During our many family vacations to Kauai, we noticed a small burger shack not too far from our North Shore rental condo while driving to one of our favorite beaches. Painted bright yellow on the outside with a wrap-around porch, the line stretched all the way from the order window, down the steps, and onto the grass below.
A couple of days later, on our way back from hiking the Na Pali Coast, we spotted only a few people in line, so Mom quickly whipped the car into the parking lot nearby. We hurried to join the small queue before the lunch rush arrived, and after placing our order, we stood in the waiting area next to the kitchen’s grill.
Those walls were completely covered with license plates, bumper stickers, and signed photos of celebrities who had previously visited (like Guy Fieri from the Food Network!). A little while later, the waitress at the pick-up counter shouted our name and handed over a big paper bag.
We found seats outside and immediately passed around the food and napkins. As we bit into those hot juicy burgers, everyone’s face broke out in a smile. Although on the greasy side, they totally hit the spot after our long, steep, and sweaty hike that morning, and my parents called them some of the best burgers they’ve ever had!
When I started talking with my neighbors about their own Kauai vacation last week, I remembered that little burger shack from our trips… So to satisfy my craving in a healthier way, I made a batch of these Ultimate Healthy Turkey Burgers!
They’re just as moist and juicy as the traditional beef ones from the burger shack, even with no eggs or breadcrumbs. Even better? You just need 5 ingredients — and they have 26g+ of protein!
When I cooked them for my family a couple years ago, my dad somewhat skeptically took his first bite… He’s the king of grilling and pretty particular about his beef burgers, but he could NOT believe how juicy these turkey burgers were — and then proceeded to polish his off in record time, calling these the best turkey burgers he’s ever had!
I’d say that’s the best kind of compliment! 😉
INGREDIENTS TO MAKE THE BEST HEALTHY TURKEY BURGERS
So let’s go over what you’ll need to make these ultimate healthy turkey burgers!
You just need 5 ingredients (no eggs and no breadcrumbs!): 99% lean ground turkey, frozen spinach, dried basil, freshly ground black pepper, and coarse sea salt (like this — more on that in a minute!).
I love the 99% lean ground turkey because I want my burgers to have as much protein as possible. And with my two secret tricks, you don’t actually need ground turkey with more fat to have an extremely juicy burger! Trust me… If my dad, the king of extra juicy high-fat traditional beef hamburgers, loved these, then you know the 99% lean ground turkey works really well! 😉
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST HEALTHY TURKEY BURGERS
Like I previously mentioned, I have a few tips and tricks about how to make the best healthy turkey burgers. They make sure your burgers turn out incredibly juicy and delicious!
The first secret trick is… Adding spinach to the burgers! I prefer using frozen and thawed spinach instead of chopping and cooking my own fresh spinach because it’s so much faster (and cheaper!).
They key is to press out as much liquid as possible once you’ve thawed the spinach. If you don’t, the spinach adds too much water to the burger patties, and they fall apart while cooking. But by pressing out as much liquid as you can ahead of time, the spinach adds the perfect amount of moisture to the patties to keep them nice and juicy.
I keep the seasonings really simple: just basil and black pepper on the inside. You can absolutely add your favorite seasonings instead! Cajun seasoning, a little rosemary, chipotle pepper (if you love spicy food like my dad!)… The sky is the limit! These healthy turkey burgers are like a blank canvas and so easy to customize.
Once you’ve mixed those four ingredients together and shaped your healthy turkey patties, it’s time for my second secret trick… Liberally sprinkle the burger patties with coarse sea salt (like this) before cooking! The coarse sea salt adds a big pop of flavor and also creates a crust, which seals moisture into the burgers to keep them exceptionally juicy. Such a great trick, right??
Because I don’t own a grill (hopefully someday, if Dad will teach me how to work it!), I cook my burgers on the stove inside. I think you could grill them if you prefer, though! Right before cooking, I sprinkle the top side with salt, put the patties top-side-down in the pan to cook that salted side first, and immediately salt the second side.
I came up with this recipe a few years ago (will you forgive me for not sharing it sooner? please??), and it immediately became my favorite meal prepping recipe! I cooked my healthy turkey burgers on Sunday, then reheated them throughout the week for dinner.
And on that note… I have a third secret trick for reheating these burgers! Put them on a microwave-safe plate. Completely soak a paper towel sheet with water, gently wring it out, and lay it on top of your healthy turkey burger, tucking it in around the sides of the burger. Microwave on high for 1 minute. The wet paper towel prevents the healthy turkey burger from drying out, so it still tastes just as juicy as when you first cooked it!
It may be a little last-minute but… These are totally perfect for a healthy 4th of July BBQ meal, too! 😉 And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your ultimate healthy turkey burgers!
The Ultimate Healthy Turkey Burgers
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup (83g) frozen spinach, thawed
- 1 pound (16oz) 99% lean ground turkey
- ¾ tsp dried basil
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- coarse sea salt
Instructions
- Firmly squeeze as much moisture as possible from the thawed spinach. Add the spinach, turkey, basil, and pepper to a large bowl. Mix until thoroughly combined. Shape the mixture in four patties about 3 ½” wide and ½” to ¾” tall.
- Lightly coat a large pan with nonstick cooking spray, and briefly preheat over medium-low heat. Just before adding the patties to the pan, liberally sprinkle the tops with sea salt. Place them salt side down in the pan. Liberally sprinkle the “new” top unsalted side with sea salt.
- Cook the patties for 2-3 minutes per side, flipping just once, or until fully cooked through. (Just don’t overcook!)
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy BBQ Bacon Chicken Burgers
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Cornbread
♡ Healthy Sun Dried Tomato Basil Cheeseburgers
♡ Healthy Jalapeño Cornbread Mini Muffins
♡ Spicy Baked “Fried” Chicken
♡ Healthy BLTs with White Garlic Sauce
So glad you’re sharing the wonderful recipe now – better late than never!☺️
You’re so sweet! Thanks Liz!! 🙂
Hi Amy! This recipe sounds amazing can’t wait to try it out for suoerbowl Sunday. I would like to know can I bake the patties? If so for how long and at what temperature?
I’m so honored that you’d consider making these for Super Bowl Sunday Isabel! I’ve actually never tried baking them before, so I don’t know what temperature or baking time would work best. However, I’m sure it can be done! If I were to try, I’d start with a 350°F oven. The baking time will vary with how thick your burgers are, but they’ll be done when they’re no longer pink on the inside and their internal temperature reaches 165°F. I’d love to hear what you think of these burgers if you try them!
Thank you for this clever recipe. I’ve been looking for a burger/meatballs that doesn’t have breadcrumbs in it. This will do what I want – thanks again!
It’s my pleasure, Jan! I can’t wait to hear what you think of this recipe! 🙂
Um, DROOL! This looks and sounds amazing!! I think I used to sneak spinach into turkey burgers way back in the day, but I’d totally forgotten about it! The salted crust sounds amazing! 🙂
Thanks so much, lovely!! Would these actually work on your sweet pea diet, with how few ingredients are in them?? 😉
Hahaha, they absolutely would!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
YAY!!! That makes me so happy!! 🙂
Amy these Turkey burgers were amazing! I took your advice left them simple with nothing on them. Put them on whole wheat thin buns mmmm!
I’m so glad you loved these turkey burgers, Terry!! That means so much to me. Thank you for taking the time to let me know! 🙂
Amy!! The link to the “Coarse Salt” leads to Wilton Sugar Sparkling on Amazon!! Perhaps the wrong link? Hehe. Cannot wait to try this – I eat poultry and loveee turkey but do find it get dried quickly. Good tips about the salt and spinach!!
That’s SO weird, Connie!! I checked all of the salt links on my phone and computer, and they all lead to the coarse sea salt product I recommended. Are you in another country outside of the US, by any chance? If so, then my best guess is that Amazon is trying to suggest the best product for your country… And it took the “coarse” from sea salt and went with “coarse” sparkling sugar! ? I can’t wait to hear what you think of these turkey burgers!!
Ahaha. What the heck!! I just tried again and – 365 Coarse Salt. Soooo strange!! All good now!! And yes, I am from Canada 🙂
YAY!! Thanks for double checking Connie — I’m so glad the link is showing up properly for you now!! 🙂
These are so so good! Even my son that hates vegetables loved them! So excited I found this recipe! Thank you!!
I’m so glad you loved these turkey burgers Teresa! That means the world to me that your son enjoyed them too, especially since he isn’t a fan of vegetables. Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know!! 🙂
Oh my gosh is all I have to say! These turkey burgers were filling and Delicious!!! I can’t wait to make them again!
I did add a little lemon juice to finish them off 😉
I’m so glad you loved these turkey burgers Katie! That means the world to me that you already think that you’ll make them again. Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know!! 🙂
Thank you so much for posting this. I was wondering if I could make up a bunch of patties in advance and freeze them between layers of wax paper?
I have been on Nutrisystem and as I’m nearing my goal weight, I wanted to find a substitute for their Classic Hamburgers, which I love. I found that all of the pre-made patties sold at my grocery store were too big for a lunch burger, so I decided to just buy the ground turkey and make my own. Your recipe was the only one I could find that didn’t add a whole lot of extra ingredients, yet just enough to make the burger juicy! I really appreciate it so much!
By the way, have you ever tried this with a lettuce wrap around the burger instead of bread/bun? That would allow me to have a different carb with my lunch, such as a serving of fruit.
I’m so glad you enjoyed these turkey burgers, Marilyn! I haven’t tried freezing the raw or fully cooked patties, so I’m afraid I don’t know the best answer to that and don’t want to lead you astray. However, you could easily use a lettuce wrap in place of the bun, if you’d prefer. I love eating burgers like that too! 🙂
These sound wonderful but I’m wondering how much salt is required to achieve the sealing in moisture result? I’m trying to watch our sodium intake. Would there be anything else I could do or use to achieve the same results with 99% lean turkey?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Sandra! I love salty burgers, so I’m pretty liberal with the sea salt. I haven’t tried using anything besides the sea salt, so I’m not personally sure if there’s a good substitute. However, since the spinach does contribute a lot of moisture, my first suggestion would be to try simply omitting or reducing it and see how that goes.
I’d love to hear what you think of these turkey burgers if you try making them! 🙂