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Greek-Style Lamb Burgers

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If you like Greek food, you’ll love these flavorful lamb burgers topped with tzatziki, feta, tomatoes and red onions.

Greek-style lamb burgers on a wooden surface with burger toppings.

These Greek-style lamb burgers topped with tzatziki, feta, and all the fixins’ are a fun way to change up the standard cookout fare. The secret to making the burgers extra flavorful and juicy is mixing a panade, or bread and milk paste, into the ground meat along with lots of seasoning. You can’t taste the panade, but it guarantees tender and juicy burgers every time, especially if you like your burgers a little more well done or you accidentally overcook them (a little insurance never hurts!). If you can’t find ground lamb, feel free to substitute 80/20 ground beef.

What You’ll Need To Make Greek-Style Lamb Burgers

lamb burger ingredients

Step-by-Step Instructions

Combine the bread pieces and milk in a medium bowl. Mash with a fork until a paste forms. Fork in a bowl with panade.

Add the shallots, garlic, mint, oregano, salt, and pepper.
adding seasonings to the panade

Mix well.

panade and seasoning mixture

Add the lamb.

Ground meat in a bowl with seasonings.

Use your hands to mix until well combined.

lamb burger mixture

Form the meat mixture into 6 oval-shaped patties about ½-inch thick.

lamb burger patties

Oil the grilling grates. Grill the patties, covered, until nicely browned on the first side, 2 to 4 minutes. Flip the burgers and cook for a few minutes more until desired doneness is reached.

lamb burgers on the grill

Place the burgers on a tray and cover with foil while you warm the pita rounds on the grill. Assemble the burgers and pass the toppings and tzatziki sauce alongside.

Two Greek lamb burgers on a wooden surface.

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Greek-Style Lamb Burgers

If you like Greek food, you’ll love these flavorful lamb burgers topped with tzatziki, feta, tomatoes and red onions.

Servings: Makes 6 burgers
Total Time: 20 Minutes

Ingredients

For the Lamb Burgers

  • 1 slice white bread, crust removed and cut into ¼-inch pieces
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • ¼ cup finely chopped shallots, from 1 to 2 shallots
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1½ pounds ground lamb (not lean; 80/20 beef may be substituted)
  • 6 pita bread rounds* (hamburger buns may be substituted)

For The Toppings

  • 1 small head iceberg lettuce, shredded
  • 2 tomatoes, thinly sliced
  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 6 ounces crumbled feta cheese
  • Tzatziki sauce

Instructions

  1. Preheat the grill to high heat.
  2. Combine the bread pieces and milk in a medium bowl. Mash with a fork until a paste forms. Add the shallots, garlic, mint, oregano, salt, and pepper; mix well. Add the lamb, then use your hands to mix until well combined. Form the meat mixture into 6 oval-shaped patties about ½-inch thick.
  3. Oil the grilling grates. Grill the patties, covered, until nicely browned on the first side, 2 to 4 minutes. Flip the burgers and cook for a few minutes more until desired doneness is reached. Place burgers on a tray and cover with foil while you warm pita rounds on the grill. Assemble the burgers and pass toppings and tzatziki sauce alongside.
  4. Note: There are two types of pita bread: pita pockets and pocketless pitas. You can use either for this recipe. For pita pockets, be sure they are at least 6 inches wide. Trim off the top ¼ of each round and stuff the burgers and toppings inside. For pocketless pitas, serve burgers open-faced or, if pitas are large enough, wrap them around burgers.
  5. Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The uncooked burgers can be made and refrigerated up to one day ahead of time or frozen for up to three months. (Freeze the burgers on a baking sheet or plate so their shape sets, then transfer them to a sealable plastic bag for easy storage.) Defrost the burgers overnight in the refrigerator prior to serving and then cook as directed.

Pair with

Nutrition Information

Powered by Edamam

  • Per serving (6 servings)
  • Serving size: 1 burger
  • Calories: 514
  • Fat: 29 g
  • Saturated fat: 12 g
  • Carbohydrates: 40 g
  • Sugar: 2 g
  • Fiber: 5 g
  • Protein: 26 g
  • Sodium: 456 mg
  • Cholesterol: 83 mg

This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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Comments

  • Wow! Wonderful, we used hamburger buns! Best recipe for lamb burgers. Thankyou. Jack N Carol.

    • — Jack N Carol Taylor Whistler BC on October 25, 2023
    • Reply
  • Your recipe but adapted to my dietary restrictions, loved it,
    Used 1/3 cup gluten free stuffing
    1/4 cup milk substitute
    1 egg
    1/2 tsp rosemary
    1/2 tsp oregano
    1/2 tsp black garlic powder
    3/4 tsp black pepper
    2 lbs mutton
    Added crumbs and milk substitute together, stirred to paste
    Used mortar and pestle to grind spices to powder
    Mixed egg, spices, crumb mixture together, formed oval shaped patties approximately
    170 grams each ( my scale is in grams)made six healthy sized patties
    I served on Arugula, with tomatoes, diced feta, and Tziki sauce.

    • — Kim on August 4, 2023
    • Reply
  • Hi. I recently had a lamb burger in a nice restaurant in our town and the presentation was nice. I love lamb burgers and was really anticipating how good it was going to be. The first bite told me that the chef had not seasoned the meat from the beginning. It went from a possible 10 to less than a 5. Do you know why restaurants are not seasoning their proteins? It’s so disappointing. My husband said, “this is so bland.” Just wondering if you have any thoughts about this.
    Thanks.

    • — Pam on August 4, 2023
    • Reply
    • Hi Pam, sorry to hear you had a disappointing burger on your last outing. I suspect that the chef was not using enough salt as that really does enhance the flavor. Hard to say for sure, though, without having tasted it. Hope you find this one better if you try it!

      • — Jenn on August 7, 2023
      • Reply
  • Excellent as always. I am not fond of burgers normally…haven’t eaten more than a handful since my son was born 50 years ago…but I do love lamb so I tried these. They were so good. I recall my mom using breadcrumbs and an egg to bind the ground beef when she made hamburgers but the panade was so much better! Once again, thank you.

    • — cindy on July 15, 2023
    • Reply
  • Added 1 fresh chopped apricot and 1 tsp ground sumac to the tzatziki. Not traditional but tasted great

    • — herbert deutsch on June 21, 2023
    • Reply
  • Yummm! This is so good that we crave it and prepared multiple times! We’ve tried with different meats as well, ground Turkey or Bison. I used your seasonings listed here to do Gyros, similar thing, same presentation. Prepared and grilled in advance to take camping, reheated in foil over the fire. Very Happy campers!

    • — Mara on June 11, 2023
    • Reply
  • Hi Jenn, just wanted to thank you for this incredible recipe. Currently sizzling as we speak. I’ve made it more than a handful of times and it is always a winner. We are gluten and dairy free over here so I substitute almond milk for milk and gluten free bread crumbs for white bread. I also add almost a whole bulb of garlic, because why not? Thank you, thank you, thank you!

    • — Stephanie Strauss on November 29, 2022
    • Reply
  • Made almost as per recipe, was delicious. Topped with white goat cheese instead of feta as we used that up in the Greek salad…

    • — Michael on June 21, 2022
    • Reply
  • The lamb burgers were excellent! I didn’t have any mint, so I used a little bit of peppermint tea then used yellow onion instead of shallots but I just ate it plain with a salad with Ken’s light Caesar dressing. I will make it again!

  • These Lamb Burgers were so delicious. I am Greek so I really know my lamb dishes. We all loved them. I served them on rolls with home made tzatziki, my garden tomatoes and red onions. Your recipe is a keeper! Thanks so much for sharing.

  • ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!!!! Made these lil guys tonight 8-25-21. Omgggg! They were EXCELLENT! Thank you sooo much . 🇬🇷

  • Imade this recipee along with the israeli salad….a big hit….delicious mix of herbs in both recipees….thank you!

  • Great recipe! My husband raves about them every tine we make them. Fantastic!!

    • — Michelle Burch
    • Reply
  • I am definitely not a fan of mint. When I do use it I use it very SPARINGLY, so 2 TBSP of chopped mint seems like an awful lot. How minty do these burgers taste on a scale of 1-5, with 1 being you can hardly tell it is in there and 5 being tastes like toothpaste?

    • — Karen A Bashak
    • Reply
    • Hi Karen, I’d give it a 2 (they really don’t taste minty) but feel free to cut back or omit the mint if you’d like. Hope you enjoy!

    • These were hands down the best lamb burgers I have ever eaten or made. This will be our go-to burger recipe going forward. Delish!

  • Amazing everyone is asking for the recipe

  • Hi Jenn,
    Can I use ground beef instead of lamb? My husband doesn’t like lamb. If I use bread crumbs, how much should I use? Thank you for sharing this recipe…
    Could you please send me the link to your new book? I would like to pre-order it. I couldn’t wait and look forward to having it. I have the first one.
    Thank you so much
    Rose G.

    • Hi Rose, Yes, you can use beef here and if you want to use bread crumbs, I’d recommend 1/4 – 1/3 cup. And thanks so much for inquiring about the cookbook! See where to purchase it here. Hope you enjoy the burgers if you make them!

  • Ingredients:
    1-1/2 pounds ground lamb means 1.5 pounds?

    • Correct – hope you enjoy!

  • Jenn,

    This is one of our favorite recipes. We love, love, love these lamb burgers.
    I often serve it over mixed greens and, of course, with your tzatziki sauce. My husband brags about my cooking frequently, but it is really your recipes.

    Thanks so much!

    • Hi Kate – I totally agree, we “home chefs in training” are indebted to our mentors for providing such wonderful recipes that they have perfected. Thank you Jenn Segal and Ina Garten for being my primary sources for flawless dishes. You DO make me look good!

      • — Heather Lampman on May 21, 2023
      • Reply
  • Hi
    Could I use a grill pan instead of a barbecue?

    • Sure – hope you enjoy!

  • I made these burgers several times in the past few months – they are so good! My daughter, who doesn’t really like regular burgers, LOVES these. I followed the recipe exactly and they were perfect every time. Thanks Jenn!!

    • These lamb patties are delicious. I made them pretty much to the recipe, but had no Greek yoghurt or tzatziki, so made up as burgers with what I had. Huge hit with the 10yo.

      • — Toni on July 31, 2022
      • Reply
  • I made a similar recipe. Very tasty and worth repeating. definitely use a good meat thermometer to make sure you cook them to 180F, but not overdone. I made it smash burger style so it cooks faster, more browning.

    • 180F, wouldn’t that basically create
      charcol?

  • Could I use dill instead of mint? I am using dill in the tzakziki.

    • — Teresa Padilla
    • Reply
    • Sure – enjoy! 🙂

  • Can you substitute bread crumbs instead of white bread? If so how much bread crumbs?

    • Sure, Sarah – I’d guesstimate you’d need about 1/4 – 1/3 cup. Hope you enjoy!

  • So, so good! The most moist lamb burger ever!

    • — Chris the Cook
    • Reply
  • Hi, your recipes are so great. When you say slice of bread in this recipe is it toast or I use any type of bread? Thank you

    • Glad you like the recipes! For this, you’ll need just regular bread (not toasted). Enjoy!

      • Thank you for your quick response

  • I didn’t fire up the grill, but these were very delicious cooked on stovetop too! The flavors were so vibrant and well balanced, and the panade made for a very tender and delicious burger! Thank you.

  • Hi, Your recipe are so good! I love your book. When you say 1 slice of white bread is that toast or French bread? Thank you

    • Kathy, any bread will really work here, (but don’t toast it first). Hope that helps!

  • Made these tonight. So, so yummy!!! I followed the recipe ingredients exactly, but since I’m lazy and want to minimize prep time, I put the cubed bread, coarsly chopped garlic and onions, and home grown mint (and also home grown Italian parsley), into a Bullet chopper and gave it a swirl a few times. The water from the onions made a moist paste and then I added the two tablespoons of milk to the mixture. Followed the rest of the directions adding the oregano, etc. I cooked it in a cast iron frying pan (soaking up the excess fat with paper towels).
    Absolute heaven in the mouth!!! Even my picky eater husband loved it! Thank you Jenn Segal…I am a fan!!!

    • — Renee Guzzardo
    • Reply
  • Any reason I couldn’t make meatballs from this same recipe?

    • Nope – that will work, Shirley. 🙂

  • Oh my, these were delicious! Juicy from the panade and tasty from the mint. I used dried mint from last summer’s garden instead of fresh, and scallions instead of shallots. The panade must have been the secret. Burgers were well done, but soft and juicy, yet they held together well. yum yum yum.

  • I love these Greek lamb burgers! They are delicious and always a hit at my house.
    I have made them over and over and honestly have not changed anything when following the recipe (except for substituting for lack of ingredients). Once in awhile I will combine ground beef (95% lean) with the lamb if I don’t have enough ground lamb on hand, and they are almost as good as the original ones. I also substitute green onions for the shallots because shallots are hard to find in my area. So delicious! Thanks for a great recipe!

  • Another fabulous recipe! Thank you for sharing your gift with the rest of the world.

  • Hi Jenn, My husband does care for mint, can I substitute Italian parsley? Also, would a white dinner roll sub for the slice of bread? Love your recipes. Eagerly awaiting for the arrival of your cookbook.

    • Yes and yes – hope you enjoy! (And thanks so much for your support with the cookbook!)

  • I used panko instead of the bread & milk. I also mixed the feta cheese into the meat mixture. Delicious!

  • I made this the other night for some friends, I didn’t have lamb but ground turkey!

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