As far as I know, there aren’t any traditional Greek dishes calling for ground turkey. Maybe someday I will try making these burgers from ground lamb and beef, but today I’ll stick with my original inspiration, which uses spinach, toasted pine nuts, feta cheese and herbs for that Mediterranean vibe.
For a change, you can replace some of the ground turkey with turkey Italian sausage or a complementary-flavored chicken sausage.
This is actually two recipes. One is the tahini sauce, from the cookbook Simply Shrimp, Salmon and (Fish) Steaks by Leslie Glover Pendleton. The sauce is also great on grilled tuna, asparagus and broccoli. At least, that’s what I’ve tried so far. I think it would make a fine salad dressing, thinned if necessary with more water.
Tzatziki sauce would be nice as a topping, but we really enjoy the tahini flavor with these burgers. These are great with Greek green beans and tomatoes or another tomato dish, such as Artichokes Provençale.
Greek Turkey Burgers
2 eggs, beaten
3 tbsp. frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp. kosher or sea salt
1/2 tsp. ground white pepper
1 cup diced onion of choice
1 lb. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (if all you have is a 10-oz. box, that’s fine)
1/4 cup fresh, minced oregano or 1 tbsp. dried
1/4 cup fresh, minced thyme or 1 tbsp. dried
1/4 cup fresh, minced parsley
1 cup pine nuts (use chopped olives if there is an allergy issue)
2 cups crumbled feta
3 lbs. ground turkey (drain excess liquid if previously frozen)
Preheat an outdoor grill and lightly oil grate. Alternatively, use a George Foreman-style indoor grill, heating and spraying it once burgers are mixed and formed.
While the grill is preheating, toast pine nuts in dry skillet, stirring occasionally, till they just start to brown. Separate spinach clumps into strands. Dice onion and mince garlic and herbs.
In a large bowl, mix eggs, orange juice concentrate, garlic, oregano, thyme, salt, pepper, feta cheese, spinach, toasted pine nuts and turkey in a large bowl until well combined but without overmixing. Form into 20 patties.
Grill until no longer pink in the center, turning once, for a total of 10 to 12 minutes. It takes much less time on an indoor grill, maybe five minutes. Serve with sauce on plates, in pita halves, or on toasted buns with lettuce and tomato.
Reheat gently in microwave.
Tahini Parsley Sauce*
3 tbsp. tahini (stirred first because the oil tends to separate)
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
6 tbsp. water
6 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
In a bowl, whisk all ingredients, adding olive oil last. Let stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour.
Refrigerate leftovers.
Use on grilled tuna, the turkey feta burgers, asparagus, broccoli, carrots, pita chips or whatever suits your fancy.
*Sauce shortcut: Use a little water to thin storebought or homemade hummus; it’s very similar.
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