Greek Turkey Burgers

I know what you’re thinking. Turkey burgers? Bland and dry. I tend to avoid them myself because of those very reasons, which is why I decided to tackle the problem of reversing those two well-earned stereotypes. And boy did I. These Greek Turkey Burgers were an absolute hit with the half a dozen tasters I had on hand when I tested this recipe. It’s going to the top of my go-to burgers list. You read that right.

Greek Turkey Burgers Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 4 large, pitted green olives (diced)
• 3 large, pitted kalamata olives (diced)
• 8 thin slices of cucumber (minced)
• 2 ounces crumbled feta cheese
• 2 tsp McCormick Grill Mates Smoky Montreal Steak Seasoning (divided)
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 brioche buns
• 2 tsp tzatziki sauce

Loading up the ground meat is the key to this recipe

Some are wondering where the salt is. Between the olives, cheese and rub, the salt content will be just fine.

Combine the ground turkey, diced olives, minced cucumber and crumbled feta cheese in a bowl:

Now time to season it up. I know some are wondering why I didn’t use a Greek seasoning. Simply because they can be overpowering, particularly since I already have the Greek flavors in the form of the olives, feta, and cucumbers. I was looking for a seasoning that accentuates the meat, not dominate it. The McCormick Grill Mates Smoky Montreal Steak seasoning fit the bill perfectly:

Work the seasoning, olives, cheese, and cucumber throughout the ground turkey and form into patties. Now that the meat is seasoned on the inside, gotta season it on the outside to get the perfect flavor crust. So hit the outside with more of the McCormick Smoky Montreal Steak Seasoning:

The 2016 McCormick Grilling Flavor Forecast identified “Brazen Burger Rubs” as an emerging trend. Rubs like this one take burgers to the next level.

With the lower fat content of the ground turkey, we need to make sure they don’t stick to the grill grates. Drizzle with a little oil on each side:

How to Grill Greek Turkey Burgers

Now off to the grill. Set the grill for two zone grilling with charcoal on one side and none on the other. The target temp is medium high on the side with coals. Make sure to give the grill grates a good brushing as even with the oil, turkey burgers can stick. Place the Greek turkey burgers right over the hot coals and close the lid:

Don’t bother trying to get cross hatch grill marks. There’s not enough fat for one part of the patty to char while the rest stays pink. No, these will brown evenly which is actually better than cross hatch:

Brown them on both sides and then slide the Greek Turkey Burgers to the side with no heat and close the lid. Target temp for the burgers is 165 degrees. Don’t bother adding any cheese on top. They don’t need any. There’s feta cheese inside the burgers.

Get out the brioche buns, slather on some tzatziki sauce rather than mayo and your favorite toppings and these turkey burgers are going to blow your mind:

Greek Turkey Burgers Summary

The olives, feta and cucumber really come together perfectly with the ground turkey backdrop. And as an added bonus, all three of those ingredients add moisture to turkey burgers to keep them from drying out. The only thing missing was the seasoning and that role was filled nicely by the McCormick Grill Mates Smoky Montreal Steak seasoning.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below or send me an email.

If you are looking for other burger recipes we can help. 

McCormick Grill Mates sponsored this post

Also, you can follow us on our GrillinFools Facebook page and Instagram.

Print Recipe

Greek Turkey Burgers

Take the bland and dry turkey burger to juicy and delicious in this Greek inspired recipe that we call Greek Turkey Burgers.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Total Time40 minutes mins

Course: Entree, Finger Food, Hamburger, Main Course, Sandwich

Cuisine: American, American Fare, Greek, Hamburger

Keyword: #Grilled, Charcoal, Charcoal Grill, Cheeseburger, Cheeseburgers, Greek Turkey Burger, Grill, Grilled Turkey, Hamburger, Hamburgers, Sandwich, Turkey, Turkey Burger

Servings: 4 People

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 4 green olives large, pitted, diced
• 3 Kalamata olives large, pitted, diced
• 1 cucumber thinly sliced and minced
• 2 oz crumbled feta cheese
• 2 tsp McCormick Grill Mates Smoky Montreal Steak Seasoning divided
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 brioche buns
• 2 tsp tzatziki sauce

Instructions

• Combine the ground turkey, olives (both kinds), cucumber feta cheese and 1 tsp of the McCormick Grill Mates Smoky Montreal Steak Seasoning
• Form the meat into patties and sprinkle the remaining McCormick Grill Mates on the outside of the patties
• Drizzle olive oil on each side of the patties
• Set up the grill for two zone grilling with hot coals on one side and none on the other
• Targeting medium high heat on the side with the coals
• Sear the burgers on each side until they get a brown flavor crust
• Once the greek turkey burgers are browned on each side, more them to the side with no coals and close the lid
• Bake them until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees
• Serve on a brioche bun with tzatziki sauce in place of mayo

Scott Thomas

Scott Thomas, the Original Grillin’ Fool, was sent off to college with a suitcase and a grill where he overcooked, undercooked and burned every piece of meat he could find. After thousands of failures, and quite a few successes, nearly two decades later he started a website to show step by step, picture by picture, foolproof instructions on how to make great things out of doors so that others don’t have to repeat the mistakes he’s made on the grill.

See Full Bio

BBQ Grilling

Related Posts

Chipotle Burgers

Simply Simpler Sliders

Sliders Stuffed with Blue Cheese and Bacon

Cheese Stick Burger Dogs

This article was initially published on: May 26, 2016