The Best Easy Turkey Burgers

Delicious homemade turkey burgers, with seasoning and rolled oats, are so much tastier than pre-made turkey burgers. Perfect on a bun or even cut up on a salad.

If the only turkey burgers you’ve ever had are the pre-formed frozen patties, you’re in for a treat! Homemade turkey burgers are way, way better! Much more flavorful and tender, with healthy rolled oats and egg mixed into the meat, there’s really no comparison. 

Eat your turkey burger like a normal burger, on a bun with your favorite toppings, or eat it plain. It’s almost like a mini meatloaf. Try your burger with a little barbecue sauce on top, or sautéed onions and mushrooms and a slice of melted Swiss cheese.

I like to cut it up and put it on a salad with Thousand Island dressing. It’s my “special sauce” for burgers and it makes a tasty salad dressing, too. Never had a burger salad? It may sound a little weird but it’s actually really good. 

About these turkey burgers

You may be thinking, Why go to the trouble of making your own burgers when you can just buy frozen turkey patties?

Better flavor and texture is the answer! While I admit you can’t beat the convenience, frozen turkey burgers are rather flavorless and can be pretty dry. When you add an egg, oats, grated onion, and seasoning, the turkey burger is juicy, tender, and so tasty!

If you’ve made meatloaf, the mixture for these burgers is kind of similar. I also love that you can add whatever flourishes you like. In the mood for Italian? Make pizza turkey burgers. How about Mexican? Make taco turkey burgers. Want to get fancy? Try mozzarella, tomato and basil stuffed turkey burgers. 

See what I mean? Homemade turkey burgers are just so much more fun and better tasting.

Just a note about the onion. I add half a medium sized onion to the mixture. Hubby doesn’t care for onion “chunks” so I grate the onion. Grating gives you a very fine mince without a lot of work. Grating onion also results in a little juice. Add that to the burgers, too, for more juicy flavor. 

Hey, now you have half an onion left over. Why not slice it and sauté it in a little butter to top your burger or salad? Yum!

Turkey burgers can be broiled in your oven on a foil covered sheet pan, or grilled. The mixture can be a little soft so make sure the grill grates are oiled and you don’t try to flip them too soon. I actually prefer doing them in the oven.

Try them with air fryer French fries or homemade air fryer tater tots. Don’t forget the French fry dipping sauce (it’s tasty on the turkey burgers, too). A salad is always a good choice. Creamy potato salad or healthy coleslaw (with yogurt dressing) are classic favorites. Having a picnic? Crockpot baked beans are a must!

FAQs

Make-Ahead Ideas

If you want to, make the patties ahead a day ahead and refrigerate or freeze them. They’ll be ready to cook up when you’re ready to eat. Or cook them up and freeze them.

Reheating

Raw burgers: Cook as directed. Frozen raw burgers: Cook as directed, adding a few minutes to the cooking time.

Cooked burgers: Reheat in the microwave or in a skillet on the stove. Frozen cooked burgers: For best results, thaw overnight in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave or in a skillet until heated through.

More burgers and Sandwiches

There’s more than one way to fill a bun. Try:

• Instant Pot Pulled Pork
• Black Bean Burgers — a delicious vegetarian burger!
• Slow Cooker Barbecue Pulled Chicken with Cranberry Sherry BBQ Sauce
• Slow Cooker Pulled Pork with Plum Bourbon Barbecue Sauce
• Mango Bourbon Pulled Pork (Slow Cooker!)
• Slow Cooker Pork Tacos (this is good on a bun as well as a tortilla)
• Turkey Sliders  (Rachel Sandwich Sliders)
• Best Ham and Cheese Sliders Recipe
• Pizza Sliders Recipe (Pepperoni Pizza)