Juicy Indian-spiced Turkey Burgers

Name: Juicy Indian-spiced Turkey Burgers
Yield: 7-8 servings
Ingredients: 1 1/4 pound ground turkey; 1 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon red chili powder; 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seeds; 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (optional); 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil; juice of 1/2 lemon (optional); 1/2 large onion, diced; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced (optional)

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7-8 servings Easy

(1) Total: 30 minutes Active: 20 minutes

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Ingredients (10)

1 1/4 pound ground turkey
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (optional)
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon (optional)
1/2 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced (optional)

I made these turkey burgers recently, adapting a Martha Stewart recipe for lamb kofte, and they turned out really good—juicy and flavorful. You can serve them on a burger bun and call them burgers, but I really enjoyed them over white rice as well and I imagine they would be great in meatball form, browned in the same way as burger patties and served over rice or in soup. They’d be delicious in a pita seasoned with tzatziki sauce, and they are great served on their own with a simple drizzling of unflavored yogurt. Coriander seeds are the “secret” flavor-bomb ingredient of this dish, so don’t expect much if you skip it.

I used the ubiquitous Butterball 7% lean ground turkey (no eggs or breadcrumbs necessary) and cooked the patties on a hot, greased skillet on the stovetop, and they turned out nicely charred and juicy. They would be acceptable steamed and I’m sure they’d be even better grilled outside—what isn’t?

by fallingup

Instructions

1Using your hands, mix the turkey with the seasonings, onion, garlic, and ginger. You can cook the turkey right away, but I like to let it marinate in the fridge for a day or two.
2Form the turkey mixture into 3 oz patties, about 1 inch thick. Try not to make the patties too thin. In my experience, 1 1/4 pounds of turkey makes about 7-8 optimally sized patties.
3Place a nonstick skillet on medium to high heat. When hot, add 1 tablespoon of butter or olive oil.
4Gently slide patties into skillet. Cook each for 2-3 minutes on the first side, allowing a good char to develop. Flip and cook for 2-3 minutes more. Resist the urge to flatten the patties or to flip them more than necessary.
5Sprinkle patties with lemon juice and serve hot over rice or on toasted burger buns.

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