Well, this weekend was another 4th of July cookout. I had all the intentions and plans to have some nice juicy smoked baby back ribs........problem was I think everybody else in town had the same idea. So I fell back to the old reliable....hamburgers and hot dogs. Now this is a REAL let down for someone who was REALLY in the mood to do some REAL BBQing, but I was intent on making the best of it.
Since my beautiful daughter Jill has been working real hard to eat "the right things" and avoid red meat (blasphemy)....I decided to make not only some regular burgers but also some Turkey burgers. There are some things I have learned when working with turkey on the grill. First, Turkey is very low in fat...and for that reason it tends to dry out when subjected to open flame cooking. Second, Turkey tends to not be as "flavorful" as a good side of beef....and for THAT reason you need to add your own seasonings. So here is a good "basic" Turkey burger....
- 3lbs. Ground Turkey (try to get an 85/15 ratio or better)
- 1/4 Cup Seasoned bread crumbs, ground
- 1/4 Cup Onion, finely Diced
- 2 Egg whites
- 1/4 Cup Parsley, fresh and chopped
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 1tsp. salt (preferably kosher)
- 1/4 tsp Black Pepper, ground
- 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 tsp Soy sauce
Now just mix all these ingredients together and form into Patty's. The meat will appear more moist then ground beef. If it has trouble maintaining shape, simply add more bread crumbs.
It is very important that you preheat your grill on high ahead of time. Place the formed Patty's on a the cooking grate which has been oiled (cooking oil on a rag or in a spay bottle works great). Allow to cook for several minutes then flip. DO NOT PRESS DOWN ON THE PATTY'S WITH YOUR SPATULA. I know you have probably seen it done a million times on T.V. but this is a big NO NO. All that accomplishes is to rid your burger of its flavorful juices and leave you with a dry piece of cardboard. If you like your burger pink, this is the time to take it off. If not, move it to the cool side of the grill surface and close the lid. This will allow the interior to continue cooking while minimizing overcooking of the exterior. If you want a "BBQ" burger this is also the time to brush on your favorite BBQ sauce. This will allow the sugars in the sauce to carmalize and give your burger a nice glaze. Just be careful, if you allow the burger back over the flame, that carmalization quickly becomes "gristlization"
