Salsa Turkey Burger Recipe

July 17, 2012·

You guys, if you follow me on Instagram you saw this pic of my salsa turkey burger last week. Well, I told you a recipe was coming, and well, I don’t lie, yo.

This is one of my Top 5 favorite recipes. For reals.

Have you ever been to Red Robin? Have you ever had the Five-Alarm Burger or Burnin’ Love Burger? Well, I came up with this, relatively healthy version, of those burgers one night a couple years ago when I was craving the Red Robin version. And dare if I might say, I think I like my version better. 🙂

Now, I am notorious for not measuring, but I will do my best to give you approximations of ingredients. But the rest is all up to you. 🙂

Molly’s Homemade Salsa & Salsa Turkey Burger Recipe(s)

For Molly’s Homemade Salsa (just combine all these ingredients in a blender and boom! you’re done):

1, 14 oz can diced tomatoes
1, 14 oz can fire roasted tomatoes (I used Great Value brand at Wal-Mart)
1 medium red onion, quartered
1 clove garlic, minced
1-2 jalapeno(s), seeded or not (depends on if you want it spicy – I like it really spicy so I use two fresh jalapenos)
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
small handful of fresh cilantro, washed
1/2 tablespoon orange juice
juice of 1 fresh lime -or- 1 teaspoon of lime juice

Ingredients for the Patties (Yields 4-6 burgers (depending on how big you make the patties)):

1lb of lean ground turkey meat (you can also use ground chicken or ground beef)
2-4 tablespoons of your favorite salsa (I use my homemade salsa – recipe provided above, but you can use any salsa)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 clove minced garlic (or use 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Ingredients for the “Decoration” of the Burgers

100% whole wheat hamburger buns (I like the Nature’s Own kind)
Chipotle Mayo
Jalapenos (you can use fresh or pickled… for these burgers I use pickled)
Pepperjack cheese
Lettuce
Tomato

MAKING THE PATTIES:

Okay, after you’ve made your salsa (or picked out which store-bought salsa you want to use), you’re going to take the ground turkey and place it in a bowl. This part can get kinda gross, and it’s good to have a helper because you want to avoid touching ANYTHING after you’ve touched the raw meat.

Combine the turkey, salsa, and ALL seasonings for the patties in a large bowl and mix it with your hands. I actually used one hand to mix it all, that way I know I have one clean hand that I can pick up the ingredients with.

Once you’ve got it good and mixed, now you make the patties. You can make the patties small or large depending on how big you want them, BUT, make sure they are FLAT. They will puff up in the middle when you broil them because they’re filled with juices… so make them as flat as you can before you put them in the oven.

BROILING THE PATTIES:

On a greased baking sheet, place the patties down with a little bit of salt and pepper on each side.

Once the patties are on the baking sheet, place them in the oven with the oven on BROIL. Now, these cook FAST.

Flip the patties every 4 minutes and pat them down with a spatula or whatever to flatten them out as they broil.

Do this until the center of each patty reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

FOR THE PERFECT TOASTED BUNS:

On the stove, place your buns with a little bit of Chipotle mayo spread on each side, face DOWN onto a large pan or skillet. Have the heat on low-medium. You can have these toasting while your patties are broiling.

MAKING THE BURGERS:

Okay, so once the burgers are cooked all the way through, you’re almost ready to eat! Put your patties on a plate and get your desired ingredients out.