Turkey and Zucchini Burgers

These turkey and zucchini burgers are healthier than what we're used to in a burger:

• Turkey is a very low-fat meat,
• we add zucchini to the mix, so we can say we're eating vegetables, ahem, and
• we present them without bread, in a lighter way, although you are free to put them inside a bun. You have many vices.

The recipe is from the famous chef Ottolenghi and follows his line of simple combinations with wonderful spices, in this case with cumin and cayenne, two spices that make a phenomenal combo.

We accompany the little burgers with a very simple yogurt, garlic and lemon sauce that gives them the masterful touch. Let's go.

Emile Henry ceramic ramekins, Mediterránea glass tumblers and De Buyer Mineral B iron frying pan

Ingredients

Burgers:

• 500gr turkey meat
• 200gr zucchini
• 40gr onion
• 1 yolk
• Some basil leaves
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper
• ½ tsp ground cayenne or hot paprika
• Breadcrumbs to taste
• Salt to taste
• Olive oil for frying

Yogurt sauce:

• 150gr thick Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 small garlic clove
• A pinch of salt

Preparation

Burgers

1. We chop the meat with a knife (it's not difficult, since it's a very tender meat) or we pass it through a manual meat grinder, although you should bear in mind that the texture achieved by each method is completely different, finer with the grinder and coarser when cut with a knife.
2. We put the meat in a bowl.
3. We cut the zucchini into very small pieces, which we can do in various ways: slicing into rounds with a good food processor like the Magimix and then cutting the rounds into sticks, or using a spiralizer and cutting the spirals into smaller pieces
4. We add the zucchini to the bowl with the meat.
5. We finely chop the onion and add it to the bowl as well.
6. We then add the rest of the ingredients: the yolk, the basil slightly chopped, the cumin, the pepper, the cayenne or paprika, and the garlic mashed with some salt. We mix thoroughly.
7. If the mixture lacks body, which depends on the meat and the juiciness of the zucchini, we will add breadcrumbs until the firmness allows us to shape little burgers.
8. We weigh portions of the mixture of about 45-50gr and shape them, for example, with a mini burger press. We place them on an oiled tray.

Yogurt sauce

1. We mash the garlic well with a good pinch of salt and add it to a bowl with the Greek yogurt.
2. We grate the lemon peel with a grater and add it, along with a tablespoon of the juice.
3. We mix, leave it in a serving bowl and set aside.

Finish

1. We heat a griddle or a cast-iron skillet to give the burgers a good blast of heat, brush the surface with some olive oil and brown the burgers in batches over high heat on both sides, seasoning lightly when removing from the heat.
2. It's better to salt at the end so neither the meat nor the zucchini release liquid.
3. We serve them hot with the sauce so each person can help themselves to their liking.

Emile Henry ceramic ramekins, Mediterránea glass tumblers and De Buyer Mineral B iron frying pan

I don't know if my word is of great value, but I assure you these turkey and zucchini burgers can be eaten by the handful, because they're delicious with that addictive spicing. At home the three of us ate them in one sitting. Promise.