PWM Recipe: Knife & Fork Chili Turkey Burgers
This is a favorite! PWM owner Tammi highly recommended these low-cal burgers and once I finally made them I could see why. Substituting turkey for a normal burger’s ground beef keeps the fat content down while really packing a protein punch, and the finely chopped red onion and red pepper, along with the chili powder and cayenne, adds so much flavor. I’m the webmaster here at Professional Weight Management, also known as the gal with the microphone and camera, and my job couldn’t be better when I get to enjoy “work” like eating these burgers for lunch. Don’t tell my dad, but he swears he doesn’t like turkey burgers and I’m going to make these for him and prove him wrong. Think he’ll admit it? Yeah, I don’t think so either (but I’m sure he’ll secretly love these!)
I tried to take a picture of all of the ingredients before starting but missed a couple in this picture. Make sure you also have lettuce and mayonnaise on hand to plate the burgers as the recipe suggests. And don’t go by the measures you see here unless you’re cutting the recipe in half as I did. If so, break that egg and beat it well with a fork, then save half the scrambled yolk and whites to add to your morning breakfast eggs. Or toss it (I won’t tell).
To make the full 5 servings recipe, you’ll need:
2.5 pounds ground turkey
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 large egg, beaten
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Mayonnaisse, lettuce & tomato for plating
Toss all the ingredients into a bowl except for the oil, tomato, mayonnaise and lettuce. Then wash your hands well and get into that bowl to mix and mush everything together with your fingers. That’s how your grandma did it and she knew what she was doing. Spoons just don’t do the job as well as your fingers do. Before you wash off the mess, form your patties. You’ll make 10 for the full recipe (which uses 2.5 lbs of turkey and feeds 5) but I only used 1 lb of turkey so I made 4 patties.
Heat your oil at medium-high in a good skillet and cook the patties about 7 minutes per side or until an instant read thermometer hits 165 degrees. Serve them on a lettuce bed or roughly shred the lettuce and pile it on top of each patty with a dollop of mayonnaise and either a slice of tomato or chopped up cherry tomatoes. I used cherry tomatoes because I still have them fresh in my patio pots. But I can’t wait to try this with my Cherokee Purple tomatoes if my little green ones ripen before a first frost gets them.
Then enjoy! A fresh salad would go well with these turkey burgers and since pears are in season, tossing a few pear slices on your greens would balance everything out nicely. A little spice from the turkey burgers and a little sweet from the pears. Sounds good to me.
The Recipe: Knife-&-Fork Chili Turkey Burgers
SERVES 5 ( 2 BURGERS EACH )
2 1/2 pounds ground turkey
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar
1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 large egg, beaten
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
lettuce, sliced tomato, and mayonnaise for plating
Directions:
Mix all the ingredients together with your hands, except the oil and plating ingredients, in a bowl. Divide the meat mixture into 10 equal-sized patties.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, cook the burgers, turning once, until lightly browned and cooked through, about 7 minutes per side or until internal temperature is 165 degrees.
Dollop each serving with mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomato.
Nutrition: Calories 500, Sodium 845 mg, Fat 33g, Carbs 2g, Protein 47g