The best way I have found and easiest is to throw mushrooms in the food processor (onions, peppers, cranberries, celery, carrots all add moisture as well) and process finely; mix those into your ground turkey...they really do stay moist. I believe I got this recipe from Cooks Illustrated...here is the recipe that I have made and works good:
1 1/2 lb ground Turkey--breast only is fine
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup food processed mushrooms (they say chopped)
1/2 cup Low Fat Cheddar Cheese, optional
1/3 cup finely chopped celery
1 Tbl Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tbl Dijon mustard
Just mix all together; flatten into 4-6 burgers and cook in skillet or grill to 160 degrees.
Finely minced and sauteed onions, carrots, and celery will help. You shouls also add some chicken stock. The Oprah recipe mentioned is a good one. Ann Burrell of Food Network has a good one as well.
I add the panade plus lots of ketchup, ground pepper, garlic powder and several dashes of Asian fish sauce (what I call nature's MSG). Please don't tell my children....
Okay, I'll play the contrarian here. The biggest problem with turkey burgers is that they lack fat---some people consider that healthy. Fine, have it your way. Sure you can add texture with egg white and bread crumbs but you still end up with something that is unsatisfying and barely tastes like food. Same problem with "veggie" burgers.
I agree with the bread crumbs egg and stock or milk the liquid is soaked buy the dry ingredient and it keeps the meat moist also you could try dry porcini soaked in water and you could add the porcini water and the porcini with some bread crumbs or oatmeal
Oprah's favorite one contains grated apple (If you google the recipe will turn up.) It's served at Mar-a-Lago. Here:
http://www.oprah.com/food/Mar-a-Lago-Turkey-Burger
My mom makes hers with raw onions and peppers whirled in the FP and those contain a lot of moisture that goes in. She doesn't like to put egg or crumbs in.
Yes! when you add binder like bread crumbs. Moisten it with stock...but add 1/2 tsp unflavored gelatin to each 1/2 cup of liquid. (the egg is also an optional addition to liquid/gelatin mix).
The gelatin replaces the moisture of the fat you'd get with a beef burger.
Anonymous chef gives good advice. I also add an egg -- 1 egg per lb. of ground turkey -- along with the bread crumbs and water mix. It gives a turkey burger that is not grainy, is light in texture and unless it is wildly overcooked, is not dry.
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1 1/2 lb ground Turkey--breast only is fine
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup food processed mushrooms (they say chopped)
1/2 cup Low Fat Cheddar Cheese, optional
1/3 cup finely chopped celery
1 Tbl Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tbl Dijon mustard
Just mix all together; flatten into 4-6 burgers and cook in skillet or grill to 160 degrees.
http://www.oprah.com/food/Mar-a-Lago-Turkey-Burger
My mom makes hers with raw onions and peppers whirled in the FP and those contain a lot of moisture that goes in. She doesn't like to put egg or crumbs in.
The gelatin replaces the moisture of the fat you'd get with a beef burger.
A paste or gruel of bread crumbs, toast, combined with milk, stock, or water and used for making soups, binding forcemeats, or thickening sauces.
it's pretty simple, just soak the bread in the wet ingredient, then add to your ground turkey. form your patty season and you are ready to go.