These Balsamic Caramelized Onion Turkey Burgers are so juicy and flavorful! They're the perfect centerpiece for a healthy, 21 Day Fix cookout!
Holy turkey burgers, Batman! You guys are going to love these and do you know why?
Because I have a secret.
It's the secret to absolutely delicious, crap-ton-of-oil-not-needed, caramelized onions and they make this burger so. freaking. good.
They may be a little different from your run-of-the-mill caramelized onions, but only because this ingredient makes them even better. I know, you want to know what it is, right?!
Dun dun duuuunnnn..... it's balsamic vinegar!! Oh, you knew? So I spoiled it with the title, huh? Ah well. This is still one tasty burger, peeps and if you're anything like me, you are really feeling your grill right now. <3<3<3
I feel like that just got weird. Did that just get weird?
Anyway, I know, what you're thinking: You've been burned by dry, flavorless turkey burgers before, and you're just not sure if you can handle another disappointment, right? Well, I do have a few tricks up my sleeve that might just help in this area...
I want to start off by saying that I played and played with the seasoning of this burger, I wanted it to be relatively simple, yet flavorful. I didn't want any particular flavor to overpower, because I wanted those glorious onions to be the star of the show.
And they so are.
Gawd those onions are good. But I digress... me and the fam LOVE the way these turned out and the amount of seasoning in them. To me, they're spot on and just perfect, but your taste buds just might be different than mine and that's ok!
Sooo... here's my tip of the day: Anytime you're making burgers (or meatballs or even meatloaf, for that matter) ALWAYS (seriously always) make a small little patty to cook up in a skillet so that you can check your seasonings.
That way, you'll know EXACTLY what it's going to taste like and can adjust a bit if necessary. Once I started doing this, I never again made a flavorless meat-anything.
How to make juicy turkey burgers:
- Add some finely chopped (or even pureed) veggies into the mix. In this case I added some (more) onions, but bell peppers, mushrooms or zucchini also work well for this. What happens is as the veggies cook, they slowly release their own liquid into the meat, adding flavor AND moisture. Boom!
- The other thing that is super-important is to not overcook them. I realize that this sounds like a "duh" statement, but it can be easy to do. The best way to be sure that you don't overcook them is to get yourself an instant-read thermometer and cook those puppies until it says 165 degrees and no longer. They'll be perfect every time.
Ok, so here's a quick rundown on what your amazing onions should look like through the different steps:
So it's definitely time to bust out that grill and make these burgers, am I right?! Oh, there's snow on the ground where you are? That's ok, put on your parka, because it's never too cold to grill!
P.S. - the container equivalents and stats DO NOT include whatever you decide to put these cheesy, delicious burgers on, so make sure you add that into your counts!
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📖 Recipe
Balsamic Caramelized Onion Turkey Burger
Yield: 8 Servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Ingredients
Balsamic Caramelized Onions:
- 3 large onions (any kind will do, but I usually use white or red), cut in half and then sliced
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
Burgers:
- 2 lbs ground turkey
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- 2 TBS Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
- 2 teaspoon (3 large cloves) of garlic, minced
- 1 Tbs dried thyme
Toppings:
- 8 slices provolone cheese
- balsamic caramelized onions
- whatever you want to put it on: whole wheat bun, english muffin, pita, greens, etc..
Instructions
Make the balsamic caramelized onions:
- Put your sliced onions and vinegar in a large skillet with a tight fitting lid. If you don't have one you can use a pot instead, but the process may take a bit longer. Cover and cook over medium heat about 20 minutes.
- Take off the lid and continue to cook, stirring every few minutes, until there is no liquid left. Once this happens, the onions will start to caramelize. You'll then add â…“ cup of water, stirring again until there is no liquid left. Repeat this process until onions are fully cooked and caramelized. Set aside.
To make the burgers:
- Mix together all ingredients, form into 8 burger patties. Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. Make sure it's nice and hot before adding your burgers or they may stick. You can also cook these in a cast iron skillet. Either way, using medium-high heat, they should take about 7 minutes on each side. Flip only once to get the juiciest burgers and cook until the burgers reach 165 degrees or if you don't have a thermometer, until they're hot and no longer pink on the inside. Put a slice of provolone on each one and close the lid until melted (this will only take a minute or so).
- Serve each tasty turkey burgers on whatever you like, such as a whole wheat bun, english muffin, greens, etc., along with about â…›th of the caramelized onions.
Notes
21 Day Fix Container Counts per serving: 1 Red, ½ Blue, ¼ Green + don't forget to add the container for whatever you put your burger on!
Weight Watchers Freestyle Points: 3 points when using 99% fat free ground turkey; 7 points when using 93% fat free ground turkey (this doesn't include a bun, so check the points of whatever you decide to put your burger on!)
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8Serving Size: 1 burger, 1 slice of cheese and â…›th of the balsamic onions
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 223Total Fat: 11g
