Wouldn't it be great to enjoy a homemade beef burger, with all the trimmings, and know you are eating some vegetables too? Well, now you can with these Hidden Vegetable Beef Burgers. These Healthy Burgers are great for fussy eaters that would rather eat burgers than vegetables, because this recipe is both, and they will never know!
We have taken a classic beef burger, and added lots of shredded vegetables to make them healthy burgers, that kids will love!
Because they are shredded and mixed in with the beef you would never know they are there, which is why we have called them Hidden Vegetable Beef Burgers.
Jump to:
Why should you try it?
- Kids love them
- Great for BBQs
- A way to get extra veggies in to everyone's diet
- You can still serve them with all your favourite toppings
- Freeze well
Step by step:
One: Thinly slice the carrot, courgette and shallot and put in a large mixing bowl.
Two: Add the garlic, salt and pepper, egg, tomato puree and herbs.
Three: Add the beef and Worcestershire sauce. Mix well.
Four: Using your hands, divide the mixture and form into 4 burger patties and put in the fridge for 30 minutes before cooking.
Four: Put your burger patties on to a hot BBQ grill and cook for 3 minutes one side and 6 minutes the other side for medium-well done.
What vegetables to use
We have shredded up some carrot and courgette to add to the burger mince, but there are loads of other vegetables you could use instead. You could grate broccoli and cauliflower or even butternut squash and bell pepper.
There are plenty of options depending on what vegetables you are trying to increase in your diet. Spinach works well too.
What to use instead of beef
If you don't eat beef, then you could hide the vegetables in chicken burgers, lamb burgers or even bean burgers.
Tip - this recipe uses just half a courgette. Don't throw the other half away, make our epic homemade tzatziki and put it on the burgers instead of mayo or ketchup.
Why not look at some of our other healthy burger recipe?
Do they have to be cooked on a BBQ?
Nope! You can cook these under the grill or fry them in a pan too. I think they are best when they have the charred taste of being cooked on the BBQ and food always tastes better when cooked and eaten outside, but you don't have to. Cooking times will of course vary.
What to serve them with
Extra Tips:
- You don't have to make these as burgers. Instead of forming them in to burger patties, roll the mixture in to mini meatballs and bake in a tomato sauce.
- Mix up the flavours by adding in different herbs and spices. You could have Mexican burgers, Cajun, Italian - get creative.
- If you are trying to keep things low carb, swap the burger bun for a giant lettuce leaf for a low carb burger option.
More burger recipes
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Recipe card
Hidden Vegetable Beef Burgers
Ingredients
- 500 g Lean beef mince
- 2 Garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 pinch Sea salt and black pepper
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Egg beaten
- 2 tbsp Tomato puree
- 1 Large shallot, diced
- 1 Small carrot, grated
- 0.5 Courgette, grated
- 1 handful fresh herbs, finely chopped (use whatever you have that needs using up)
- Buns, lettuce, tomato and sauce to serve
Instructions
- Put all of the ingredients in a bowl and use your hands to mix well.
- Using your hands, form the mixture in to 4 burger patties and put in the fridge for 30 minutes before cooking.
- Put your burger patties on to a hot BBQ grill and cook for 3 minutes one side and 6 minutes the other side for medium-well done.
- Stack your burgers by adding them to buns with lettuce, tomato and sauce.
Notes
- You don't have to make these as burgers. Instead of forming them in to burger patties, roll the mixture in to mini meatballs and bake in a tomato sauce.
- Mix up the flavours by adding in different herbs and spices. You could have Mexican burgers, Cajun, Italian - get creative.
- If you are trying to keep things low carb, swap the burger bun for a giant lettuce leaf for a low carb burger option.
Nutritional Information
Scarlett
Hi, this looks great! May I know how do you make the burger bun? Or where did you buy?
Dannii
It is just a wholemeal roll.
Okhee
I was little skeptical a first but it turned out great, it was so~ delicious, and my whole family enjoyed it. I used mushrooms instead of a courgette.
Dannii
So glad that you were converted and that you all enjoyed it. My kids love them too!
Stacey Linerud
My husband and I enjoyed it, but I gave it 4 stars because it was crumbling. It could be because of the vegetables or because I used 2 LBS of ground 80:20% ground elk. My 5 year old son refused to eat it, saying "it smells funny", but again, that could be because of the elk. I couldn't smell the vegetables, if anything, I think the vegetables made it more fragrant and flavorful, making the meat and spices go further. I didn't have squash, so I used onion and celery instead. I also think beets could work well because they're red, but after sauteing the chopped vegetables, I pureed them so the vegetables couldn't be detected by site or texture. I'm going to try this again, but next time using ground beef. We ran of ground elk anyways.
Dannii
Hello! I am glad you enjoyed it. I would say the issues were due to the meat used, as if the vegetables are grated as in the instructions, it shouldn't fall apart.
Mutie
This recipe concept wonderful!!! Keep up.
Sarah Bailey
I wonder if I would get away with something like this for my other half - he's not sure a huge fan of veggies so hidden would be good.
Jemma
This looks like such a tasty burger. Love all the veggies that you've managed to stuff in too.
Jared
This looks so good! certainly an easy way to get the kids eating their vegetables
Chichi
This is a wonderful idea to get the kiddos to indulge in veggies without even realizing it. I am so making this soon. Yum
Cindy Gordon
I am loving the addition of hidden vegetables in these burgers! I love getting more vegetables into my diet and my children's!
David @ Cooking Chat
definitely a great idea for getting more veggies onto the plate! looks like it tastes great too.
Kiki Johnson
Luckily, there are no fussy eaters in my home but I still appreciate recipes that incorporate veggies to make the meal more filling without adding to many calories! A lovely burger recipe!
Tanya Brannan
I have honestly never thought of putting all these vegetables in my burgers, but they look EPIC!
We are really good eating loads of vegetables and there aren't very many that we don't like, especially as one of my daughters is a vegetarian.
To be honest, these look better than the burgers I normally make so I have printed myself a copy so I can give it a go next weekend when we plan on having friends for a bbq. Thank you so much for giving a burger a twist and making it a lot more interesting.
nicol
I actually do the hidden veggies a lot and it does help increase my vegetable intake haha great recipe and looks delicious
Tanya
What a creative way to add vegetables to a dish, these would be great for fussy kids who try to avoid the vegetables
Lisa | Garlic & Zest
This is such a great idea! I use vegetables in my turkey burgers to keep them moist, but I never thought to try it with beef!
Veena Azmanov
Such a great way to add veggies in the kids diet and to lighten up the burgers too! Love the creativity and flavors you have going here. Saving this for later.
camila
This burger is super delicious!! Love it so so much!! Love all the veggies in it!!!
Molly Kumar
This is Fabulous and what a great idea to hide all the veggies!! I'll have to try this for my picky eaters ;)
Marisa Moore
This is such a smart recipe and I'm sure the veggies add a lot of flavor!
Sandhya Hariharan
I love the idea of sneaking in extra veggies into the burger { though mine is a all veggie burger) along with lettuce and tomato.
Your burger looks so good!! That reminds me, I need to make one this weekend for my little guests.