Beef Gyro Burgers are filled with spices, parsley & feta cheese then topped with a homemade healthy tzatziki sauce for a delicious Mediterranean-inspired take on a burger!
Even better, they are easily cooked inside, so no need to fire up the grill if you don’t have access to one. These burgers are delicious with a bun, lettuce wrap or on top of a salad for extra protein. Perfect for meal-prep and leftovers!
CHoosing the protein for the gyro burgers
In this recipe, you can definitely choose to use ground turkey instead of ground beef. If you choose to use ground turkey, just follow the recipe the exact same way!
A Few Tips on Making Great Burgers:
- When making burgers from ground beef, it’s really important to not overwork the meat. This means not handling it more than necessary to just mix in the ingredients. If you overwork it, it can become very tough in texture.
- Another tip that I like to use is to bring the ground beef to room temperature for about 30 minutes before you begin cooking the burgers. If you put cold burgers directly on the grill or in a skillet, the outside is going to cook much faster than the inside and you could end up with a burger that is burnt on the outside and raw on the inside… no bueno! Allowing the burgers to come to room temperature for about 30 minutes prevents this and will result in evenly-cooked patties!
Other ingredients in the gyro burgers
The add-ins for this burger are really where the magic happens and that classic “gyro” taste comes from!
To a large bowl, add the ground beef and start prepping the add-ins. First, start by very finely chopping the parsley. You don’t want big pieces in the burger, just finely chopped bits spread throughout! Add the parsley to the bowl along with finely crumbled feta (break up any larger pieces with your fingers), 2 finely minced garlic cloves, and the spice mix: oregano, crushed red pepper, cumin and salt.
Using your hands, combine the ground beef with the add-ins, being careful to not overmix. Form into 4 equal-sized, flat patties and place on a plate!
making the homemade tzatziki
The sauce on these Gyro Burgers is of course a homemade, healthy tzatziki! It really brings the whole thing together and is so delicious. It makes this burger taste just like a gyro!
To make the homemade healthy tzatziki, combine plain Greek yogurt, the juice of 1 lemon, 2 tbsp chopped chives, 2 finely minced garlic cloves, and salt & pepper to taste. I prefer to mix all of the ingredients together (without salt and pepper), then add small pinches, taste and adjust.
Store the homemade healthy tzatziki in the fridge until you’re ready to eat, the flavors will come together really nicely after they have some time to hang out together!
how to cook the gyro burgers
To cook the patties indoors, first heat a large cast-iron over medium heat for 5 minutes. It’s really important to allow the pan to heat up before adding any oil or food to it. Once the cast-iron has been heating for 5 minutes, drizzle in 2 tbsp of avocado oil.
I like to use avocado oil because it has a higher smoking point than olive oil and will result in less burning. Allow the oil to heat for another 30 seconds.
Once the oil is heated, add the patties to the skillet and cook for 3 minutes each side, until nice and browned on the outside and cooked through.
optional burger toppings
Top your Beef Gyro Burgers with thinly sliced tomato, red onion, butter lettuce and of course a big slather of the homemade healthy tzatziki!
This is the perfect summertime recipe! It’s so flavorful and easy to make. Come say hi on my Instagram to let me know what you think, and visit my Pinterest for lots more recipe inspiration!
If you need another easy weeknight dinner, check out my Healthy Chicken Nuggets or Teriyaki Turkey Meatballs!
Beef Gyro Burgers with Homemade Tzatziki
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
For the Homemade Tzatziki:
- 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 tbsp chopped chives
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- salt & pepper, to taste
- 4 buns
- 1/4 red onion, sliced
- 1 beefsteak tomato, sliced
- butter lettuce
Instructions
- Make the tzatziki sauce by mixing Greek yogurt, 2 minced garlic cloves, chopped chives, lemon juice together. Add salt & pepper to taste, and let sit in the fridge.
- In a bowl, combine ground beef, chopped parsley, feta cheese, oregano, crushed red pepper, 2 minced garlic cloves until just combined. Be careful to not over mix, and don’t add salt yet!
- Form into 4 patties and set aside on a plate. Heat a large skillet over medium heat for 5 mins.
- Add 1-2 tbsp of oil to the pan and allow to heat for another 30 seconds.
- Add burgers to the skillet and give a generous pinch of salt to each pattie. Sear on both sides for about 3 minutes, until cooked through.
- Toast the buns face down in a pan until golden. Slather homemade tzatziki on both sides and top with burger, sliced red onion, tomatoes & butter lettuce.
