Holy heavens, this was delicious. I love trying new recipes, especially on the weekends. And now that summer is finally here, I’m determined to grill as much as possible. But the same recipes get a bit boring, don’t you think? Lately, we’ve done quite a bit of grilled chicken breasts which are always great, but I was ready to spice it up a little bit!
I love teriyaki sauce, I love pineapple, I love burgers. and I love avocados.
Put them all together and, voillà, you’ve got the most amazing (and healthy) homemade burger I’ve had in a long time: The Teriyaki & Pineapple Turkey Burger!
Tackling the teriyaki problem: finding a healthy teriyaki sauce
I tend to shy away from recipes with teriyaki sauce. Why? As much as I love it, most teriyaki sauces are packed full of sodium and added ingredients that aren’t particularly good for you.
For example:
- Kikkoman Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce has 610mg of sodium per serving (that’s more than 25% of your recommended daily intake) and has high fructose corn syrup. Yuck!
- Yoshida’s Sweet Teriyaki Gourmet Sauce also contains high fructose corn syrup and 460mg of sodium per serving (19% of recommended daily intake).
- La Choy Teriyaki Sauce, while lower in sodium (just 105mg per serving), also contains high fructose corn syrup.
- Trader Joe’s Island Soyaki may be one of the better options, yet still contains 320mg of sodium (no high fructose corn syrup though, yay!).
My solution? Make your own teriyaki sauce!
My homemade teriyaki sauce recipe is, by far, better than any I’ve ever bought. Plus, it’s much better for you! See the recipe below.
Teriyaki problem solved! On to the other burger ingredients...
I’m a huge fan of pineapple. While I’ve always loved pineapple, my love for it has grown over the years as it has an association with infertility. With both Brooklyn and Jameson, my acupuncturist recommended I eat pineapple for a couple of days following my embryo transfer. Why? It's supposed to help aid in implantation; the core of pineapple contains bromelain which has been suggested to help aid in implantation. So needless to say, pineapple has a soft spot in my heart!
I had never actually grilled pineapple before. Grilling pineapples = holy goodness. Delicious! There is an extra sweetness to it as they get a bit caramelized. Yum, so good!
Next, we decided to grill red onion. I’ve honestly never tried grilling a red onion before, but it’s amazing! And it made the perfect addition to this burger.
Last came the avocado cream sauce. I love avocado—I seriously have it at least 3-4 times a week. Best of all, it’s a great source of nutrition! But, as many of you know, I am dairy intolerant (specifically whey protein and cow’s milk sources). So I found a way make the avocado cream sauce without cow’s milk, by using sheep's milk yogurt! (See my list of best & worst yogurts here.) It was the absolute perfect addition to the turkey burger, pineapple, and grilled red onion.
I also happen to be gluten-intolerant (womp womp), so I went bunless for this meal and wrapped my burger in lettuce.
It. Was. Divine. Bon appétit!
If you try this recipe let me know what you think of it in the comments below! Or if you have another healthy burger recipes (or any recipe) I should try, I've love to hear it.
- See recipe below
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1/4 cup plain non-fat greek yogurt*
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 teaspoon honey
- Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 pound lean ground turkey
- 1/4 cup chopped onion
- 2 tablespoons homemade teriyaki sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
- 4 buns
- 4 fresh pineapple rings
- 1 red onion cut into 1/2 inch thick slices
- Optional: lettuce & tomato
- Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- In a large bowl mix together the ground turkey, onion, teriyaki sauce, ginger, salt and pepper with your hands being careful not to overwork the meat.
- Form into 4 patties and set aside.
- Heat the grill to medium high heat and oil the grates.
- Brush the pineapple rings and red onion slices with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Place them on the prepared grill and grill the pineapple for approximately 3 minutes per side and the onions for 4-6 minutes per side.
- While the pineapple and onions are grilling add the turkey burgers to the grill and grill for approximately 3-4 minutes per side, or until done.
- Toast the buns on the grill for about 1 minute if desired.
- Place the burgers on the toasted buns and spread a little more teriyaki sauce over the top of the burger, if desired.
- Add a pineapple ring and grilled onions to the top. Lettuce, tomato if desired.
- Spread some of the avocado spread on the other half of the bun, serve, and enjoy!
- *I used sheep's milk yogurt as a cow's milk alternative to help with my dairy intolerance.
- 1/3 cup Bragg’s amino acids
- 3 tablespoons water
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon sriracha
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch + 2 teaspoons water, whisked together
- In a small saucepan whisk together all of the ingredients except the cornstarch/water mix.
- Bring the mixture to a boil and boil for 2 minutes.
- Whisk in the cornstarch slurry and boil for another minute or until it has thickened.
- Remove from the heat and refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to use.
Yum! I was hoping you were going to post this recipe! Love the teriyaki sauce idea.
You will have to try them and let me know what you think!!!