A Creative Take on an American Classic: Turkey Burgers with Blueberries, Ginger and Lemongrass served with Blueberry Ketchup

On a recent road trip to visit a friend, my father passed Shirk’s Country Market, a unique food store located in rural central Missouri. My dad knew that I would be delighted to have a few items from this little shop. So the generous man that he is, phoned me, went isle by isle telling me what was on the shelves while I yay’d or nay’d the items to purchase for me.

Thanks to my pops, I was able to stock my kitchen with wholesome, sustainably grown ingredients such as organic rolled oats, polenta, molasses, millet and barley berries. He also brought a large bag of frozen blueberries that I could not wait to dive into.

In one of my “out of the blue” cooking moments (pun totally intended), I thought it would be fun to make a ketchup using blueberries as the fruit base rather than tomatoes. I experimented with these little blue beauties and created a tangy blueberry ketchup with a flavor kick from pickled ginger, you know, the pink stuff that comes with sushi. Now I just needed a burger to slather and some fries to dunk.

I thought turkey burgers and sweet potato fries would pair nicely with the blueberry ketchup. And then I got to thinking…turkey burgers tend to be a bit dry so why not add a handful of blueberries to the turkey burger mix to boost moisture and add a different flavor? And so I did.

The result was a succulent, tasty take on an American classic.  The turkey burgers were indeed moist and delicious with the added blueberries, ginger and lemongrass. And the blueberry ketchup worked wonders as a condiment for the burger and fries.

Question: how do you like to use blueberries?

Succulent Turkey Burgers with Blueberries, Ginger and Lemongrass

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 3/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger
• 1 Tbsp. lemongrass
• 1 tsp. coarse black pepper
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 4 hamburger buns

Cooking Directions

1. Peel and mince ginger. Using the bottom portion of fresh lemongrass, peel away woody outer layer and mince inner flesh. Add blueberries, ginger, lemongrass, and black pepper to ground turkey, mix well. Form mixture into 4 hamburger patties. Brush soy sauce on both sides of burgers. Grill patties at medium high heat for about 4 minutes each side until reach an internal temperature of 165 F. Serve on poppy seed buns with lettuce, sliced red onion and blueberry ketchup (recipe below)

Blueberry Ketchup

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup minced onion, minced
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbsp. pickled ginger (gari) or fresh ginger, minced

Cooking Directions

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer for about 15-20 minutes. Allow to cool, then blend using a hand immersion blender or a food processor. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For great tips, recipes and nutritional information on blueberries, visit: www.littlebluedynamos.com

until next time...