What’s for dinner? Asian turkey burgers

By Kate Burr in Entertainment, Lifestyle, Recipes on Sep 10, 2011 4:59 / comments

After finishing a day of classes, a night of homework and worrying about exams, thinking about what to cook for dinner often gets put on the back shelf.

I know firsthand that the last thing you want to do after a long day of class is slave over the oven and cook dinner, but I propose to you a solution.

I am not going to introduce to you a recipe for chicken breasts on a George Foreman grill. I am, however, going to introduce to you something that is easy to make and is jam-packed with flavor.

I present to you Scallion Pancakes and Asian Turkey Burgers. Many people overlook turkey burgers because all too often they come out tasteless. But, by adding in a few Asian ingredients, the meat definitely kicks it up a notch. In this case, the scallion pancakes can act as a side for the burger or as a substitute for the bun, something I like to do.

Asian Turkey Burgers:

1 1/2 lbs ground turkey, 85 percent lean

1/2 cup Panko Bread Crumbs

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 scallions, finely chopped

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon minced ginger

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Procedure

1. Get in there and get dirty. Using your hands, mix together all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Scoop out about 1/3 lb of the mixture and form into a patty. Repeat with the remaining meat mixture until all of the meat is used.

2. If you have a grill then don’t be afraid to use it. Grilling 5 to 7 minutes per side should do the trick, but if using a stove-top, I like to brown each side of the burger and then finish it off in the oven. I recommend putting it in for 15 minutes at 350 degrees, or until cooked through.

Scallion Pancakes:

Delicious scallion pancakes! (CU Independent/Kate Burr)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup warm water

2 cups thinly sliced scallions

¼ cup sesame oil

Procedure

1. In a bowl, knead together the flour and the water until it forms dough. Knead the dough by doubling the dough over and pressing it down continuously until it is smooth and elastic. Drizzle some sesame oil over the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes.

2. Cut the ball of dough into four equal parts and roll out each part individually. Brush the top of the dough with oil and sprinkle finely chopped scallions over the rolled out dough.

3. Roll up your dough so it forms a snake-like shape and then coil the dough up. Roll the coiled dough flat again creating a round pancake. This allows for the scallions to evenly mix throughout the dough.

4. After that, heat up some vegetable oil in a medium sauté pan. When heated up, place the pancake in the pan. Be careful not to burn yourself for it will most likely splatter. Cook the pancakes until browned on each side.

5. Cut the pancakes however you prefer and serve immediately.

With only three ingredients, these scallion pancakes are inexpensive to make and they taste great. They also go along extremely well with the Asian turkey burger. Try out these recipes to introduce new flavors to your kitchen in the simplest way.

Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Kate Burr at Kate.burr@colorado.edu