Clever Ways to Use Leftover Veggie Burgers

Think beyond the bun

Maybe you’ve made a batch of homemade burgers. Maybe you bought a box of burgers, ate one, and froze the rest. How can you use those burgers for dishes other than a burger on a bun? 

There are a lot of cool ways to use those extra veggie burgers. I share over a dozen ideas below for great dishes that work with veggie burgers. 

Bean vs. beeflike burgers

In this post I’m more focused in this post on homemade veggie burgers and store-bought bean-based burgers. Premium meat substitutes like the Impossible Burger and Beyond Burger are less likely to work in most of these dishes because they are intended to be served rare immediately after cooking. If they sit around, they lose their texture and taste. The “ground” versions of Impossible and Beyond should be used according to package directions.

Using leftover burgers effectively

• All of these ideas refer to already cooked veggie burgers, not raw.

• For dishes made on the stovetop, especially those with sauces, I recommend not simmering the pieces of veggie burger for any length of time in a liquid or sauce. As much as possible, add the burger pieces at the very end and heat them up right before serving. Otherwise they can get water-logged and fall apart. 

Handhelds

• Wraps

  • Cut up veggie burger (warm or cool) and put it on a wrap spread with hummus, vegan mayo, mustard, thick salad dressing, or other spread. Then add vegetables, greens, and/or sprouts and roll it up. 

• Sandwiches

  • Use the above approach with bread or toast for a sandwich.

• BBQ sandwiches

  • Stir barbeque sauce and crumbled burgers together, then heat and serve on buns.

• Asian-inspired lettuce wraps 

  • My recipe for Asian-Inspired Lettuce Wraps calls for two veggie burgers.

Entrees

• Quinoa or Rice Dishes

  • Crumble one or more veggie burgers into a finished quinoa or rice dish (e.g., my Instant Pot Mexican-Inspired Quinoa).

• Spaghetti with “Bolognese” sauce

  • Crumble one or more veggie burgers into marinara sauce right before serving on pasta.

• Chili 

  • Crumble one or more veggie burgers into chili right before serving. 

• Chili mac 

  • Add a couple of crumbled veggie burgers at the end when making my One-Pot Cheesy Chili Macaroni.

• Stroganoff skillet 

  • Add crumbled veggie burgers to a recipe like this one.

• Asian “beef” noodles 

  • Adapt an easy recipe like this one and add in the crumbled veggie burgers at the end.

• Korean-style BBQ bowl 

  • Adapt a recipe like this one so that you can add the crumbled veggie burgers at the end.

• Vegetable soup (or minestrone) 

  • Add one or more crumbled veggie burgers into soup right before serving.

Mexican-inspired dishes

Add crumbled veggie burgers, taco seasoning and a few tablespoons of water in a skillet. Heat and stir them so that all the surfaces are coated with the seasoning mix. Use in:

• Nachos

• Burritos

• Tostadas

• Tacos

“Just burgers”

And when you do use burgers as burgers, don’t forget the many variations you can try.

• Hawaii burger (pineapple, teriyaki)

• BBQ burger (BBQ sauce, coleslaw)

• Guacamole burger (guacamole, lettuce, sliced tomato, onion)

• Sautéed mushrooms and spinach burger

• Italian or pizza burger (pizza sauce, onions, plant-based ricotta cheese, fresh basil)