Pan-Seared Turkey Burgers

Want a healthy burger but don’t want to sacrifice taste?  Try these turkey burgers.  You’ll be glad you did — they’re moist, tender and incredibly flavorful.

The secret? Ricotta cheese. Combine it with ground turkey, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce and bread crumbs and you’ll have a lean and savory burger that stands up to the juiciest beef patty.

The nice thing about this recipe is that it’s adaptable: you can make it as is, or jazz it up with anything you like. Consider adding a few tablespoons of finely chopped fresh herbs, a clove or two of minced garlic, or some sautéed onions, scallions or shallots.

Serve on buns, toast or hard rolls, garnished as you like. If you’re looking for a low carb option, serve without the bread…you won’t miss it a bit.

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Pan-Seared Turkey Burgers
modified from Cooks Illustrated
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

1 ¼ pounds 93% lean ground turkey (I use Shady Brook Farms)
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
½ cup whole milk Ricotta cheese
¼ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (I use Progresso)
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

For Cooking
1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Place ground turkey in a medium size bowl. Add salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, ricotta cheese, breadcrumbs and mustard and mix until well blended (your hands are the best tool). Divide meat mixture into 4 equal portions. Lightly toss one portion from hand to hand to form a ball, then lightly flatten ball with fingertips into a 1-inch-thick patty. Repeat with remaining portions.

3. Heat a large, heavy, ovenproof skillet over medium heat until very hot, 4 to 5 minutes. Add oil to pan and swirl to coat bottom. Add burgers and cook over medium heat without moving burgers until bottom side of each is dark golden brown and crusted, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn burgers over; continue to cook until bottom side is light brown but not yet crusted, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer pan to oven and continue cooking for about 7-8 minutes, or until burgers are completely cooked (an instant-read thermometer inserted from the side of the burger into the center should register 160 degrees). Remove from pan and serve immediately.