If you’re looking for a crowd-pleasing bite to kick off the weekend, mushrooms are your ultimate secret weapon.
They’re hearty, wholesome, and ridiculously versatile — whether you’re whipping up snacks for the family or treating yourself to something a little indulgent.
This recipe for Beef, bean and mushroom sliders with homemade tomato sauce is one of those guaranteed winners. Juicy, flavour-packed patties meet a tangy homemade sauce… all tucked into soft little slider buns. It’s the kind of easy, laid-back food that turns a normal weekend into something delicious.
Perfect for braai days, game days or “just because” days — let mushrooms do the heavy lifting while you take all the credit.
Makes ± 12-15 sliders, depending on size
You’ll need:
Patties:
1 x 400g tin black beans, rinsed, drained and lightly mashed
250g portabellini mushrooms, finely sliced
1 large white onion, diced
500g beef mince
50g panko breadcrumbs
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
Homemade tomato sauce:
1 x 400g tin tomato purée
40g brown sugar
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
½ tsp onion powder
1 tsp celery salt
To serve:
12-15 white slider buns / mini burger buns (Many bakeries also call these cocktail buns)
Mayonnaise
Lettuce leaves
Sliced tomato
Sliced red onion
Olive oil, for cooking
Salt and pepper, to taste
To make:
To make the tomato sauce:
Place all the ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat.
Stir gently until everything comes to a light simmer.
Cover and reduce heat to low.
Simmer for 15 minutes for the flavours to develop.
Taste to adjust seasoning.
Cool.
For the patties:
Preheat a braai to medium high heat.
Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a frying pan.
Add the mushrooms and cook until golden brown.
Add the onion and a pinch of salt.
Cook until tender, golden and lightly caramelised.
Place in a large bowl.
To the bowl add the black beans, beef, breadcrumbs and parsley.
Season well with salt and pepper.
Mix thoroughly until very well combined.
Shape mixture into patties.
It is a good idea to check the size of your slider buns and make your patties are just larger than the buns as they will shrink during cooking.
Brush patties all over with olive oil and braai until golden brown on both sides.
You can also bake them in the oven or cook them on the stovetop.
Allow the patties to rest.
Build sliders with your favourite burger toppings.
Add a generous dollop of homemade tomato sauce to each slider and enjoy!
Image and recipe credit The South African Mushroom Farmers’ Association
