Turkey Burger Recipe

This recipe makes a darn good turkey burger, if I do say so myself. It’s great for lightening up burger night a bit and offering an alternative to ground beef burgers. I consider these turkey burgers to be a well-flavored ‘blank canvas’ on which to pile loads of toppings and experiment with different sauces. My husband and I enjoy ours with BBQ sauce and spicy mustard, while our kids like theirs with melted cheese and ketchup. 

Main Ingredients And Pantry Staples

It doesn’t take a whole counter full of groceries to create really good turkey burgers. Here are all that’s needed: 

• Ground turkey: I use lean ground turkey as the protein that creates a tender base of these burgers. Most often I opt for 93/7 ground turkey because this mix of light and dark meat creates burgers that are juicy and tender. Personally, I’m a big fan of the ground turkey from ButcherBox. It’s tender and always good. Ground chicken or could be used, too, though the burgers will taste different. 
• Egg: Since lean meat can easily get overcooked, I like adding an egg to introduce a little fat that helps the burgers hold together and keeps them tender. 
• Bread crumbs: The other binder ingredient I call for is basic bread crumbs. Use either store-bought breadcrumbs or DIY breadcrumbs crumbled from stale toasted bread. By using both egg and breadcrumbs as binder ingredients, the lean ground meat sticks together and doesn’t break apart on the grill when flipped over. 
• Basic seasonings: I call for simple everyday seasonings, including garlic powder, onion onion, fine kosher salt, and black pepper. Sometimes I’ll add a dash of Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce for a bit of umami flavor. 

Find the ingredient list with exact measurements in the recipe card below.

Make The Patties And Get To Grilling

These patties come together in less than 15 minutes for me. Here are my tips for making the best turkey burger recipe every time: 

1. Mix the ingredients: I combine the 2 pounds ground turkey, bread crumbs, egg, and seasonings in a large bowl. I prefer to use my hands to get all of the ingredients well combined. 
2. Shape the patties: Then I lightly oil my hands and divide the ground turkey mixture into 8 even portions. I gently shape each patty into a 4-inch round that is about ½-inch thick. Finally, I lightly press my thumb into the center of each patty to form a little indent, which helps prevent the patties from doming or getting round like meatballs as they cook. 
3. Chill and grill: I place the formed patties on a parchment-lined baking sheet and place it in the freezer to chill for at least 20 minutes while my grill preheats. This helps keep the little amount of saturated fat in the burgers chilled for as long as possible, which makes them tender, perfectly seared, and juicy turkey burgers. The short chilling time also helps the burgers hold together and prevents them from falling apart on the grill. I grill the burgers for 6-7 minutes on one side, then flip them over and grill until they reach an internal temperature of 165℉ and golden brown on the outside, which takes about 5 to 7 minutes more. 
4. Serve: I set out the cooked turkey burger patties with hamburger buns and a variety of burger toppings, or I store the cooked patties for easy meal prep lunches to enjoy all week. 

For serving size and the complete directions and ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card below. All of our recipes include the nutrition analysis, listing calories (kcals), protein, carbohydrates/carb, fiber, sugar, sodium, cholesterol, and more per serving.

Make It Gluten-Free

To make these burgers gluten free, for someone with celiac disease or a gluten intolerance, replace the regular breadcrumbs with gluten-free bread crumbs or gluten-free panko. Also, serve the burger on a gluten-free bun or as a lettuce wrap. 

Make It Low-Carb

For a lower carb meal or if I want to ensure my meal has maximum veggies, I serve these burgers as a burger bowl. I’ll chop up a cooked turkey burger and serve it over top of lettuce. Then I top it with chopped tomatoes, pickles, avocado, and red onions. I finish it with a drizzle of special sauce to make a hearty main entree salad. 

Toppings, Sauces, And Sides

When I serve these burgers, I set them out with buns, lettuce, sliced tomato, sliced cheese, avocado, onions, ketchup, and mustard. Then I let my family and guests assemble their burgers just the way they’d like them. Then, I typically serve these crispy air fryer sweet potato fries or baked beans. Or other family favorite summer side dishes like coleslaw or potato salad. 

Most often I enjoy these burgers with a simple smear of BBQ sauce, spicy mustard, and some quick pickled onions. The tangy toppings are a perfect match for these turkey burgers. But when I want something a bit more adventurous, I’ll add a slice of provolone cheese to the patties for the last 3 minutes of grilling time. Then I mix a little basil pesto with mayonnaise to make a flavorful herbaceous spread that I slather onto the buns. Then I top the burgers with a few fresh spinach leaves and diced sun dried tomatoes. It’s so heavenly and the perfect summer dinner. 

If There Are Any Leftover Patties

Store any leftover cooked burgers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat the burgers in an air fryer (recommended) or in a nonstick skillet over medium heat on the stovetop or in the microwave until warmed through again. Or freeze any extra burgers for up to 3 months.

Recipe Changelog

• May 2026: We previously published a version of turkey burgers that included spinach and goat cheese and used quinoa as a binder. Download the previous version here. 

---

The photos in this post were taken by Megan McKeehan.

For ultimate success, we highly recommend reading the tips in the full blog post above. All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use our photos without prior written permission. If you wish to republish a recipe, please rewrite the recipe in your own unique words. Link back to the source recipe here on The Real Food Dietitians. Thank you!