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Quicker Turkey Burgers

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on August 22, 2007

Time

35 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Quicker Turkey Burgers

Ingredients

1 ¼ pounds 93 percent lean ground turkey ½ teaspoon table salt ½ teaspoon ground black pepper 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce ½ cup ricotta cheese 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or canola oil

Before You Begin

This recipe will enrich store-bought ground lean turkey so that it makes excellent burgers. Ricotta cheese can burn easily, so keep a close watch on the burgers as they cook.

Instructions

  1. Transfer ground meat to medium bowl. Stir in salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, ricotta cheese, and mustard until blended, and divide meat into 4 portions. Lightly toss one portion from hand to hand to form a ball, then lightly flatten ball with fingertips into 1-inch-thick patty. Repeat with remaining portions.
  2. TO COOK INDOORS: Heat a large, heavy skillet (preferably cast-iron or stainless steel with an aluminum core) over medium heat until very hot, 4 to 5 minutes. Swirl oil in pan to coat bottom, then add burgers. Cook over medium heat without moving burgers until bottom side of each is dark brown and crusted, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn burgers over; continue to cook until bottom side is light brown but not yet crusted, 3 to 4 minutes longer. Reduce heat to low, position cover slightly ajar on pan to allow steam to escape, and continue to cook 8 to 10 minutes longer, flipping burgers if necessary to promote deep browning, until center is completely cooked, or an instant-read thermometer inserted from the side of the burger into the center registers 160 degrees. Remove from pan and serve immediately.TO GRILL: Alternatively, grill burgers over medium-low fire (you can hold your hand about 5 inches above grill surface for 5 seconds) until dark spotty brown on bottom side, 7 to 9 minutes. Turn burgers over; continue grilling 7 to 9 minutes longer or until bottom side is dark spotty brown and center is completely cooked or instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees. Remove from grill and serve immediately.
Quicker Turkey Burgers

Quicker Turkey Burgers

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

35 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 ¼ pounds 93 percent lean ground turkey
½ teaspoon table salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
½ cup ricotta cheese
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or canola oil

Ingredients

1 ¼ pounds 93 percent lean ground turkey
½ teaspoon table salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
½ cup ricotta cheese
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or canola oil

Ingredients

1 ¼ pounds 93 percent lean ground turkey
½ teaspoon table salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
½ cup ricotta cheese
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or canola oil

Why This Recipe Works

For a healthful turkey burger recipe that also tastes good, we discovered that enriching store-bought ground turkey with a little ricotta cheese kept the burgers moist while they cooked without adding a lot of extra fat.

Before You Begin

This recipe will enrich store-bought ground lean turkey so that it makes excellent burgers. Ricotta cheese can burn easily, so keep a close watch on the burgers as they cook.

Instructions

  1. Transfer ground meat to medium bowl. Stir in salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, ricotta cheese, and mustard until blended, and divide meat into 4 portions. Lightly toss one portion from hand to hand to form a ball, then lightly flatten ball with fingertips into 1-inch-thick patty. Repeat with remaining portions.
  2. TO COOK INDOORS: Heat a large, heavy skillet (preferably cast-iron or stainless steel with an aluminum core) over medium heat until very hot, 4 to 5 minutes. Swirl oil in pan to coat bottom, then add burgers. Cook over medium heat without moving burgers until bottom side of each is dark brown and crusted, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn burgers over; continue to cook until bottom side is light brown but not yet crusted, 3 to 4 minutes longer. Reduce heat to low, position cover slightly ajar on pan to allow steam to escape, and continue to cook 8 to 10 minutes longer, flipping burgers if necessary to promote deep browning, until center is completely cooked, or an instant-read thermometer inserted from the side of the burger into the center registers 160 degrees. Remove from pan and serve immediately.TO GRILL: Alternatively, grill burgers over medium-low fire (you can hold your hand about 5 inches above grill surface for 5 seconds) until dark spotty brown on bottom side, 7 to 9 minutes. Turn burgers over; continue grilling 7 to 9 minutes longer or until bottom side is dark spotty brown and center is completely cooked or instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees. Remove from grill and serve immediately.

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