Chef John's Turkey Burger Recipe

Directions

Combine ground turkey, breadcrumbs, almonds, chili paste, garlic, ginger, salt, garam masala, lemon juice, yogurt, and cilantro; mix thoroughly with a spatula or clean hands.
Shape ground turkey mixture into a ball and divide in 4 even pieces; refrigerate for 1 hour. Form each piece into a patty with damp hands.
Preheat grill to medium heat and refrigerate turkey burger patties until the grill is hot. Grill turkey burgers until patty appears to be cooked about half way up the side and then flip, grilling each side for about 4 to 5 minutes. Burger is done when surface is cracked and juices start to rise to the top.

Reviews (21)

fruttidimare

Jun. 30, 2012

"I had to try this burger after I saw the photo for a "Turkey Shishkaburger" while on here looking for dinner ideas. The name gave me a laugh - which is always good incentive - so I clicked on the lin..." See morek and was re-directed here (the written version of the Chef's video, I think). Whipped them up and they were a hit; fantastic burger! I prefer the flavours in my burgers to complement - rather than overpower - the taste of the actual meat, and this is just that burger. Beautifully moist with a nice mix of spicy and tangy without being cloying. I didn't have any chile paste, so added a pile of cracked pepper, and as usual I added an extra bit of fresh ginger and garlic. Refrigerating them first is a must: the patties are quite soft and this helps to solidify them a bit for the heat. Grilled them stove-top in a cast iron pan for 1 min. per side (to seal in all the juices!) then booted them in the oven at a high temp for 7min. Although we did top them with a little bloop of mango chutney, and the smallest sprinkling of caramelized onion and goat's cheese, these burgs would be fantastic all on their own. Glad I could be the first reviewer; Thanks, Chef."

MICHELECOOKWRITE

Jul. 7, 2012

"This is a superb recipe! I followed it closely other than... didn't have garam masala, and the closest market didn't either, so I used some Rogan Josh seasoning. These were wonderful...." See more"

jolley900

Aug. 9, 2012

"VERY good! one of the best turkey burgers I've ever had. My grocery only had 20oz packages of ground turkey vs. the 24 oz needed for this recipe so my burgers came out just a TAD salty but I will be..." See more making them again. I will keep everything else the same just reduce the salt by a half tsp or so. YUM!"

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