Zucchini and Feta Turkey Burgers
Turkey zucchini burgers are the secret to healthy burgers that are juicy and tasty. Adding feta cheese to the burgers adds another pop of flavor.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 4-6 burgers 1x
- Category: Entree
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 – 1 1/2 cups grated zucchini
- 1 – 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey
- 1 small-medium onion, finely minced
- 4 oz feta cheese, crumbled into bite sized pieces
- salt, ground black pepper
- 4–6 Kaiser rolls or hamburger buns
Toppings:
- 4–6 slices Provolone cheese (or any other cheese that you like)
- 1 cup guacamole
- 2 tomatoes, sliced
- 2 medium cucumbers, sliced
Instructions
- Grate the zucchini on the large holes of a box grater. Season it with about 1/8 of a teaspoon of salt and then place it in a colander or a fine mesh sieve to drain for 15 minutes up to 30 minutes. I usually do this while I prep the rest of the ingredients. Squeeze out as much moisture as you can out of the zucchini. Zucchini is very watery, so it helps to do this step, so that the burgers don’t end up mushy and watery.
- Place the ground turkey, grated zucchini, minced onion, and 3/4 teaspoon of salt for 1 lb ground meat or 1 1/4 teaspoons of salt for 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey and 1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper in a large mixing bowl. Mix to combine.
- Add the crumbled feta cheese and gently mix it into the burger mixture. If you add the feta cheese right away, it has a tendency to completely fall apart. Adding it in last will help the feta crumbles to stay in nice and big chunks, so that you have wonderful pockets of melted feta in throughout the burger.
- Shape the burgers mixture into 4-6 burgers, depending on how much meat you are using and how big the hamburger buns you are using. I was using Kaiser rolls, which are on the bigger size, so I got 5 burgers from 1.3 lbs of meat.
- When you shape the burgers, use the buns as a guide to how big to shape the burgers. The raw burgers should be slightly bigger than the bun, since the meat will contract as it cooks and become smaller. Also, make a slight indentation in the center of the raw burger, since it will also puff up a bit in the center as the burgers cook.
- Preheat the grill to high heat for at least 15 minutes, then clean the grates. Dip a wad of paper towels in oil, and go over the grill grates with the oil 3-5 times, which helps to make them somewhat nonstick and cleans them too.
- Place the burgers on the preheated grill and cook them for 4-6 minutes per side.
- During the last 2 minutes, place the slices of Provolone cheese (or any other cheese that you like) on top of the burgers to melt. You can also grill the hamburger buns if you like.
- Add toppings of your choice to the burgers and serve immediately. I used guacamole, tomatoes and cucumbers.
Notes
You can also make these burgers on the stovetop and they make wonderful, juicy patties. Heat some oil in a skillet on medium high heat and then cook the burgers on the skillet until golden on both sides, 3-4 minutes per side. You don’t even have to serve them as burgers but as patties or even meatballs.