Lentil Patties

These vegan lentil patties are simple to make and super versatile. Made with green lentils, brown rice, and mushrooms.

Vegan burgers are a concept I nonconsciously took a break from several years ago. I’ve tried a bunch of recipes and even published a few of my own, but always found it hard to justify the amount of time-consuming steps with the end results. Frankly, it was just challenging to land in that happy middle of the too-mushy/too-dry spectrum.

But when I opened to the lentil cutlets in Michał Korkosz’s book Polish’d, I was inspired to take a break from my break. The deeply-browned lentil patties were the closest thing I’d seen to vegetarian kotlety (i.e. the Ukrainian idea of a burger) and I just had to try them.

The green lentil patties turned out incredibly savory, flavorful, and filling. The contrast of the crispy pan-fried outsides and the soft interiors, with crunchy bits of walnuts throughout, proved to be the ideal texture. (I did make some tweaks to the original recipe, but the concept is still mostly true to the book.)

The Recipe at a Glance

These gluten-free lentil patties come together in a few easy steps. First, you boil equal parts brown rice and green lentils together in a pot. Meanwhile, you sauté onions and mushrooms. Then you blend all these together, along with walnuts, starch, and a few seasonings. Finally, you form the thick paste into patties and pan-fry them.

Key Ingredients + Substitutions

• Green Lentils: Feel free to substitute with brown, but not with red lentils. Red lentils disintegrate, which would make these lentil cakes too mushy.
• Brown Rice: You can use short or long grain here. You can substitute with white, but you’ll sacrifice the nutritional content a bit.
• Onion: White, yellow, or red would all work here.
• Cremini Mushrooms: Lend a savory, “meaty” flavor to the patties. Can be substituted with shiitake mushrooms.
• Walnuts: Add satisfying bits of crunch. Can we swapped with pecans, sunflower seeds, or pumpkin seeds.
• Arrowroot Starch: This gluten-free starch is derived from a tropical plant. It looks and acts like cornstarch, but is considered healthier since most corn in the US is genetically modified. You can sub with cornstarch if that’s what you have though. It will absorb extra moisture in the mixture and help everything stick together.
• Soy Sauce: Rounds out all the other flavors with a salty umami note.

How to Make Lentil Patties

Find complete instructions with ingredient amounts in the recipe card below.

Step 1: Boil the Lentils and Rice

Combine the rice and lentils in a pot with water and salt. Simmer until all the water is absorbed, about 25 minutes. Then turn the heat off and let the pot stand covered for 10 extra minutes to allow the rice and lentils to absorb the remaining steam in the pot.

Step 2: Sauté the Mushrooms and Onions

Meanwhile, cook the mushrooms and onions in the largest non-stick skillet you have (you’ll be using the same skillet to pan-fry the patties later) for about 10 minutes. The vegetables should be soft and lightly golden.

Step 3: Purée and Cool the Mixture

Combine the rice and lentils, and mushrooms and onions, in a food processor along with walnuts and the remaining ingredients. Purée until a thick chunky paste forms, but don’t overprocess – you still want little bits of texture. Then transfer the mixture to a large bowl or pan, and spread out to create more surface area; this will help it cool faster. Chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.

Step 5: Pan-fry the Patties

Heat an even layer of oil in the pan over medium heat. Form the mixture into patties and fry until deeply golden, about 3 minutes per side.

Expert Tips

• For optimal crispness: Do not skimp on the oil when pan-frying your lentil patties. They should be gently sizzling the entire time. 
• If they’re sticking to the pan: The patties will flip easily once they’ve formed a crust, so be patient. Do not move, nudge, or otherwise zhuzh them when frying – they need to make prolonged contact with the hot pan. (I like to use a small offset spatula to flip these.) Resist the urge to flip them more than once.
• Monitor the heat: If they’re browning/burning too quickly, turn the heat down. If they’re not sizzling, turn it up. They should take about 3 minutes per side.

How to Serve Lentil Patties

Much like falafel patties, these lentil-rice cakes are extremely versatile. You can pop them on a salad or grain bowl, tuck them into a pita, wrap, or sandwich, or serve with spaghetti and tomato sauce like lentil “meatballs”. You can also form them into bigger patties and serve as lentil burgers in a bun with quick-pickled onions and chipotle mayo. Last but not least, if you’re going for the Eastern European cutlet vibe, pair with mashed potatoes and vegan mushroom gravy.

More excellent sauce pairings: creamy cilantro sauce, dairy-free tzatziki, lemon tahini, or this fancier cilantro lime tahini.

More Lentil Recipes…

• Moroccan Green Lentil Soup
• Warm Lentil Salad
• Carrot Lentil Soup
• Mujadara (Brown Rice and Lentils with Fried Onions)

Let me know if you try this recipe! Give it a rating below and leave a comment, and don’t forget to tag your creation with @thenewbaguette on Instagram.