Greek Turkey Burgers

Have you ever had a turkey burger and immediately thought, well, that was disappointing? Yep. Me too. I think that describes all of the turkey burgers I ever had...until recently. I didn't make them for a while, even though they're pretty healthy, because I was never satisfied with the final product. Turkey is lean--the stuff I get from the store is only 7% fat. For comparison's sake, good beef burger uses beef that is at least 20% fat. That's why turkey burgers are usually dry compared to their juicy, beefy counterparts. Also, turkey itself it pretty...plain. It doesn't taste like a whole lot. That's why many turkey burger recipes call for savory flavor elements like Worcestershire sauce--those recipes are trying to build in some of the umami turkey naturally lacks. 

The photo you see below is from a recipe I pinned a while ago. It's a recipe for Greek Burgers (apparently from CleanCuisine.com, per the watermark, though I couldn't find this recipe on that site anywhere when I just went looking for it), and it calls for lots of delicious stuff like oregano and garlic and feta and lemon juice. If you added that stuff to a beef burger, it would be weird--the flavor of all the goodies would be completely overwhelmed by the beefiness of the meat. But in a turkey burger, that stuff is amazing. 

So I made these burgers for a while. They were much, much tastier than a standard, bland turkey burger, but they were still dry. So I did some more scouring and research before I had an ah-ha! moment: since turkey lacks fat, I COULD ADD FAT BACK IN. What fat goes well with oregano and garlic? Olive oil. Done. A tablespoon of olive oil (ish--I never measure these things) added to a pound of ground turkey helped the juiciness factor a lot. But I knew I could still do better.

Then, about six months ago, I read an article by the good folks over at America's Test Kitchen that really revolutionized the turkey burgers I now make. They added a really bizarre ingredient that I would never in a thousand years have thought to add--gelatin. Essentially, they sprinkle a tablespoon of unflavored gelatin over 3 tablespoons of chicken broth, let it set up, then dice it finely and add it into the meat mixture. It sounds strange. But if you think about it, it makes sense; the little cubes of solid, neutrally-flavored chicken broth melt as the burger cooks, but are encased in the ground turkey, sealing in the juices and creating a juicy, drippy, umami-filled burger.

We had these burgers tonight, and they. Were. Amazing.

Here's my recipe.

Greek Turkey Burgers

1 1/2 lbs. ground turkey

1 Tbsp. unflavored gelatin

3 Tbsp. chicken broth

1 1/2 (ish) Tbsp Olive Oil

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

2-3 pressed or minced cloves of garlic 

1 Tbsp of dried oregano OR 3 Tbsp. of chopped fresh oregano

1/4 c. crumbled feta

2 c. chopped spinach

Salt and pepper to taste (or use lemon pepper, if you've got it--it's not necessary, but works really well in this burger)

First, sprinkle the gelatin over the chicken broth and set aside. Come back to it in about 10 minutes, when it has set up, and finely dice it. 

In a large bowl, combine the turkey with all of the other ingredients, including the diced gelatin mixture. Use a large ice cream scoop to portion out about 1/3 c. of the turkey. Lightly shape into a ball, then gently press into a patty. (I get about 8 patties from this quantity) Preheat a skillet over medium-high heat, then add some olive oil to the pan. Season patties with salt and pepper or lemon pepper, and cook for about 3 minutes on the first side, flip, and cook for about another 3 minutes, or until done. Be careful not to overcook--you still want the burger to feel a littlest squidgy. (Open your hand and press the plump area right below your thumb. A perfectly-cooked turkey burger will feel something like that.)

Serve immediately on a brioche or potato bun.

I suggest topping with any or all of the following items:

Spinach

Sliced tomato

Finely sliced red onion rings

Thinly sliced cucumber

Tzatziki sauce