Turkey Basil Cheese Burger with Tzatziki Sauce

Turkey burgers are a great alternative to their beef based counterpart. I season and cook turkey burgers just like beef burgers. The seasoning is Asian-inspired, which should be no surprise! This recipe starts with 3 lbs. of ground turkey and makes eight good sized burgers (or a larger number of more petit burgers). You can of course start with a smaller amount ground turkey and the burgers can easily be frozen for later use. I added bell peppers, a slice of pepper jack cheese, and tzatziki sauce to complete the burger. The store-bought tzatziki sauce (Greek yogurt, dill, and other spices) made a great addition to the burger. It’s creamy and provides a different flavor to a burger than the usual condiments. Try it, you’ll like it!

Enjoy!

Turkey Ingredients

3 lbs. Ground Turkey (makes 8 burgers)

¼ - ½ cups Basil, chopped

2 tsp. ground White Pepper

2 Tbs. Cornstarch

4 Tbs. Soy Sauce

2 Tbs. Hoisin Sauce

2 Tbs. Shaoxing Rice Wine or Dry Sherry

2 tsp. Sesame Oil

Sandwich Ingredients

2 thick slices of Garlic or Sourdough Bread per turkey burger, toasted

1 slice Pepper Jack Cheese (or any cheese of your choice) per turkey burger

½ medium Bell Pepper, cut into 4-6 long strips, per turkey burger

Tzatziki Sauce

Preparation Instructions

1. 3 lbs. of ground turkey is enough to make eight good-sized turkey burgers (more if you want more petit burgers). You can of course start with a smaller amount of ground turkey. The turkey is marinated overnight in the refrigerator using an Asian-inspired set of ingredients – ground white pepper, cornstarch, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing Rice Wine, and sesame oil – plus chopped basil.
2. Take the marinated turkey out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking. Form the turkey into burgers. Any turkey burgers that will not be cooked now can be placed in the freezer for later use.
3. Wash and cut a medium bell pepper in half. Cut the bell pepper into 4-6 long strips and set aside.

Cooking Instructions

1. Cut two thick slices from a loaf of garlic or sourdough bread per burger. Toast the bread slices and keep the bread warm after toasting.
2. Heat a frying pan over medium to medium-high heat before adding oil. Place the turkey burgers into the pan and cook for 3-5 minutes.
3. Flip the turkey burgers and add the bell pepper to the pan. Put the cheese on top of each of the burgers and cook the burgers for another 3-5 minutes.
4. Take the turkey burgers and bell peppers out of the pan and place on an oil-absorbent paper towel.
5. Assemble the turkey burger sandwich by placing one turkey burger on a piece of toast. Put the bell pepper on top of the burger, add some Tzatziki sauce, and cover with another piece of toast. You might want to wrap the sandwich in some aluminum foil or paper to make eating the sandwich a little less messy.
6. Serve the turkey burger with your favorite accompaniments.