These Turkey Smash Burgers are juicy with little fat and packed with flavor. Prepped and cooked to perfection in only 20 minutes, these turkey burger patties are a fan favorite. Pair them with your favorite toppings and side dishes and store them easily for your next meal.
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The turkey mixture is prepared in 10 minutes and with a cook time of 10 minutes, you'll have dinner ready in just 20 minutes. The turkey patties are super versatile: serve them with my roasted potato salad or marinated grilled zucchini for an easy weeknight meal. Or skip the fries and serve these with golden and crispy parmesan crusted potatoes instead.
These delicious turkey burgers can be paired with your favorite side dishes and topped with melty cheese or any topping of your choosing. Or throw them on top of a salad for some added protein. If you are a burger fan, try my simple air fryer turkey burgers and juicy chicken burgers next!
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🥘Ingredients and Substitutions
- Ground turkey. I prefer to use 93% lean and 7% fat for most of my cooking but for this recipe, I chose around 85% lean for a juicy burger. Use lean ground turkey, if you prefer.
- Cheese. Depending on what toppings you choose, whether it be red onion and butter lettuce or your favorite, adding American cheese, cheddar, goat cheese or provolone will add flavor to the burger.
- Yellow or white onion. I recommend white or yellow over red onions for this recipe as they're more sweet and flavorful.
- Garlic powder. Adding garlic powder and other spices to your smashed burger adds flavor to your meat mixture. Using minced garlic is okay, you'll just get a more pronounced garlic flavor.
- Special sauce. A classic smash burger is topped with a sauce made up of ketchup, mustard, mayo and relish.
See the recipe card below for the remaining ingredients and quantities.
🔪Instructions
Step 1: Grab a large bowl and combine the ground turkey with your spices and olive oil. You want to form the mixture into equal portions.
Step 2: Heat the butter on a large grill pan, griddle or skillet over high heat. Add onions to the hot pan and place the turkey balls atop.
Step 3: Smash the ball into onions using a stiff metal spatula or burger press to create thin patties.
Step 4: Cook for 4 minutes and flip to the second side.
Step 5: Add your choice of cheese, and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
Step 6: Mix all of the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Place the burgers on the buns, top with your sauce, serve and enjoy with your favorite sides.
💭Recipe FAQs
Turkey burgers cook in about 8 minutes or 4 minutes on each side. You can use a meat thermometer to ensure the internal temperature reaches 160F, let rest and serve when the temperature reaches 165F.
The color of cooked poultry doesn't always determine if it's safe to eat. The best way to ensure your turkey meat is cooked is to use a meat thermometer and have the temperature read 165F.
Use different spices to add flavor to your ground turkey. A few recommended ones are paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper.
👩🏻🍳Sarah's Top Tips
- No burger press no problem. If you don't have a burger press use a large spatula, plate, meat mallet or even a cup!
- Use dark meat. Use dark meat or around 80-85% lean for a juicier burger. If you use leaner meat, the burgers may be dry.
- Use a griddle or cast iron pan. I prefer to use a cast iron pan over a hot grill as it allows for higher heat and a more even cook. You need a hot surface to allow a nice crust to form on the outside of the burger.
- Don't skip the smash sauce, it elevates the flavor of the burger.
🥗Serving
Turkey smash burgers are the perfect recipe to pair with any of your favorite side dishes like Pesto Orzo Salad, Air Fryer Steak Fries, Mediterranean Roasted Vegetables, Italian Tomato Salad, Air Fryer Smashed Potatoes, and Air Fryer Roasted Garlic Carrots.
🥣Storage & Reheating
- Leftover turkey burgers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days.
- You can reheat the burgers in the microwave for about 1 minute or on the stove for a few minutes until warm.
- To freeze, I recommend separating the patties with parchment paper or wrapping each in plastic wrap and then placing them in a freezer-safe container or bag. The burgers should last 2-3 months in the freezer. Defrost them in the fridge before reheating.
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Turkey Smash Burgers
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Ingredients
- 1 pound ground turkey, dark meat or 85% lean
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 large yellow or white onion, sliced thinly
- 4 slices of cheese, American, Cheddar, Provolone, etc.
- Lettuce
- 1 large tomato, sliced
- 4 burger buns
Sauce
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons dill pickle relish or finely chopped dill pickles
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey with the spices and olive oil. Form the mixture into 4 equal-sized balls using your hands.
- Heat the butter on a large grill pan or skillet over high heat.
- Place about ¼ cup of sliced onions onto the pan and top with a burger patty. Smash the ball into onions using a spatula or burger press (I recommend a piece of parchment paper in between) to create a burger patty. Repeat with all 4 patties.
- Cook for 4 minutes, flip the burgers and top each with a slice of cheese.
- Cook the burgers for another 3-4 minutes until the internal temperature is 165 degrees F.
- While the burgers are cooking, mix all of the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl.
- Remove the burgers from the pan and serve on a toasted burger bun with lettuce, tomato and some of the burger sauce.
Sarah's Tips
- No burger press no problem. If you don't have a burger press use a large spatula, plate, meat mallet or even a cup!
- Use dark meat. Use dark meat or around 80-85% lean for a juicier burger. If you use leaner meat, the burgers may be dry.
- Use a griddle or cast iron pan. I prefer to use a cast iron pan over a hot grill as it allows for higher heat and a more even cook. You need a hot surface to allow a nice crust to form on the outside of the burger.
- Don't skip the smash sauce, it elevates the flavor of the burger.
- Leftover turkey burgers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days.
- You can reheat the burgers in the microwave for about 1 minute or on the stove for a few minutes until warm.
- To freeze, I recommend separating the patties with parchment paper or wrapping each in plastic wrap and then placing them in a freezer-safe container or bag. The burgers should last 2-3 months in the freezer. Defrost them in the fridge before reheating.
KITCHEN TOOLS NEEDED
- Cutting board
- Grill Pan
Kelly says
So good! I’m adding this to our regular rotation
Tiffany Hicks says
great protein meal. paired with sweet potatoe fries..Will definitely make again.
TX for the recipe
Sarah Hill says
Hi Tiffany, love sweet potato fries! Happy to hear you enjoyed the burgers 🙂
Debbie says
I made these for my husband who is doing low carb. Made the recipe exactly as is except for no sugar ketchup and I used no carb wraps for the bun. They were amazing. He wants them every week now. Thank you for the recipe.
Sarah Hill says
Hi Debbie, this is great to hear! I'm glad you could both enjoy them 🙂
Barbara MacDonald says
This was such a good recipe. Decided to try something other than my usual recipe and I am so glad I found this!
Sarah Hill says
Hi Barbara, glad to hear that you enjoyed the burgers!