Island Time Turkey Burgers
Needing a break from pumpkin-themed food? Still craving summer but loving this cooler weather? Feeling like firing up the grill “one more time” but don’t wanna stand over it? Look no further – these turkey burgers will hit all the right spots & never cross your mind of “shit, Thanksgiving is coming up – I don’t want turkey ANYTHING” – umm yea, ok, hold that thought. This recipe will make you forget it even starts with ground turkey!
These turkey burgers are so delicious – summer OR fall! They can be cooked indoors on a pan & finished off in the oven or grilled – the choice is yours. So, save this recipe for when you’re in a rut of soup or pasta to shake things up!
Let’s Get Real…..
Ground Turkey gets a bad rap. I’m here to change that – duh. I get the feeling that people like to use ground turkey if they think they’re on a diet – I mean, sure? Ground Turkey is a great vessel for anything healthy, its true – but ground turkey is bland in nature. It needs a lot of “oomph” to get it where it needs to be! Unfortunately, Ground Turkey tends to dry out easily but that can be the culprit of overmixing & overcooking – I’m here to show you how to avoid both of those scandals & hopefully change your mind about Ground Turkey.
Of course, adding things like sauces, spices, mixing it with other ground meats is definitely the way to go – but adding bacon AND cheese? Now we’re getting somewhere! I’ve noticed in restaurants that Turkey Burgers don’t get very many exciting upgrades – that sucks. I’m also here to change that & show you a super tasty alternative to dressing a turkey burger like you would a regular ol’ hamburger – boooriiiiiing.
top it offfff
Sweet pineapple, spicy pepper jack cheese, tangy Teriyaki sauce, & fucking bacon. Need I say more? Obviously, the ingredients are NOT seasonal nor hard to find. These burgers take less than 10 minutes to mix up & pat out. AND – they are so damn tasty. Seriously. Let’s get into it.
I created & made these burgers all the time when I lived by myself in my “lil pink apartment” obviously the years before I met Chris -- #IYKYK – they were easy to make in my tiny galley kitchen, I usually always had all 5 ingredients on hand, (at all damn times) and they made great leftovers! Clearly back then I didn’t have a grill, so I had figured out a way to pan-fry these burgers without burning down my apartment, without drying them the hell out, and I didn’t need no man! So, trust when I say the 2 cooking methods are tried & true – love you Chris, thanks for grilling theseeeee!
Ingredients
INGREDIENTS (for burgers)
· 1 LB ground turkey
· ¼ cup Teriyaki sauce (whatever brand you like is fine)
· 1 egg
· ¾ cup Panko breadcrumbs
· 1 TSP garlic powder
INGREDIENTS (to top burgers)
· 4 slices pepper jack cheese
· 4 slices thick-cut bacon
· 4 pineapple slices, canned (save the juice!)
· Extra teriyaki sauce for drizzling
· 4 potato hamburger buns
this is how we do it
INSTRUCTIONS (mixing burgers)
MIX together the ground turkey, teriyaki sauce, egg, panko breadcrumbs & garlic powder. Score (x) your bowl to make your burgers even before patting them out.
PAT OUT your burgers into 4 or 6 patties on a wax-paper lined plate.
FREEZE your patted out burgers for 30 minutes to 1 hour to help firm them up – the breadcrumbs are light & airy and the egg definitely helps bind everything together, but the addition of the teriyaki sauce can make them seem a little too soft.
Instructions
INSTRUCTIONS (pan-frying burgers)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Have a baking sheet lined with tinfoil, sprayed with nonstick spray & set to the side.
In a large non-stick skillet, cook your 4 slices of bacon thoroughly on medium-high heat, place on a paper towel to absorb the extra grease & set aside.
Now your skillet has yummy bacon grease in it – HOLLA. Perfect for pan-frying turkey burgers! Gently place your burgers in the pan – however many will comfortably fit, without overcrowding.
Allow 2-3 minutes per side. DO NOT push these burgers down flat with your spatula, shit. It will dry them out, it will make them crumbly & I will be disappointed. & don’t you EVEN think about flipping them more than once in that damn pan. That will surely make them gross and be dry & you will look like an asshole.
If you wish, you may take a knife & score (x) the cooked side of your burger patties after you have flipped them & carefully pour 1 TSP of pineapple juice over top of each burger – are you pickin’ up what I’m puttin’ down?? This is my secret trick! The burgers will sizzle, they will soak up the extra sweetness from the pineapple juice AND they will be extra juicy.
Transfer your cooked turkey burgers onto a baking sheet lined with tinfoil. Place in the oven for 5 minutes. Flip your burgers to the other side & place 1 pineapple ring per burger, topping with 1 slice of pepper jack cheese. Place back into the oven for 5 minutes.
Your pepper jack cheese should be melty & everything should smell glorious and sweet. Cut your cooked bacon strips in half & push down gently onto your melted cheese.
You can also toast your potato buns directly on the oven rack too! Just a few minutes & they will be warm & golden.
just a note*
Before dressing your turkey burgers with any other toppings you wish, spoon some more teriyaki sauce onto your warm, cheesy, bacon-topped burgers – umm, actually wait, there shouldn’t be any other toppings. The only (& I mean only) other toppings I’ll allow are caramelized onions & mayo. If you add anything else then you’re just plain stupid because these burgers ARE IT. ((sidenote, Chris doesn’t like pineapple on his turkey burgers ((I know, why did I even share this recipe with him?!)) So, I guess you may obviously omit anything that you wish – eyerolllllll.
moar Instructions
INSTRUCTIONS (grilling burgers)
There aren’t any instructions – let ya man do something for once & he can grill these burgers for you, ayyyyyeeeee. No just kidding, but seriously. Grill these burgers any way that you would a normal burger – to an internal temp reading 165 degrees.
Again, I stress not to flip these burgers more than once & don’t press down on them on the grill, either.
All the tricks from above you may certainly do on the grill as well. Adjust your times accordingly for your cheese to melt as to not overcook your burgers.
I would go ahead & cook the bacon on the grill too and toast your buns – less mess to clean up, amirite?
the vault
Hey, they say the way to a man’s heart is thru his stomach & Chris wasn’t exactly impressed by these burgers at first, but he’s come around so clearly I’ve rewarded him with *other* delectable recipes that you’ve also had the pleasure of reading & hopefully making! Hope you’ve enjoyed this recipe I pulled out of “the vault” – for future info, “the vault” is what I call recipes / cooking habits from when I was single – so 7+ years ago. Enjoy! & if you don’t, then same.
Thanks for stopping by!
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If you hated it, then same.
Have a great day & look for my next entry!
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