I originally saw the idea for this burger on an old show which doesn’t exist anymore called Food Revolution. It was hosted by Jamie Oliver and he would try to upgrade menus with slightly healthier options. This Green Goddess Burger made its debut in an old episode and it has been on my summer grilling menu ever since!
This burger could also be called a Guacamole Burger since the top layer includes a nice layer of homemade avocado relish (or guacamole). I hesitate to call it guacamole in the recipe just because it doesn’t have all the spices I would normally put in my guacamole and I keep it a bit chunkier.
Let’s dive in though and make these amazing burgers!
Making the Burger Mix
Now you could definitely just use normal hamburger meat for these guys, but if are really wanting to take your burgers to the next level this summer, try to make your own hamburger mix. Here’s my method for making bulk hamburgers and freezing it so you have delicious burgers all summer long.
You can get better flavor and control the fat content by grinding your own meat, but it’s definitely not essential for these burgers. If you are buying store-bought ground beef, use either 10/90 or 20/80 ground beef.
Personally, I prefer the slightly fattier blend, but you can use 90/10 if you want. I would stay away from the very lean mixes of ground beef for burgers.
To make the burger patties for these Green Goddess Burgers, portion out 1/3 pound of ground beef and shape it into a thin oval. Press an indent into the center of the patty with your thumb. This will prevent the football shape from happening when you grill the burgers.
Season them all really well with salt and pepper and they are ready for the grill!
The Green Goddess Sauce
The idea for this sauce is to take the place of a traditional burger sauce, which is mayo based normally. This yogurt sauce is tangy and jam-packed with parsley and lemon and brings a real brightness to the burger.
If you have leftovers, it’s great dipped with pita chips or also goes well on any deli sandwich or served over grilled chicken!
Mixed all together they make a great creamy sauce. While I added cheese to my burger, this sauce can actually take the place of cheese if you want to leave it off entirely.
Making the avocado relish topping
Again, you could use any guacamole for this layer on these homemade burgers, or just use fresh sliced avocado, but this avocado relish is a nice twist (and good with chips obviously if you have leftovers).
I just mashed everything together for this and kept it pretty chunky with lots of cilantro and shallot and seasoned really well with salt and pepper. It is a perfect burger topping in my opinion!
Cooking the Green Goddess Burgers
Obviously, the best thing to do is grill the burgers. If you don’t have a grill though, you could definitely do these in a pan also.
Grill them over high heat for 4-5 minutes per side for a medium burger and you can add cheese during the last minute or so if you want (but it’s optional).
Once the burgers are done, slather one side of the bun with the green goddess dressing and the other side with guacamole.
How to garnish your green goddess burger
Obviously you could use any of your favorite burger toppings for these, but I like to keep it green like the name so I went with sprouts and baby spinach. Other ideas:
- Baby Kale
- Fresh herbs like basil
- Thin sliced cucumber
- chopped green peppers or jalapenos
In all seriousness though, it’s a delicious burger and very different than anything you’ll find at a fast food place!
What to serve with these homemade burgers
The world is wide open when it comes to serving ideas for these burgers. Since you have the grill on making this whipped cream cheese dip is always a good appetizer. You could also serve it with chips or french fries. Any chip is fine, but if you want to kick it up a notch you could try these homemade spicy chips! Also a good side salad like this pearl couscous salad would be great!
Green Goddess Burgers
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 6 Slices havarti cheese
- 6 Hamburger buns
Green Goddess Yogurt Sauce:
- 2 cups Greek yogurt
- ½ lemon, juice only
- 4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
- ½ Cup fresh parsley, minced
- Pinch of salt and pepper
Avocado Relish:
- 2 avocados
- 1 shallots, minced
- 1 jalapenos, seeded and minced
- Handful fresh cilantro, minced
- 1 limes, juice only
- Pinch of salt
Toppings:
- Baby spinach
- Sprouts
Instructions
- For green goddess sauce, mix ingredients in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Can be made in advance.
- For avocado relish, dice ingredients finely and mix.
- For burgers, make 6 1/3 pound burgers. Season well with salt and pepper.
- Grill burgers over high heat for 4-5 minutes per side. Add cheese in last minute of cooking if you are using.
- Grill buns and assemble burgers with a smear of yogurt sauce and baby spinach, grilled burgers, and top with avocado relish and sprouts.
Shanti
Wait, you can make your own ground beef in the food processor? I always thought I needed a grinder so I never tried. Now just to figure out if it's worth it since I'm getting grass fed ground beef for $3.19/lb at my Farmer's market, and I got a 20lb share this winter for $50. How much better is the taste?
Nick
If you have a good ground beef source like that, then probably not much. I actually think it's more of a texture thing. I don't like my ground beef to be mushy which sometimes over-processed ground beef can be. Doing it this way allows you to make it the texture you want.
CGCouture
So I'm confused…is it healthier because of the leaner beef, the grilling, or the toppings? Because we eat grilled burgers that come from my parents beef (best in the world! Not that I'm biased ;-), and I only put ketchup on mine (I'm kind of boring like that).
Nick
Haha… I'm not sure that my version is AS healthy as his… I should've cut back on the fat a bit. The toppings are definitely healthier though and whole wheat bun! :) At the end of the day, it's still a hamburger…
Meister@NervousCook
Maybe instead of trying to label something like a burger as "healthy," what we should focus on is encouraging people to eat fewer of them, but make those fewer be better. So that instead of eliminating or (possibly worse) miss-marketing certain foods in the interest of healthy diets, we should make them occasional treats — that are *really* treats!
That way, your 30% fat wouldn't matter in the slightest, and you'd still get to fire up the grill & have a bunch of great burgers with pals sometimes. Naw'mean?
Jon&Gail
Had these tonight made with ground turkey (seasoned with cilantro, parsley & a splash of Frank's hot sauce) and a side salad of cucumbers, blueberries, feta cheese with a white balsamic vinagrette…awsome summer dinner after a 100 degree day! Love the guac and green godess sauces!.
Grilled Peach Salad with Burrata and Balsamic Dressing – som2nypost
[…] I think it would be best alongside grilled items like grilled fish, steakhouse burgers, or these green goddess burgers! […]