This DIY Impossible Burger 2.0 recipe is easy to make at home using commonly found ingredients. It’s vegan and gluten-free, too!
DIY Impossible Burger 2.0 Recipe to Make at Home
First, there was the Impossible Burger and now there is the Impossible Burger 2.0! This recipe to make your own DIY Impossible Burger 2.0 at home has no weird ingredients and takes just a few minutes to put together in the food processor. You can make your own tasty, delicious Impossible Burger yourself. The full recipe is below along with a recipe video!
Impossible Burger vs Impossible Burger 2.0
So what’s the difference between the Impossible Burger and an Impossible Burger 2.0? Well, both are pretty delicious and are winning over vegans and non-vegans alike.
But there are a few key differences.
The Original Impossible Burger Contains Gluten
The original Impossible Burger available in restaurants contained wheat and got at least some of its chewy texture from wheat gluten. Gluten is yummy and has a stiff and stretchy texture ideal for making faux meats … unless you’re one of the many people who are sensitive to it.
Impossible Burger 2.0 is Gluten Free!
The new product available from Impossible Foods, known as the Impossible Burger 2.0, is gluten-free and uses textured soy protein for the chewy texture. This make at home version of the Impossible Burger 2.0 also uses soy protein, is also gluten-free as well as inexpensive compared to the original available only in restaurants.
Impossible Burger 2.0 Cheaper to Make it at Home!
As of right now, any version of the Impossible Burger is only available in restaurants where it costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $10-$15, depending on the restaurant. To be fair, the restaurant version of the Beyond Burger is similarly priced. The Beyond Burger is sold in grocery stores, although is still relatively expensive.
This entire batch of DIY Impossible Burgers cost about $6.00 and makes 6-8 burgers. That’s right around $1 per burger or less. What a bargain!
Easy Recipe for a Delicious Impossible Burger 2.0
This DIY Impossible Burger 2.0 recipe is built on a foundation of protein, fat, a starchy binder, and beef-like flavors and is tasty, inexpensive, and simple to make.
It’s easy and also less expensive than its restaurant counterpart. This homemade version also uses soy protein and starch to make a chewy burger, just like the real Impossible Burger 2.0. This one doesn’t have the GMO heme ingredient but gets a “realistic” red coloring from just a little bit of beets. If you don’t like this, and I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t, just omit the beets. They’re only there for color.
Start with TVP for Protein
The restaurant version Impossible Burger 2.0 uses soy protein and we have, too, starting with TVP.
TVP is the acronym for texturized vegetable protein. It’s defatted soy and also known as texturized vegetable protein, soya chunks, and soy meat. It has a meaty, chewy texture and is very high in protein, with 54 gr protein per every 100 gr TVP. It comes dried and I like the Bob’s Red Mill version, which is available in many grocery stores. If you can’t find it locally, it can be found on Amazon and this one is about $4.60 per 10 oz bag.
TVP can be rehydrated with very hot water or veggie broth, depending on what you’re using it for. Here, I’ve used vegetable broth because I wanted extra flavor. Just let it sit for a few minutes and then fluff with a fork and it’s ready to use. The next step is to just put everything into the food processor and pulse.
The starchy binder that I really like to use in burgers is short grain rice. It’s inexpensive, quick and easy to make, and works great to make a sturdy, chewy, not squishy burger.
I’ve used coconut oil and just a little sunflower oil which is what is in the real Impossible Burger 2.0. It adds flavor and “mouth feel.” It’s important to put the coconut oil in when solid and not liquid. It gets chopped up into little pieces and distributed throughout the burger and when cooked those little pockets of fat help cook the insides.
Note: This recipe can be made without oil and is still delicious and yummy! I’ve used coconut oil and a little sunflower oil, just like the real Impossible Burger 2.0. But you don’t have to. Simply omit the oil without substitution and bake or fry without oil as desired.
Add in the spices. I’ve used salt, pepper, some red pepper flakes, garlic powder, and onion powder. I’ve also added some Black Garlic, which is a fermented garlic. The one I used is made by McCormick and I found it at my local grocery. If you can’t find it, try THIS BLACK GARLIC from Amazon. If you can’t find it or don’t want to use it, just omit it. No big deal.
I also added a good amount of liquid smoke and a teaspoon of Better Than Broth Vegetable Bouillon. If you can’t find this just omit or use your favorite bouillon. I love the Better Than Broth one and use it in all sorts of things.
Pulse in the food processor until mixed together and sort of chopped up but still retaining much of its texture.
I blended mine just a tiny bit too long but it still worked well. Just form it into patties like you would with any other mix. I love using this burger press. It makes the perfect sized patty and is simple to use and easy to clean.
Or just make your burgers by hand. It’s all good.
Look at the texture. I wish you had feel-o-vision. It’s chewy, meaty, a little stiff and stretchy. If a real burger experience is what you’re going for then this is awesomely close.
Just fry it up using your preferred method. I used oil but you can go without.
Crisp on the outside and firm and chewy on the inside.
Add whatever you like as toppings.
And voila. Your own, DIY Make at Home Impossible Burger 2.0.
Here’s the recipe!
DIY Impossible Burger 2.0 Recipe Make it at Home
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups cooked white or brown short grain rice
- 2 cups TVP Bob's Red Mill
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 2 tbsp coconut oil solid and chilled, not melted (optional)
- 2 tsp sunflower or other liquid oil (optional)
- 1/4 cup potato starch flour
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp McCormick's black garlic (optional)
- 1 tbsp liquid smoke
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp A1 steak sauce
- 2 tsp Better Than Broth vegetable bouillon
- 2 tbsp finely grated beets
Instructions
- Cook the short grain rice according to package directions and set aside,
- Place 2 cups TVP in a medium-sized heat-safe bowl. Bring 2 cups vegetable broth to a boil and pour into the TVP. Let sit for a few minutes for the TVP to absorb the liquid. Fluff with a fork.
- Add the TVP, rice, and the rest of the ingredients to a food processor and pulse until well mixed but not so much it loses its texture.
- Form into patties and cook using your desired method.
- Can also be made into meatballs or used as meat crumbles.
And here’s the recipe video!
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You can also try my other version of The Impossible Burger here:
I’m Possible Burger
This I’m Possible Burger is a great imitation of the the Impossible Burger and the Beyond Burger, and it’s both simple and inexpensive to make at home with common items from your local grocery.
Hello! I’m Lisa, a vegan artist, photographer, author, Vegan Life Coach Educator, and RYT 200 yoga teacher. I love showing others how simple and delicious a plant-based diet can be. I draw and paint, cook, write, take lots of pics, eat lots of chocolate, and practice gratitude daily.
It’s pretty good, tbh. A couple of notes from my experience-
I think cutting the recipe in half would make it easier to avoid over processing. I used 1 3/4 c broth after reading the notes. It was a perfect amount. Be ready to play with seasonings. I felt it was a little bland, so I added more liquid smoke as well as nutritional yeast. Be sure to use unrefined coconut oil or skip it altogether.
Overall, I’m pleased. It’s more like beyond meat than impossible burger, but I will definitely be making it again! What a money saver!
Sounds good!
That should read REFINED coconut oil! Haha
Should I drain the TVP after rehydrating. It doesn’t specify in the recipe so I threw everything together and it is so wet, there is no way it will make a patty. I added 2 more T potato starch and refrigerated and it still won’t sick together. I’m going to try adding a flax egg. Any suggestions?
Yes. Drain the TVP and lightly pat it with a paper towel to get rid of any extra moisture.
@Lisa Viger Gotte,
Thanks for your quick reply. I will try that next time.
You’re welcome. ☺️
@Nancy, how did the flax egg work out? I just made burger patties, and they were ok flavorwise, but they were a little “loose” if that makes sense.
I don’t think McCormick’s black garlic is vegan (contains sugar, not labeled as raw or vegan). Amazon has a granulated product from Black Garlic North America. Does not say whether it is organic 🙁
Can I use beet root powder instead of beets? How would I do that if so?
Yes, that’s a great idea. It’s only for coloring so a teaspoon of beet powder should work well.
We loved it! Very tasty and delicious!! Can’t wait to use it in more applications (burritos, breakfast “meat” etc).
Glad you liked it!
Delicious. The best impossible copy cat and so much healthier. Endless thanks for taking the time to experiment. I did not make any modifications and by far the best non-meat burger I have had.
Thanks Joy, glad you liked it!
This is so good! The uncooked mixture tasted good so I knew they would be tasty! I baked them and though the inside wasn’t super firm, I was very happy with how they turned out. I plan to use some of the leftovers as scrambled “hamburg” over mashed potatoes…which I know will be YUM!
Glad you liked it! Thanks for saying 😊
I agree this recipe is quite flexible. I had a lot of left over quinoa so I subbed that for the rice. I subbed corn starch for the potato starch. I didn’t have any form of beets or red food coloring I accidentally omitted the coconut oil because I forgot it in the fridge. After reading one review about it being salty I cut the salt in half and omitted the bullion cubes. It tasted great! I doubt it will hold together for grilling but I intended this for taco meat. I sautéed it with onions jalapeños garlic and my own taco seasoning and it came out really good. Thanks for sharing this recipe
Hi Scout, Those all sound like tasty substitutions! Glad you liked the recipe!
This recipe looks great! The other ones I have seen/tried were too dried out by the end of the process. I have a question if you dont mind. Can I process some carrot and mushrooms (or even some rolled oats) into the mixture? How would that work, would it all fall apart do you think?
The recipe is a great building block, I appreciate the work that goes into building these recipes so others can enjoy and tweak.
I think the thing missing to give it the extra “meat like” texture is a binding starch. When reading the ingredients of the big name burger meats, they have things like methyl cellulose, which add the binding starch to the proteins. I didn’t try it on this batch, but adding something like xanthan gum or agar agar should give it that bounce or chew to replicate cow meat.
Hi Dean, thanks for commenting. I may edit the recipe to add the suggestion of another binder like psyllium husk. It is quite the quest to get the “chew” part just right for sure! xo Lisa
@Lisa Viger Gotte, methylcellulose is pretty easy to find (amazon carries it, as do other retailers). I use it in vegan ground “meat” regularly. the important thing is to use WAY LESS than you might think you need. for example, if you want to try some in this recipe, I’d cut back on the rice a bit (I’d use just 1 cup of cooked rice) and add 1/4 tsp of methylcellulose AFTER the taking the burger mix out of the food processor. you want to stir it in by hand — you can watch it get stretchy and a bit sticky (like real meat does when making dumpling filling, for example) and you don’t want it to get overworked in the processor. you can always add a bit more to get more of that chewy stretch; just add in small increments.
another reason you don’t want to use a lot is because methylcellulose is also used as type of laxative! but in the very small amounts called for it shouldn’t be a problem.
psyllium husk, xanthan gum and agar really aren’t going to give a similar texture, though psyllium is probably the closest. best of luck with recipe development and thanks for the hard work you’ve done so far!!!
Hi Diane,
I’ve actually got some methylcellulose sitting in my cupboard! I want to experiment with it as soon as I can. Thanks so much for the advice :).
Made this today EXACTLY as written except did not use the safflower oil. And I mean exactly. The only reason I’m giving this 3 stars is because you seem like a nice person. Out of the process it pattied up great. I had very high hopes. Smelled great too. These didn’t hold together at all, in a frying pan, with oil. So obviously there was no chew. And, wayyyyyy too salty. Yuk!!! Fortunately I only cooked one small patty so I have the rest of the batch to work with. I will add some more tvp and rice to dilute the salt and add texture. Still hoping but as is, nope. Chew is all I’m looking for. I can make taste. Chew.
Hey Frank, sorry you were disappointed. It can be hard to achieve an intense GF “chew.” If you’re not GF yourself, try incorporating some vital wheat gluten in this or any other faux meat recipe.
Giving this recipe 5 stars to pull in the positive energy from the universe that this, indeed, will taste very, very much like the Impossible Whopper I have had at Burger King.
Lisa, before I order TVP and end up putting it away like I did vital wheat gluten, are you confident enough in the taste of this burger to tell me to go ahead and order the TVP and go for it? It’s not the money, it’s the waste of time I abhor.
Hi Frank, I like the positive energy! So, you’re asking if this comes with a guarantee … Yours is a good question. It’s not going to be exactly the same. It’s basically a healthier version so there are differences. If you fry these like they do at BK and use lots of oil, it’s going to taste close and be delicious in the kind of greasy way the original is. If you bake these or use less oil they’re going to be delicious in a different way. Does that make sense? So, I can’t make a guarantee but I do think you’ll like these. For sure, let me know how it goes!!! Thanks for your comment 🙂
@Lisa V Gotte, thanks Lisa! I appreciate your response!! No guarantees sought, just your confidence which you expressed very well. Amazon is delivering some TVP today, along with a hamburger press. It will likely be a couple of days before I get to try this recipe. Thanks again Lisa! Stay safe and have a wonderful weekend!
Making these tonight
Just wondering do these freeze ok? Is it better to freeze cooked or uncooked?
Thanks
Hi Kelly … These freeze really well. Freezing cooked generally works better. Let me know how it goes! Xo
@Lisa V Gotte, Thanks for your reply..
Absolutely loved this burger recipe, its my new go to..
Will cook and freeze the mix that’s left
Thanks again x
You’re welcome ☺️ Great to hear!
I made them and they turned out amazing!! Thank you for this recipe, everyone loved it!
Hi Katia, glad everyone liked them!
I loved the flavor but can’t get them to stay in patty shape. (I have been using it for tacos due to this, which have worked FABULOUSLY.)
Hello,
When you say “potato starch flour” do you mean “potato starch?” or “potato flour?”
They’re not exactly the same but you can use either one. I should make this clearer. Thanks for pointing it out! 😊
Mine were mushy, so here’s what I did; added about one teaspoon of powdered egg replacer to 1/2 teaspoon of water let it get very thick then add to the mixture. Let it sit in the fridge for about 20 to 30 minutes until firm. Then I put coconut oil in a screaming hot pan, cook for about 8 to 10 minutes per side and then most importantly I removed the burgers from the pan and let them cool down a bit. They were more firm; not as mushy as before — very crispy on the outside, almost charred.
That sounds like a good alternative, Pam. Did you end up liking them?
Yes, the addition a bit more binder, longer cook time and rest–much better. IMO
Ideally, I also like to let any veggie burger mix sit in the fridge overnight. I’m not always that organized, though!
Hi there. I’m super excited to try these. But I’m curious are the beets cooked or raw?
Hi Mary, I used raw beets but either raw or cooked is fine. The beets are mainly for color so they can even be omitted.
The flavor of these is awesome! Very different than any veggie burger I’ve had to date….really good! Based on the comments, I made sure to use short grain rice and to grill with a lower heat. They came out good, and I would definitely make again! They were still a little mushier than the genuine Impossible Burger….and I wondered how the softness of the 2.0 burger compares to your other Impossible burger recipe (1.0). Hubby can’t eat mushrooms, but he can eat gluten! I wondered if I could just sub tempeh for some some of the TVP in this recipe? Either way, this one is a keeper!!!
Hi Diana, glad you like them! I think a combination of tempeh and TVP would be delicious! I think I’ll try it, too. The mushiness is the downside of make-at-home veggie burgers. I make mine thin and then cook them slowly to help them get done in the middle. Thanks for commenting! xo
Totally agree with what you said re mushiness. To make this recipe as 6 burgers, they ended up being the thickest veggie burgers I’ve ever made. I’m going to try 1) thinner and 2) making combo of tempeh and TVP. Stay tuned! Even as is, though, these burgers are awesome!
hi lisa how much tempeh would you need to add to the recipe also how much beetroot powder would i need to use regards james
Hi James, I would just use the whole package of tempeh which is usually 8 oz. and probably a half teaspoon of the beetroot powder … for color. Let me know how it turns out!
Could this be used for other ground beef substitutes like tacos ?
It can. Just mix it up and then crumble it in a pan over medium heat with some oil until browned.
I made these tonight for dinner. Followed the recipe but used plant-based red food coloring instead of beets. And, I didn’t have short-grain rice, so used long grain brown rice.
After I made them I put them in the fridge for about an hour so the coconut oil could firm up a bit.
I grilled them and was amazed that they held up on the grate. I took a pic but I don’t see a way to share a photo here.
I have the following questions:
1) The outside was crispy, but the inside was mushy. Maybe it was because I used long-grain rice? Or maybe I tried to cook them too quickly and needed a lower flame?
2) I’ve never had an impossible burger because I find the smell of them to be rather disgusting. I have grilled Beyond Meats, Beyond Burger and Beyond Sausages, and they sizzle and cook more inside and out when being grilled. I was hoping this recipe would come close to mimicking that, but it didn’t. What have other’s experiences been with this recipe? Has anyone tried increasing the amount of coconut oil to see if that helped the inside cook more?
3) I kinda liked the flavor of this recipe better than the Beyond Burger, but the texture wasn’t nearly as good. I would love to know any tips people have to improve the texture and more evenly cook the inside of the burger without drying it out.
I look forward to everyone’s input and feedback.
Cheers,
Stuart
Hi Stuart and thanks for your comment!
Yes, the short-grain rice helps these stick together better and are a lot less mushy. Lower flame also helps. The inside needs enough time to get rid of some of that moisture. Also, letting the burger mix rest and chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before making into patties also helps.
I’m glad you enjoyed the flavor and the above suggestions may help you perfect the texture!
XO Lisa
Would potato flakes work for potato starch flour? Bob’s Red Mill potato flakes are just dehydrated potatoes.
Sure, I think they’d work just fine. It’s a forgiving recipe, too.
Can they be frozen to cook later?
They can be. You can cook them first or not. Either way … Just wrap them up we’ll with plastic wrap and put them in the pan frozen.
Could you use beet powder instead of the beets?
Oh absolutely. Just a little would be all you need. It’s for color.
These are yummy.
Ty!