Juicy Indian-spiced Turkey Burgers
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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?
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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