I have heard great things about turkey mince being a low-fat alternative to beef mince, and the fact that it is relatively cheap makes it even more appealing to my student budget. With this in mind I decided to look through some turkey mince recipes, and although there were plenty, finally I chose one for Slimming World courgette and turkey burgers.

This jumped out to me as there were few ingredients, and the process seemed relatively simple- and it was. My ingredients were:

• 250g Turkey Mince
• 1 Small Red Onion- Grated
• 2 Courgettes- Grated
• 1tsp Soy Sauce
• Grated Ginger (Not measured)
• 1/2 Egg Yolk
• Seasoning

To make the patties I combined all of the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mixed by hand. I think if I were to do anything differently, next time I would use a tea-towel/cloth to strain the moisture from the courgettes, just as it took a lot longer to cook, however the recipe didn’t direct me to do so.

Once all the grated ingredients, egg yolk and mince were combined, I added a good helping of salt, pepper and some extra chilli for taste.

From these measurements I was able to make 4 patties, however, the exact recipe says you can make 4 from more ingredients, if you wanted to follow it perfectly. I think the burgers would have been nice with some finely sliced leeks too.

The recipe suggested grilling the burgers, but as I was using the oven to cook my side dish, instead I baked them for around 15 minutes on a lightly oiled baking tray- flipping half way.

To add a little more flare to my burger I created my own little sauce. It involved added minced garlic, garlic powder, diced cucumber and a drizzle of oil to mayonnaise and mixing well. I love a bit of garlic mayo, and I would even say it was far better than the stuff you get from the kebab house!!

To use some more of my leftover veg. I sautéed sliced mushroom which was added on top of my cooked patty.

I had bought wholemeal buns from co-op, and alongside my green salad leaves, mayo, mushrooms and burger, I crumbled feta cheese, which complimented the overall mediterranean themed dish.

My side dish was herby, skin-on sweet potato wedges. I have said in previous blogs how I sometimes struggle with the cooking time when making these fries, however these ones went really well. With the extra time it took to fully cook the burgers, they must’ve been in the oven for around 40 minutes, on around 180 degrees. I used spray olive oil as not to drown them, and added mixed herbs on top, which infused during the cooking time.

After I had managed to squeeze the burger bun lid shut, the meal was ready to eat! It was delicious!

The dish was really easy to make, although next time I would make a few adjustments, and it all tasted really good. I would definitely recommend adding some tzatziki/garlic mayo like myself, to make it even juicier. Like I said, turkey mince is really low cost too, making this the perfect student meat of choice! I will definitely be using it more in future- my turkey mince filled world awaits!!!

The price estimation for this (and it really is an estimation due to various supermarkets and buying ingredients at very different times) is 86p per burger and side of sweet potato fries. This includes the patty, bun, salad and feta, but not the mushrooms or garlic mayo I made, however these would both come in relatively cheap too!

If you fancy it here is the recipe…
https://www.slimmingworld.co.uk/recipes/turkey-burgers.aspx