The Best Easy Homemade Turkey Burgers

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If you’re looking for a quick and healthy meal, these homemade turkey burgers are the perfect choice. Made from scratch, these juicy turkey burgers are a great option for a weeknight dinner.

If you don’t eat red meat anymore like me (who usually opts for vegetarian meals these days) you’ll love the recipes I’ve created for juicy ground turkey burgers, chili, turkey meatloaf, and turkey meatballs.

I usually make a large batch of these turkey patties, because they last in the fridge for a few days, making them great for meal prep. You can also freeze them which makes them perfect to hang on to during the summer. Just thaw the cooked patties and toss them on the grill to heat through.

My trick keeping these turkey burgers juicy and prevent them from drying out is using milk soaked bread in the mixture and also making sure not to over cook them. And don’t forget to indent the centers for even cooking – this prevents the center from puffing up while cooking.

Also, when cooking burgers, don’t flatten them with your spatula or poke them open, this lets out all of the moisture and won’t result in juicy burgers!

Turkey burgers are cooked when they reach an internal temperature of 165°F (74°C). Use a meat thermometer for accuracy.

Pair these perfect turkey burgers with a cabbage crunch salad, grilled elote, or curry fries.

Ingredients + Substitutions

See the recipe card for exact amounts.

• ground turkey: I buy this in bulk at Costco, it’s very easy to find for me. Lean and flavorful, ground turkey is the star of this recipe. It brings a light and juicy texture to the burgers.
• breadcrumbs: you can use regular bread crumbs, panko, or homemade bread crumbs for this recipe. Adds texture and helps bind the patties
• milk: this softens the bread crumbs and helps bind the burgers and keep the texture of the burgers soft. There is no need to use an egg for binding when you use milk soaked breadcrumbs.
• Cajun seasoning: I love this seasoning mix for burgers, use your favorite mix.
• salt and pepper: season to taste

Substitutions

• ground turkey: you can make the same recipe with ground beef, ground chicken, or beyond beef.
• breadcrumbs: if you need to make this gluten free try using gluten-free oats instead.
• milk: use whatever milk you prefer, or use cream.
• Cajun seasoning: you can use whatever seasoning you want. Try my Greek seasoning, dairy-free ranch seasoning, Italian seasoning, everyday seasoning, or even just some garlic powder onion powder.

Instructions

1. Mix the bread crumbs with salt and pepper and spices in a bowl with the milk.  Let that sit a few minutes, until the milk soak into the crumbs and they soften.
2. Add the turkey and mix. 
3. Use a wet spatula to divide the mixture into four. 
4. Have a small bowl of water nearby to generously wet your hands before forming the burgers.
5. Fry the patties on either a non-stick pan or a cast iron skillet for about 5 to 7 minutes on each side.  Make sure they are fully cooked using a meat thermometer.

I like these turkey burgers with spinach, mayo, and sriracha.  Cheese and mustard are good too!  Try my jalapeño ranch sauce for a spicy kick.

Add a side salad and some sweet potato wedges for a delicious dinner.

Tips for making juicy turkey burgers

What to serve with turkey burgers

I love burgers with fries and you can’t go wrong with air fryer sweet potato wedges, garlic parmesan fries, pierogi poutine, or Greek fries.

If you like these burgers, try these Greek turkey burgers next.

Storage

These burger patties keep well in the fridge for a few days. I just microwave them to reheat them but I’m sure you could reheat them in an air fryer also.

The cooked burger patties also freeze well. Wrap the burgers carefully before freezing to prevent freezer burn. Thaw in the fridge overnight.