How To Keep Turkey Burgers From Being Dry, According to a Grillmaster

It’s time to dust off your grill tools, light the charcoal, and flip some burgers—turkey burgers.

This protein feels tricky to cook because it’s so lean and prone to dryness when overcooked. But it can be mastered. When I had the opportunity to talk all things turkey with ButcherBox Chef-in-Residence Ashley Lonsdale, I asked how the rest of us can grill tender, moist turkey burgers.

I was not prepared for this advice!

The Sneaky Secret for Perfect Turkey Burgers

This chef swears by grated vegetables. “Finely grated vegetables will release moisture when cooked, adding juiciness to ground turkey, which is leaner than traditional beef burgers,” Lonsdale says.

She uses everything in the produce drawer to keep turkey burgers juicy. “Finely shredded zucchini and carrots are my favorites for adding moisture and sweetness, respectively. Finely minced, salted mushrooms are wonderful at adding both savory notes and juiciness,” the grilling pro explains.

In this Turkey Zucchini Burger recipe, the ratio is 1 pound of ground turkey to 2 cups of grated zucchini. This Spicy Turkey and Zucchini Burger recipe is similar, with 1 pound of ground turkey to slightly less than 2 cups of grated zucchini.

Compared to beef, Lonsdale understands that turkey can feel like a more challenging protein to work with. Turkey isn’t as fatty, which makes it less forgiving. She says that quickly working moisture-packed grated vegetables into the ground meat, forming 1/4-pound patties, and chilling them while the grill preheats will stop turkey burgers from tasting dry.

“If handled appropriately, turkey burgers are a great and simple item to grill,” Lonsdale says.

Will This Work on the Stovetop, Too?

Yes! As someone who cooked out of a tiny city kitchen for over a decade, I became good friends with my grill pan. If you’re living the apartment kitchen life, you’ll be happy to learn that the same rules apply for an indoor grilling setup. Lonsdale says that using a preheated grill pan can make flipping turkey burgers easier.

More Tips for Grilling the Best Turkey Burgers

Lonsdale has a couple more turkey burger tips to share. First and foremost, she urges everyone to choose turkey meat wisely for the best flavor, quality, and end result. “I choose the highest quality, humanely raised turkey because with quality, flavor always follows,” she says.

• Prepare your grill. Lonsdale says to “preheat the grill to medium-high and make sure the grates are clean and oiled.”
• Know when to flip the turkey burgers. “Grill the burgers until they’re well browned on one side and release easily before flipping,” she says.
• When in doubt, add fat. The higher the fat content of the turkey burger, the more flavor and moisture you get. “Since turkey is lean meat, a great way to introduce more fat is by adding one tablespoon of cold grated butter for each pound.”

I’m officially ready to call this the summer of the turkey burger!