These veggie burgers have it all - salty halloumi in slightly sweet buttery brioche burger buns with crunchy salad and an intense tangy, spicy and fresh chimichurri mayonnaise sauce! Our Chimichurri Halloumi Burger will make you forget all about the traditional beef quarter pounders that you've been eating for years. Our Chimichurri Mayo is the best halloumi burger sauce we've made so far! Served with crispy oven-baked potato wedges, they are the best veggie burgers we make and they make a regular appearance on our menu! They're a huge hit with the whole family and friends too!
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Halloumi Burger? Yes, Really!
We don't make burgers often. Maybe because we live in rainy North Wales, there never seems to be a good time to light up a BBQ grill and get the burgers grilling. And let's be honest, burgers made in the kitchen don't taste the same - they lack that smokey charcoal flavour and smell. They simply don't taste COMPLETE.
Over the last couple of years, we have fallen completely in love with the halloumi cheese. It has a high melting point, meaning the cheese does not soften when cooked on direct heat (like grilled or cooked on a griddle pan). Its unusual slight squeaky texture and salty flavour have us completely hooked.
Halloumi cheese, originating from the picturesque island of Cyprus, can be made from sheep's milk, goat's milk or cow's milk. This semi-hard cheese boasts a unique texture and flavor profile. What sets halloumi apart is its preparation involving animal rennet, giving it a distinctive character. When cooked, it doesn't melt but rather maintains its shape and forms a delectable golden crust.
Having used it in as many recipes as possible, we arrived at our Chimichurri Halloumi Burger recipe, which we are sharing with you today! It is by far the best vegetarian burger on our summer menu!
Are Any Halloumi Fans Here?
Welcome, you are in the company of like-minded people... We love this squeaky cheese and exploit its versatility every time we cook. Besides these Easy Halloumi Burgers, we love the texture of this cheese in our Leek, Sweet Potato and Halloumi Pie (it's the best pie in the world, if we do say so ourselves...). We also use halloumi in a range of salads and bowl, like Halloumi Couscous Bowl, Halloumi Green Lentil Bowl and Spicy Asparagus and Halloumi Salad. You can also use it in paninis, rice bowls or simply serve halloumi with aubergine and mashed potatoes.
Or you can try our Sweet Chilli Halloumi Burgers (another one of our favourite recipes).
Ingredients and Substitutes
- potatoes: these are a perfect side dish for any burger. Choose your favourite chipping potato, cut it into wedges and voila! Or you can always use frozen potato fries instead, we won't tell. Sweet potatoes go well with these Halloumi Burgers too!
- coriander (cilantro): both leaves and stalks will be finely chopped and added to chimichurri mayo.
- red onion: can be substituted with shallots.
- chilli: red chilli or green chilli. Adjust the quantity based on how spicy you like your food.
- garlic clove: can be replaced with garlic paste.
- olive oil: or avocado or rapeseed oil.
- vinegar: red wine, white wine, cider or rice vinegar will work.
- mayonnaise: we tend to use light mayo, but any will work just fine.
- halloumi: this salty cheese forms a patty for these halloumi burgers. One 225g block of halloumi will make two burgers. You may also buy vacuum-packed slices of halloumi cheese in some shops.
- brioche buns: can be replaced with your typical soft burger buns (we love Sourdough Burger Buns).
- large lettuce leaves: or spinach, watercress or rocket (arugula).
- tomato, red peppers, red onion slices, cabbage slaw: choose your veggies!
Method
STEP 1: Make Potato Wedges
Start by preparing your potatoes. Preheat the oven to 200°C Fan. Line a baking tray with foil or baking parchment if you want to avoid the need for excessive scrubbing whilst washing up later 🙂
Scrub the potatoes and cut them into wedges. Spread them evenly in a single layer onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and drizzle with a little oil. Season with some salt and black pepper. They don't need anything else, as the burgers with chimichurri mayonnaise will provide enough flavour to the dish. Place the wedges in a preheated oven and cook for 35-40 minutes, shuffling them midway through, until tender and golden brown.
STEP 2: Prepare the Vegetables for Halloumi Burger Toppings
Shred a couple of large lettuce leaves and slice tomato for garnishing your burger. Set the fresh veggies aside for later.
Step 3: Make Chimichurri Mayonnaise
Now move on to making a Chimichurri Mayo. Firstly, finely chop the coriander (cilantro), chilli and red onion. Tip everything into a pestle and mortar (or a food processor) and crush in a small clove of garlic. Add a tablespoon oil and bash for a couple of minutes into a rough paste. Scoop the paste into a small bowl and mix with vinegar and mayo. For best results, leave the flavours to infuse whilst you fry halloumi patties. This will truly make the best halloumi burger sauce!
For more tips, visit our dedicated article about Chimichurri Mayonnaise.
STEP 4: Fry Halloumi Burger Patties
For the halloumi, cut it in half to get two thick slices of equal size. Halloumi normally has a natural crack down the middle, so it almost breaks into two.
Pat them dry and add to a large frying pan. Cover with a lid and cook on low heat for 2-3 minutes. As a result of this cooking process, halloumi slices will soften and will be easy to roll into larger patties that will fit into burger buns better.
Take the thick slabs out of the pan and place them onto a chopping board. Using a rolling pin, flatten the halloumi halves so that they are the size of your buns or slightly larger.
Return the halloumi halves to the frying pan and fry in medium-high heat for a minute on each side until the halloumi browns and crisps up a bit. If you wish you can roll the patties in semolina coating for extra crispy halloumi burgers.
STEP 5: Assemble
In the meantime, cut your brioche buns in half and place them in the oven with the potato wedges to toast for 1-2 minutes.
All that's left to do is assemble. On the bottom half of your toasted brioche bun, arrange the shredded lettuce and tomato slices. Then, add your halloumi patty and add a generous tablespoon of chimichurri mayonnaise. Top with the other brioche bun half. Serve with crispy potato wedges and your favourite soft drink for an Ultimate Chmichurri Halloumi Burger experience!
Video
What To Serve Halloumi Burgers With?
This Vegetarian Halloumi Burger is sandwiched between a brioche bun, but why not make Sourdough Burger Buns from scratch instead?! You can also choose to use different salad vegetables: lettuce can be replaced with spinach, tomatoes can be substituted with bell peppers and cucumber!
A good burger also needs a lovely potato side dish! If plain wedges are not what you're looking for, serve your halloumi burger with the following:
Other Burger Recipes
If this Halloumi Burger With Chimichurri Mayo doesn't float your boat, have a look at some of our other delicious burger recipes below:
- Sweet Chilli Halloumi Burger (Vegetarian Recipe)
- Pulled Jackfruit Burger (Vegan Recipe)
- Banh Mi Pork Burger
- Pulled Chicken Burger With Sweet Chilli
Halloumi Burger Recipe With Chimichurri Mayo
Ingredients
- 400 g potatoes cut into wedges
- 15 g coriander finely chopped including stalks
- ⅛ red onion finely chopped
- ½ chilli finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove crushed
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tablespoon vinegar red wine or rice
- 50 ml mayonnaise
- 225 g halloumi
- 2 brioche buns
- 2 large lettuce leaves shredded
- 1 small tomato sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C Fan. Spread your potatoes in a single layer on a large baking tray. Drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 35-40 minutes.
- In the meantime, shred your lettuce and slice tomatoes. Set aside for later.
- To make chimichurri mayonnaise, put finely chopped coriander, red onion, chilli and crushed garlic in a pestle and mortar (or a food processor), add a tablespoon of olive oil and bash to create a rough paste. Scoop out into a small bowl, add a tablespoon of vinegar and mayonnaise. Mix well and set aside.
- Drain your halloumi and cut into two flat patties. Put them in a frying pan (no need to add oil) and cover with a lid. Cook on low heat for 5 minutes to soften it, then remove from the pan and place on a chopping board. Using a rolling pin flatten your halloumi halves to the size of your brioche buns or slightly larger.
- Return flattened halloumi halves to the pan and fry on medium heat for 1-2 minutes, then flip and fry again. Halloumi should brown and crisp up a little.
- In the meantime, cut your brioche in half and place in the oven for a couple of minutes to toast.
- To assemble, arrange shredded lettuce and tomato slices on the bottom half of your brioche buns. Add halloumi halves and spoon a generous amount of chimichurri mayo on top. Cover with the brioche dome and serve with crispy potato wedges.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Lydia says
Tried the chimichurri mayo on these halloumi burgers last weekend and it completely made the sandwich, so much better than regular mayo.
Ieva Greber says
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you enjoyed the chimichurri mayo — it really does add that extra burst of flavour and makes the whole burger feel a bit more special. Thanks for giving the recipe a try!
Lauren says
What a great flavor combination! I loved everything about this sandwich!
Dasha says
Everyone really enjoyed this burger recipe with halloumi. I loved all the toppings!
Aurica says
Served these on the patio yesterday and the whole family loved them. The combination of the warm, firm cheese and the creamy herb topping is spot on. It is officially going into our regular meal rotation!
Ieva Greber says
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! I’m thrilled the whole family enjoyed them. Halloumi on the grill (or simply a pan!) is such a treat, and I’m so glad the chimichurri mayo was a hit too. It sounds like a perfect addition to your regular meal rotation!
Elizabeth says
I love halloumi, but never thought of putting it on a burger! It was a fabulous addition and I'll be doing it again before the end of the summer grilling season.
Ieva Greber says
glad it converted you to halloumi-on-a-burger! It's such an easy way to switch things up, and that chimichurri mayo makes it worth doing again before the grilling season wraps up.