These healthy Greek Turkey Burgers are juicy, packed with flavor and protein, and ready in just 30 minutes! Enjoy them over salads or in a bun.
We’ll often swap out beef for turkey burgers and chicken burgers to keep things exciting!
This Greek turkey burgers recipe is similar to my spinach feta burgers, but I wanted ones without spinach, so I skipped it and added olives instead. And I like serving mine bowl style right now over a bed of quinoa and topped with fresh veggies and tzatziki.
It makes the perfect light yet filling 30 minute weeknight dinner, and the beauty is you can truly pile up whatever you want in the bowl. These were so good and easy!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Quick: A 30 minute meal with simple ingredients, easy prep, and just 10 minutes of cooking time.
- Lighter: Lean ground turkey means less saturated fats than ground beef, and skipping breadcrumbs makes it low carb and gluten free!
- Cleans out the fridge: Load up your bowls with whatever you have tucked away in your fridge.
- Cook year round: Make them stovetop or fire up the grill and serve them for lunch or dinner, your choice!
Ingredients for Greek Turkey Burgers
These burgers use 8 simple ingredients with endless options for serving. I’ve listed my favorites, but feel free to get creative.
- Ground turkey: Choose between lean or extra lean ground turkey for the base of the burgers.
- Feta cheese: Crumbled feta helps keep the turkey burgers moist and adds the perfect salty bite.
- Kalamata olives: Chopped kalamata olives infuse them with a traditional Greek-inspired savory flavor, while also keeping them juicy.
- Seasoning: A sprinkle of onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper elevates flavor.
- Oil: I prefer avocado oil but any oil with a high smoke point will work.
- Quinoa: You can cook fresh quinoa while prepping the burgers or use leftover stovetop cooked quinoa.
- Red onion: I made quick pickled onions by soaking thinly sliced red onion in boiling water, which softens and mellows the sharp taste.
- Other toppings: Sliced cucumber, tomatoes, more olives and feta, tzatziki sauce, and fresh dill or parsley.
How to Make Greek Turkey Burgers
Here’s a quick overview how to make and assemble Greek turkey burger bowls. There is a full recipe card below.
- Make pickled onions: Place sliced red onion in a small bowl, cover with boiling water, and let them sit while you prep the rest. Drain before serving.
- Prep: Cook the quinoa according to the package instructions, chop up your veggies, and crumble the cheese so they’re all set when it’s time to assemble the bowls.
- Form burger patties: Add ground turkey, feta cheese, chopped olives, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to a large bowl. Give it a good mix. Wet your hands to prevent the mixture from sticking, shape it into 10 small-medium sized burger patties, and place them on a plate.
- Pan fry burgers: Preheat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat and add a tablespoon of oil. Start with 5 turkey burgers and cook them for 5 minutes or until golden brown, then flip and give them another 4-5 minutes until they reach an internal temperature of 165 F. Repeat with the remaining 5 patties.
- Serve: In each bowl, spoon in some cooked quinoa, 2-3 delicious burger patties, some cucumber slices, juicy tomatoes, a few olives, and a dollop of tzatziki. Then sprinkle with feta cheese and a pinch of dill. Feel free to toss in anything else you like and enjoy!
Tips for Best Results
Here are my top tips for the most juicy and flavor-packed Greek-inspired burgers.
- Make them small for bowls: Smaller patties make it easier to enjoy and mix everything in the bowl.
- Flatten them up: They puff up in the center during cooking.
- Use wet hands for shaping: This makes it easier to shape the patties without the mixture clinging to your skin.
- To grill burgers: Preheat your grill to medium-high and oil grates with a paper towel. Spray turkey patties with cooking spray, grill for 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway. Check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer, once it reaches 165 F your burgers are done!
What to Serve Greek Turkey Burgers with?
There are loads of toppings and side dishes that go perfectly atop your bowls or alongside your burger. Here are just a few ideas:
- Toppings for bowls: Pile on some sliced bell peppers, baby spinach, diced avocado or Greek yogurt guacamole, sliced radishes, grated carrots, hummus, blue cheese dressing, ranch dressing, and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
- As burgers: Serve on a bun alongside a Greek salad, cucumber and tomato salad, tomato mozzarella avocado salad, or my favorite spinach salad.
- In pita bread: Slide a couple patties into a warm pita pocket and top it with creamy tzatziki, lettuce, red onions, and a sprinkle of fresh mint.
How to Store and Reheat
Store: Make sure your leftover turkey burgers are cool and store them in an airtight container, in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freeze: Place cooked and cooled patties in an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw on a counter for a few hours or in the fridge overnight.
Reheat: Microwave for 1-2 minutes or lightly grease a skillet and cook on medium heat for 3-4 minutes on each side until warmed through.
FAQs
Sure. Ground chicken, ground pork, or ground beef can be substituted for ground turkey, but the overall taste and consistency will be slightly different.
Your burgers are ready when a meat thermometer inserted in the center of the patty reads 165 F.
Yes, Greek turkey burgers are great for meal prep! You can prepare the turkey burger mixture in a bowl, cover tightly with wrap, and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
Or freeze raw patties by arranging them on a parchment covered baking pan, placing it in the freezer, then transferring them to a large Ziploc bag once frozen.
You can add a bit of chopped spinach or grated zucchini to the meat mixture. There’s no need for egg or breadcrumbs.
More Recipes to Try
- Grilled chicken burgers
- Turkey sliders
- Ground turkey zucchini skillet
- Turkey meatballs
- Ground turkey pasta bake
Greek Turkey Burgers
Ingredients
For the Burgers:
- 1 pound ground turkey lean or extra lean
- 1/2 cup feta cheese crumbled
- 1/3 cup Kalamata olives chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons oil for frying
For Pickled Onions:
- 1/4 red onion thinly sliced
- Boiling water
For the Bowls:
- Cooked quinoa
- Cucumbers sliced
- Tomatoes sliced
- Kalamata olives
- Tzatziki store-bought
- Feta cheese crumbled
- Dill or parsley finely chopped
Instructions
- Cook quinoa as per package instructions. Chop vegetables and crumble the cheese for serving the bowls.
- To make quick pickled onions, place sliced red onion in a small bowl, pour boiling water until covered and let stand while preparing other ingredients. Drain before serving.
- In a large bowl, add ground turkey, feta cheese, olives, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper and mix well with a spatula. Using wet hands, form 10 small-medium burger patties and place on a large plate.
- Preheat large non-stick skillet on medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of oil. Add 5 turkey burgers, cook for 5 minutes or until golden brown, flip and cook for another 4-5 minutes or until thermometer inserted in the center registers 165F. Repeat with remaining batch.
- To serve, in each bowl place some cooked quinoa, 2-3 burger patties, cucumbers, tomatoes, olives and tzatziki. Sprinkle with feta cheese and dill. You can add whatever else you like. Enjoy!
