Wild Turkey Burgers

If you are like me, you end up eating a lot of wild turkey. Some of my favorites are to cut the breast meat into strips and marinate for gilling, or throw in the deep fryer (possibly the best crowd pleaser around!) But I am always looking for a way to change things up. If you are looking for something different to do with your turkey, this is a great recipe that brings a totally different flavor and texture. And it’s easy!

What You Need:

• 1 turkey breast, skinned and washed thoroughly, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 zucchini, halved, and each half cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 slice of bread
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 1 tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 large mixing bowl
• Food processor
• Meat grinder (optional, but preferred)

Directions

1. Lay out the 1-inch cubed chunks of wild turkey breast on a large cutting board or counter. Pat dry with a paper towel. You don’t want too much liquid in the meat or it will not hold together well when forming the burger patties.
2. Pull the slice of bread into large pieces and put into the food processor. Grind the bread into bread crumbs and set aside for later. If you are using the food processor to grind the meat, clean out any breadcrumbs left behind before using it to grind the turkey.
3. Using a meat grinder or a food processor, grind the turkey chunks. Incorporate a few pieces of the zucchini as you go. The idea is to grind in the zucchini with the turkey as evenly as possible. Using a meat grinder will make this step faster and easier, but a food processor will work just fine. Grind until meat is of uniform consistency. Do not overgrind! If you are using a meat grinder, I use the fine grind plate and only run the meat/zucchini through once.
4. Place the ground meat and zucchini mixture into the large mixing bowl. Add in the garlic, salt, pepper, chili powder, red pepper flakes, and bread crumbs. Mix with your hands until all ingredients are mixed evenly throughout.
5. Form the meat mixture into 1-inch thick patties and place on a hot grill. Be careful not to flip the burgers too early. If you do, the patties can fall apart easily. The patties are ready to flip when the edges of the patty facing up are no longer pink and there is little moisture coming from the meat on the edges of the burger. You want the center to still have some liquid bubbling through.
6. Cook until burgers are cooked through. They need to have an internal temperature of at least 165. Top with cheese and serve on a bun with your favorite BBQ sauce and other fixings. Pairs well with a cold beer!