Teriyaki Turkey Burgers

The mere mention of turkey burgers just turns me off. It gives me flashbacks of horrible low fat diets and cardboard flavoured meals. Yet I saw ground turkey on offer at the butchers the other day and figured the price was worth me playing around with it.  I made these burgers for lunch and surprised everyone including myself with the wonderful flavours and texture. These are super healthy and incredibly delicious; moist, colourful and tender. We've been avoiding white flour and sugar of late so I used maple syrup in the teriyaki sauce and to be honest it was actually better than a sauce made with brown sugar, it was light and zingy and the perfect accompaniment to the burgers.  You could easily make these into meatballs as well.  The apple is the secret to keeping them moist.  All in all a big hit with young and old alike.

Ingredients:

For the patties:

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 bunch scallions, trimmed and finely chopped (white and green parts)
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced
• 1" piece of ginger, peeled and grated
• 1/2 sweet red pepper, finely diced
• 1 apple, peeled and grated
• 1 tsp sriracha sauce
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup oats*
• salt and pepper to taste
• coconut oil for grilling

For the sauce:

• 1/4 cup pineapple juice
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• clove of garlic, crushed
• A few thin slices of ginger

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and grease your hands with a little coconut oil. Form into patties and chill while you make the sauce.

For the sauce, add all ingredients to a small saucepan and bring to a boil.  Lower to a simmer and cook until slightly syrupy. 

To grill the patties, brush a grill pan with a little coconut oil and grill over a medium heat for about ten minutes a side.  If you're grilling on a barbecue be sure to grease the grill well as there is very little fat in this recipe and it will stick otherwise.

Serve with wedges of pineapple and the teriyaki sauce. 

* Can use breadcrumbs here as well, but the oats are better for you and keep you fuller longer!

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