslaw or for a twist, make a big batch of jicama coleslaw.
- Cheesy: Adding a drizzle of dairy free and nut free cheese on top helps to cut through the sweetness of the sauce for a delicious combo.
- Lettuce + Tomato + Onion: A classic burger combo! Iceberg lettuce or romaine lettuce are perfect since they are crispy and crunchy. Choose large slicing tomatoes.
- Make it spicy: Add a few rings of pickled jalapeno peppers.
- Other toppings: Pickles, guacamole or avocados, red onion, grilled mushrooms
Instructions
For the full instructions, complete with recipe measurements, please see the recipe card below.
Making these bbq lentils is pretty straightforward!
First, make sure that your bbq sauce and lentils are cooked and ready to go.
Next, prep the veggies by dicing the onions, carrots, and bell pepper. Set these aside.
In a large pot on the stove over medium heat, add the oil, onions, carrots, and bell pepper. Saute until the onions are slightly translucent, about 3 minutes.
Now add the cooked lentils and the bbq sauce. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low. Simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the sauce is nice and thick and you can drag a spoon through it, see the photo for a visual example of this.
That’s it!
Tips and Tricks
- I strongly believe that all buns should be toasted to achieve the ultimate burger experience, no matter what type of burger you are making! Here are a few ways to toast the buns.
- Oven: The perfect method for making a ton of toasty buns! Preheat the oven to 350F/177C. Lightly spread some (dairy free) butter on the buns and bake on a cookie sheet, butter side up, for about 5 minutes until warmed through and slightly crispy.
- Stovetop: The perfect method if you only need to make a few. In a pan over medium heat, add the lightly buttered (dairy free) buns with butter side down into the pan. Cook for about 3 minutes or until the buns are golden and toasted.
What to Serve with BBQ Lentils?
BBQ Lentils are delicious on their own or with any of your favorite cookout or potluck foods! You can go simple with slices of fresh fruit or add lots of side dishes like pasta salad, fruit salad, or corn salad. Here are a few of my favorite sides to serve:
- BBQ Classics: These side dishes are ones typically found at your favorite potluck/picnic/barbecue: Vegan Mac and Cheese, Egg free Lemon Potato Salad, Brown Sugar Baked Beans, Summer Street Corn Salad
- Salads: A fresh salad brings a bright and healthy side dish to your BBQ lentils: Spinach Poppyseed Salad, Fuji Apple Salad, Panera Green Goddess Salad
- Pasta: Who doesn’t love a pasta salad?! Try out one of these: Greek Pasta Salad, Lemony Pasta Salad
How to Store
Fridge: Store any leftover lentils in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-5 days.
More BBQ Recipes to Love
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Recipe
Equipment
- Cooking pot
- measuring cup
- measuring spoons
- Chef’s knife
- cutting board
Ingredients
- 2 cups lentils cooked
- 2 cups bbq sauce store bought or homemade bbq sauce
- ⅓ cup onion diced
- 1 cup bell pepper diced
- 1 cup carrots diced
- 1 teaspoon cooking oil such as olive oil or refined coconut oil
Instructions
- Prep. Make sure that both the bbq sauce and lentils are prepared and ready to go. Wash and chop both the onion and the carrots.
- Cook. In a medium pot or a large skillet, heat the cooking oil on medium-high heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and carrots, cooking until lightly translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the lentils and bbq sauce. Bring the lentils to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, slightly cover, and let the lentils cook in the sauce for about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Serve. Once it is cooked, you can serve this on hamburger buns, in wraps, or on top of baked potatoes.
Notes
- Make it smokier: Add up to ½ teaspoon smoked paprika when adding the bbq sauce into the pan for some light smoky flavors. I don't typically like to add liquid smoke, as they contain a lot of artificial colors and flavors.
- Make it spicy: Add up to ½ teaspoon chipotle powder when adding the bbq sauce into the pan for some spicy flavors. You can make this as spicy as you like.
- Refined Sugar Free: Making the bbq sauce at home is a great way to reduce the sugar content. A simple method is to replace the brown sugar with an equal amount of coconut sugar. You can also add in some maple syrup in place of the brown sugar, however, this can make the sauce a little less thick.
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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