Turkey Burgers














I want to start by saying I'm not traditionally a huge turkey burger fan. For me it's difficult to replace the greatness that is a 70/30 greasy hamburger with fat oozing from every pore of the meat. Hamburgers have so much fat so the flavor's do not need to be as developed as turkey burgers. Additionally, because of the lower fat content it's very easy for a turkey burger to dry out. For that reason, you have to develop a much deeper base of flavor. Recently, I had the best turkey burger I've ever eaten at ML Rose (a local bar here in Nashville). What set this turkey burger apart from any other I'd ever had was they mix the meat with ground mushrooms. Of course I don't know exactly how they do theirs but I had a very good idea, and mine turned out to be fantastic! Not only the most flavorful turkey burger I've ever made, but I thought the best burger I've ever made. Enjoy!


Ingredients:

Turkey Burger:

  • 1 LB 93/7 Ground Turkey Meat
  • 1/2 LB Whole White Mushrooms (cleaned and de-stemmed)
  • 1 TBSP salt
  • 1 TBSP Pepper
  • 1/4 Cup Chopped White Onion
  • ​1 TBSP Fresh Basil
  • 1 Clove Garlic
  • 1 TBSP Olive Oil
  • 1 TSP Lite Soy Sauce
  • Hamburger Buns

Candied Bacon:

  • 6 Slices Bacon
  • 1 TBSP Honey
  • 1 TBSP Lite Soy Sauce
  • 1 TBSP Brown Sugar
  • 1/2 TSP Sriracha
  • 1/2 TSP Black Pepper


Instructions

First the candied bacon: Combine all ingredients in a plastic bag and mix around, let sit for at least 30 minutes. When you are ready turn on your oven/grill (of course I used my smoker) to 325 degrees. Cook the bacon for about 6 minutes on each side and set aside for topping. I'm telling you if you've never candied bacon before, do yourself a flavor... It changes everything, and takes no time.















Once done with the bacon, toss the whole white mushrooms with a dash of olive oil/S&P and place in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes just to slightly cook them. After 10 minutes remove them from the oven and let cool. Once cool place in a food processor (or blender) with the garlic, TBSP olive oil, onion, and basil. Pulse until it has this consistency (just like a paste):

















Combine the mushroom mixture with the ground turkey meat and then form into patties (little tip for burgers if you poke a small indent in the patty before you cook it helps to not puff up during the cooking process):

















I let these sit for at least 30 minutes for the flavors to mold together. From there just get your grill fired up to about 400. One thing I've started doing with my burgers on the grill is placing a TBSP of veggie oil in a cast iron and putting the cast iron on the grill (indirect from the heat) and bringing it up to temp with the grill. I like to cook the burgers in a cast iron because it gives you that old school flat top burger flavor, but also infuses the smoke from the grill into the meat. It's the best of both worlds. These cook for about 6 minutes a side (start cooking with the indented side down)













These will become a regular in the Dant household.


-Dip


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