Seriously Good Turkey Burgers
- PREP 10min
- COOK 20min
- TOTAL 30min
This turkey burger recipe is one of my favorite ways to use lean ground turkey! We add lots of umami and flavor by stirring cooked, chopped mushrooms into the burger mixture. The magic of the mushrooms doesn’t stop there. They also help keep the turkey burgers juicy and moist. If you are not a mushroom fan, don’t worry, you won’t really taste them. Instead, they make the patties taste more meaty. You won’t find egg or breadcrumbs in our recipe below, as these ingredients tend to make the burgers lean more towards a meatball than a burger.
You Will Need
1 pound ground turkey, 90% to 93% lean (450g)
1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
6 ounces mushrooms, trimmed and very finely chopped (170g)
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 tablespoon fish sauce or Worcestershire sauce
1 ½ tablespoons ketchup, try homemade ketchup
Salt and fresh ground black pepper
Directions
1Cook the mushrooms: Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wide, nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. (You’ll use this same skillet later to cook burgers.) Add the finely chopped mushrooms to the skillet. Sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of black pepper. Cook the mushrooms, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes. The mushrooms will initially release liquid, which bubbles away as they cook. The mushrooms are done when all the liquid has boiled away.
2Add more flavor: Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute or until fragrant. Remove the skillet from the heat, then stir in the fish sauce (or Worcestershire sauce) and the ketchup. Set aside until warm, not hot.
3Make burger mix: Add the ground turkey to a large bowl. Then, gently mix in the mushroom and garlic mixture until combined. The mixture may be sticky.
4Test seasoning (optional): To test the seasoning, heat a pan over medium heat and add a tablespoon of the burger mixture. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, flipping once, until thoroughly cooked through. Taste the mini patty. If it seems under-seasoned, sprinkle a little salt on the turkey burger patties just before cooking them.
5Form the patties: Form the turkey burger mixture into 4 patties (or more for sliders).
6Cook burgers: Heat another tablespoon of oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Place patties into the skillet, then cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until an instant-read thermometer reads 165°F when inserted into the middle of a patty. Transfer to a plate and let rest, lightly covered with foil, for 5 minutes. Serve on a plate or on buns with your favorite toppings.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Storing: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Freezing the burgers: To freeze uncooked patties, prepare them as directed, then individually wrap each patty. Freeze. To cook them, thaw the burgers, then cook as directed. To freeze cooked patties, prepare and cook them as directed, then line them up on a baking sheet. Slide the baking sheet into the freezer and freeze until partially frozen, about 30 minutes. Wrap them with plastic wrap (place a piece of wax paper if wrapping multiple patties together), then store them in the freezer. To serve, reheat in the microwave or oven.
- Mushrooms: Use one or more of the following: white button, cremini or baby bella, shiitake and portobello mushrooms.
- Food processor: To quickly chop the mushrooms or to make them extra small, use a food processor.
- Even juicier burgers: Consider mixing 1 to 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise into the burger mixture before forming the patties. This adds a bit of extra fat.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.