Seriously Good Turkey Burgers
- PREP 10min
- COOK 20min
- TOTAL 30min
These easy homemade turkey burgers have become one of our favorite things to make. Lean ground turkey can be a bit bland, so 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 don’t really taste them. Instead, they make the burger taste more meaty.
You Will Need
1 pound (450g) ground turkey (90% to 93% lean)
1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
6 ounces (170g) mushrooms, trimmed and very finely chopped
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
1Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wide, nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. (You’ll use this same skillet later to cook burgers.)
2Add the finely chopped mushrooms to the skillet. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of 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.
3Stir 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.
4Gently mix the mushroom and garlic mixture into the ground turkey. The mixture may be sticky.
5To 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.
6Form the turkey burger mixture into 4 patties (or more for sliders).
7Heat another tablespoon of oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the burgers, then cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until an internal thermometer reads 165°F when inserted into the middle of a patty.
8Transfer to a plate and let rest, lightly covered with foil, for 5 minutes. Serve.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Mushrooms: We usually add 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.
- 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 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 in the freezer. To serve, reheat in the microwave or oven.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.