Turkey Burger Request

StoneColdLiger

As a man that loves burgers, yet is on a diet. I'm looking for alternatives. So I decided I might try turkey burgers.
I was just wondering if any one could give me opinions on how they taste compared to regular hamburgers. Or any advise or tips on any special ways you prepare them?

Jaedynmoon

If you like beef you could still enjoy beef burgers. Get the leanest ground beef and make your own! Or get the premade patties and they are American heart association recommended (in a red bag at Albertson's where I shop) and my husband and I compared the two and the beef ones were a better option than the turkey. As for seasonings, I like simple garlic powder, ssalt, and pepper...just a bit!

kappyblu

I really like turkey burgers. You can buy pre packaged ones. Honeysuckle White makes some and they sell them at Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart has another brand they sell that has fewer calories. They usually have less fat than beef so when you cook them, you have to be careful that they don't dry out or you get a tough burger. I cook mine slowly on a griddle usually. I usually season them with a little s&p and a touch of garlic. Sam's sells some chicken burgers (frozen) that are really good as well.
I haven't bought beef in a long time; at least the past six months and I don't miss it at all.

4lafz

I love my turkey burgers. I use Oroweat/Arnold Sandwich thin for less bread calories. Lettuce, Tomato, Lite Cheddar and a bit of ketchup - sometimes carmelized onion. I usually season with garlic powder and a bit of S&P and on the grill is best - 2nd best is the stove top grill pan. I ususally buy the already made package of 4 -- Jenni-O (a very quick and easy meal) but I have formed myself. You can put lots of things in the meat if you wish. I have tried a few of these:
http://allrecipes.com//Recipes/main-dish/burgers/turkey/Main.aspx

Almost forget - cook til well-done - there is no medium rare for turkey burgers!

kappyblu

Oh yes! What 4lafz said. Instead of high calorie hamburger buns, I also use the sandwich thins. Orowheat and Earth Grains both make them and they have only 100 calories for the whole bun. These are whole wheat and fabulous!!

Daisygurl7

I love Turkey Burgers with fresh garlic, carmelized onions, and either Ketchup and Mustard or mashed avocados. YUM!

Lisa__Michelle

Rachael ray is like the queen of turkey burgers. Find one of her recipes either online or in her cookbook at the store and make those! She has some to die for ones.

Hipchick0805

Although turkey is good for you it is bland. You can buy Mrs dash premixed spices ot add spices and top the burger with Lettuce, tomato, avocado & Hot sauce. MMMmmmmm

mjhartness

If you are interested in making your own, start w/ the leanest ground turkey breast you can find........I add 1/2 ground dry oats (put in blender or food processor) - or you could use them whole......you may need to add more oats depending on how much turkey you have, I just wing it....., dijon mustard - to taste, egg whites, splash of skim milk, fresh parsley, ground pepper and a splash of Franks hot sauce. Sometimes, I'll throw in fennel seed or other spices just to change things up a bit.......

If you use regular ground turkey instead of turkey breast, it has a bit more fat in it and you won't need as much liquid (egg whites & milk).

We really enjoy these. Low in fat, high protein.

mjhartness

thats 1/2 cup dry oats.....

60HzShuffle

Making your own is probably best. My grocery store carries two types of Jennie O brand turkey burgers. The one I like the best is made from white meat and is 190 cal/burger and pretty filling. My favorite thing to do with them through is to eat with brown rice and a concoction I make with black beans, chunky-style salsa, cumin, Tabasco, and diced tomatoes. I was desperate one night when I came up with this one, lol but I make it once a week now and use the leftovers when I need a quick meal during the week. For some reason, spicy stuff goes real well with ground turkey.

I'm not sure you are going to like turkey burgers as a substitute for a hamburger but it's worth trying.

StoneColdLiger

Thanks for the advice everyone. Seems like garlic is a popular thing to add in, which I never thought of but I love garlic so I think I'll try it along with a few other ideas posted on here.

Also I'm already using ground chuck, which I thought was one of the leanest forms of beef? Yet it's still pretty high.

Also as for the bread, I thought about trying the sandwich thins last time, but they were only 10-20 calories lower than the hamburger buns, and about the same fat grams.

JosieMomGramma

Personally if I am going to have a burger I want it to taste like a burger. I was seeing a dietitian at the hospital a few years back & she told me she did not care if I ate extra lean ground beef every day. Besides 4 oz. of lean ground turkey is 160 calories, verses
4 oz. of extra lean ground beef which is 130 calories. It just does not taste the same to have a turkey paddy in my hamburger bun. I do not mind ground turkey in other things though. I make my own paddies from about 2 1/2 lbs to 3 lbs. of extra lean ground beef & add garlic & worshirester sauce, pepper & a beaten egg , also one slice of bread broken up & soaked in 1/4 cup of low fat milk.; mix & form in 4 oz. paddies, put wax paper between each paddy & freeze them. You can just break off a paddy as you need it. You can add any other spices to yours as you like, just be careful not to put in sodium rich spices. Enjoy

doyoumeangreen

Here's my recipe for turkey burgers... stays moist and great with fat and calories. Try serving it grilled and sliced over leafy greens, over one side of a well toasted whole grain bun, or on top of a grilled portabello cap.

1 lb lean ground turkey
1/2 sweet (vidalia) onion, diced
3/4 large red bell pepper, diced
about 3-4 generous shakes of garlic powder
fresh cracked black pepper
3 tbsp worcestershire sauce
a shake or two of cayenne pepper (depending if you like spicy or not)

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mold together 4 large patties. Place them in between sheets of waxed paper, freeze 30 minutes before putting on the grill. They are mouthwatering! I also do this with ground chicken.

Another way I love to serve them is with a nice slice of REAL sharp cheddar cheese, and a tiny squirt of the best bbq sauce you can find.

Good luck!!

bethvandenberg

made turkey burgers on Friday night and my hubby loved them. Mixed the meat with just some garlic/garlic and some season salt (a tinny bit) then made burgers and cooked them in my non stick pan. If grilling spray each side with Pam as they stick. The I topped mine with low fat swiss and the hubby had cheddar. They were so good. I also had guacamole on mine. Super yummy. Hope you enjoy them.

Healthyby30

Ground chuck is not the leanest. Ground Sirloin or Ground Round are the leanest.

Also, if you're going to try them, I would recommend making them yourself because a lot of the pre made ones are dry (in my opinion) and don't taste as good.

If you want I can try and dig up some of my fav turkey burger recipes

DHalaby73

I love them too and found this recipe last night..


Open-Faced Turkey Patty Melt


The traditional patty melt gets a makeover with ground turkey, but substitute ground chicken or ground sirloin, if you prefer. Pair sandwiches with vegetable chips.



Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 sandwich)


1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup vertically sliced Vidalia or other sweet onion
1/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 pound ground turkey breast
1 large egg white
Cooking spray
4 (1-ounce) slices reduced-fat Swiss cheese
4 slices light rye bread
1/4 cup country-style Dijon mustard

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion to pan. Cook 5 minutes or until lightly browned; stir occasionally. Transfer onion to a bowl.

Preheat broiler.

Combine cheese and next 4 ingredients (through egg white). Divide turkey mixture into 4 equal portions, shaping each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty. Return pan to medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add patties to pan; cook 4 minutes or until brown. Turn patties over; cook 1 minute. Top each patty with 1 cheese slice; cook 3 minutes or until cheese melts and patties are done.

Place bread slices in a single layer on a baking sheet; broil 2 minutes or until toasted. Spread 1 tablespoon mustard on each bread slice; top each serving with 1 patty. Divide onion mixture evenly among sandwiches.



CALORIES 348 (23% from fat); FAT 9g (sat 4g,mono 2.2g,poly 2.6g); IRON 2.1mg; CHOLESTEROL 50mg; CALCIUM 325mg; CARBOHYDRATE 22.4g; SODIUM 848mg; PROTEIN 43.4g; FIBER 1.5g

dmmarie21

I make turkey burgers with eggbeaters, ground turkey breast, lipton beefy onion soup mix (kind of high in sodium), breadcrumbs or dry oats, garlic powder, a little fresh lemon juice, worchestire sauce (just a little). The trick (that I found) to keep turkey burgers from drying out, no matter what recipe you use is, when you are frying them (obviously with no oil, but, in a skillet) don't push down with a spatula like most people do, that squeezes all of the juice out. This is my favorite method for burgers, as well as meatloaf..

Sumo813

If you like beef you could still enjoy beef burgers. Get the leanest ground beef and make your own! Or get the premade patties and they are American heart association recommended (in a red bag at Albertson's where I shop) and my husband and I compared the two and the beef ones were a better option than the turkey. As for seasonings, I like simple garlic powder, ssalt, and pepper...just a bit!

This is great advise... the leaner the better. And you can always use some olive oil to keep it from being too dry. I use the Jenny-O turkey burgers that are 97/3 and honestly, I might just like them better than beef. Same thing for seasonings... tiny bit of garlic powder, salt and pepper... and yumminess ensues! I still have yet to try a turkey burger at any restaurants, but that's on my list.

california_peach

I get the ground turkey that is part white meat and part dark meat. It is higher in calories, but there is more flavor and moisture in the dark meat. In addition to the spices that people have alread mentioned I add a little balsmaic vinegar to my turkey burgers. It adds an amazing flavor and it tricks my two sons into thinking it a red meat!

JennyJH

This my absolute favourite turkey burger recipe

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/10767/turkey-burgers-with-beetroot-relish

The beetroot relish really makes a difference - healthy too.

Lots of great recipes on the BBC site - probably because every other TV program on the BBC seems to be a cooking program LOL