Turkey Burgers

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Juicy, flavorful, and easy to make, these turkey burgers can hold their own against any beef counterpart.

Two turkey burgers on a cutting board.

Most turkey burgers are dry and tasteless and leave you yearning for the real deal. Not these! I add turkey sausage — a trick often used with meatballs — to amp up the flavor and make the burgers incredibly juicy. The best part is that, thanks to the highly seasoned sausage, you can throw them together in a matter of minutes with only five ingredients — no chopping, slicing or dicing required. These turkey burgers are not just a second-best substitute for steakhouse burgers, but they are delicious in their own right. You can customize them to your heart’s content by topping them with your favorite cheese or other burger fixings. And for an extra kick, serve them with my favorite homemade spicy relish — it’s quick, easy, and a must-have at every Segal family BBQ, as it elevates everything off the grill, from hot dogs and grilled chicken to brats and, of course, burgers.

What You’ll Need To Make Grilled Turkey Burgers

turkey burger ingredients

Step-by-Step Instructions

Remove the sausage meat from the casings. The best way is to use kitchen shears to cut through the casings and then peel them away from meat.

sausage meat in bowl

Add the ground turkey, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard.

adding ground turkey and seasoningsUse your hand to mix together until well combined.

turkey burger mixture in bowlForm the meat into 8 even patties about ½-inch thick, and place them on a foil-lined baking sheet.

burgers formed on baking sheetClean the grill and preheat to high. To grease the grill, lightly dip a wad of paper towels in vegetable oil and, using tongs, carefully rub over the grates several times until glossy and coated. Place the turkey burgers on the grill and cook for five minutes, covered, until nice grill marks form. Flip and continue to cook, covered, for 3-5 minutes more.

turkey burgers on the grill

Heat the buns on the grill, assemble the burgers, and serve.

Two turkey burgers on a cutting board.

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Turkey Burgers

Juicy, flavorful, and easy to make, these turkey burgers can hold their own against any beef counterpart.

Servings: 8 burgers
Total Time: 20 Minutes

Ingredients

  • 1¼ pounds Italian turkey sausage (I use Shady Brook Farms hot or sweet varieties)
  • 1⅓ pounds 93/7 lean ground turkey (I use Shady Brook Farms; one package equals 1⅓ pounds)
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 8 hamburger buns

Instructions

  1. Remove the sausage meat from the casings. The best way is to use kitchen shears to cut through the casings and then peel them away from meat. Place the sausage meat in a large bowl along with the ground turkey, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard. Use your hand to mix together until well combined. The mixture will seem quite wet; that's okay. Form the meat into 8 even patties about ½-inch thick. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to cook.
  2. Clean the grill and preheat to high. To grease the grill, lightly dip a wad of paper towels in vegetable oil and, using tongs, carefully rub over the grates several times until glossy and coated. Place the turkey burgers on the grill and cook for five minutes, covered, until nice grill marks form. Flip and continue to cook, covered, for 3-5 minutes more, until the burgers are cooked through. Heat the buns on the grill, assemble the burgers, and serve.
  3. Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The uncooked burgers can be frozen for up to three months. (Freeze the burgers on a baking sheet or plate so their shape sets, then transfer them to a sealable plastic bag for easy storage.) Defrost the burgers overnight in the refrigerator prior to serving and then cook as directed.

Pair with

Nutrition Information

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  • Per serving (8 servings)
  • Serving size: 1 burger
  • Calories: 338
  • Fat: 13 g
  • Saturated fat: 3 g
  • Carbohydrates: 22
  • Sugar: 3 g
  • Fiber: 1 g
  • Protein: 32 g
  • Sodium: 701 mg
  • Cholesterol: 104 mg

This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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Comments

  • A good recipe if you are looking for a spicier version of the standard turkey burger.

    • — Jennifer Marcus
    • Reply
  • I made these burgers for my partner and I last night. They were possibly some of the best burgers I’ve ever made. The Worcestershire sauce gave them a great flavour as well!

    Delicious.

  • I love turkey burgers but usually they are too dry – these were great! They were the exception! Had super flavor and not at all dry! I did freeze them after cooking (did that on purpose so I could take for lunch to work) and they heat up perfectly. Try them! Thanks again for another terrific recipe!

  • Very interesting idea to use turkey sausage. I’m going to have to try this.

  • I love turkey burgers with a little bit of minced jalapeno peppers added to them, and served with goat cheese and roasted red peppers on top. I LOVE them without the bun even! (less carbs & calories)

  • I haven’t had the best of luck with turkey burgers. I’ll have to try this one out…thanks!

  • I’m always looking for good turkey burger recipes! This looks great!

  • My husband, 2 boys, and I loved this! The 3 of them are avid “beef” burger eaters, so they did say it tasted more like sausages than burgers and requested that I add grilled onions and peppers and put it on hoagie rolls next time. But, they couldn’t get enough of it! Thank you so much!

  • […] turkey burger is… adding turkey sausage to the meat!  I first read about this on the blog “Once Upon a Chef”.  After trying it a few times, it can’t be beat.  I’ll never make them another way […]

  • Someone previously asked if they would freeze well uncooked and I was wondering the same thing . If not, could you cook them and freeze, then defrost and just heat in the microwave?

    • Hi Heidi, I think you’d be fine to freeze these raw. Hope that helps!

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