Homemade Turkey Sausage

Homemade turkey sausage

​The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 7 mins
Total: 22 mins
Servings: 16 servings
Yield: 16 sausages

This delicious turkey mixture makes flavorful patties that you can use as breakfast sausages or as quick lunches and dinners. Made out of turkey breast and thighs, the patties have a lot of flavor and texture. Although leaner than their pork or beef counterparts, they're still juicy and packed with flavor. Ground turkey, dry herbs, and salt and pepper make an easy mixture that you simply need to pan-fry and serve. Mix, shape, cook, and serve in under 25 minutes—this is an ideal recipe for busy households. Serve with eggs and avocado for a low-carb keto-friendly meal. Place in mini burger buns for cute little sandwiches, or roll in wraps with lettuce and mayo for an easy and tasty to-go meal.

These patties are versatile, budget-friendly, and can feed many if you serve them with other nutritious, low-cost foods like brown rice and in-season vegetables. If you don't need all the patties for one meal and have leftovers, place them in zip-top bags and keep them in the freezer for up to 3 months. These make a great last-minute meal with some noodles or mashed potatoes. The mixture also makes a great turkey burger—just shape them a little bigger to fit a standard burger bun. Because they don't have eggs, dairy, or breadcrumbs acting as binders, these are also allergy-friendly and gluten-free.

If you are keen on spice, add more cayenne pepper to the mixture, but taste test first by mixing the recipe as-is and cooking a little piece before adding more cayenne. Experiment with your own spicy additions like chili flakes or serve spicy sauces on the side for each guest to season to taste. The mixture can be made and shaped ahead. Place it in the fridge until it's time to cook and save some vital minutes for your busy day.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds ground turkey, half turkey breasts and half turkey thighs

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 3/4 teaspoon black pepper

  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme

  • 1 teaspoon dried sage, crumbled

  • 1/4 teaspoon allspice

  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

  • Optional: 1/4 teaspoon onion powder

  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or 1/4 teaspoon for a spicier sausage

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients for homemade turkey sausage
    ​The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
  2. In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients and mix well to blend thoroughly.

    Meat in bowl
    ​The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
  3. Wetting your hands frequently to prevent the sausage from sticking, shape the mixture into 1 1/2- to 2-ounces sausages, or as desired.

    Make patties
    ​The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
  4. Heat a griddle or large skillet and cook the sausages, turning to brown both sides, for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until thoroughly cooked. The minimum safe temperature for ground poultry is 165 F/73.9 C.

    Heat a griddle
    ​The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
  5. Serve immediately or allow the patties to cool off and transfer to food storage bags and freeze.

    Homemade turkey sausage
    ​The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
  6. Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
111 Calories
7g Fat
0g Carbs
11g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 16
Amount per serving
Calories 111
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 7g 10%
Saturated Fat 2g 10%
Cholesterol 45mg 15%
Sodium 168mg 7%
Total Carbohydrate 0g 0%
Dietary Fiber 0g 0%
Total Sugars 0g
Protein 11g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 24mg 2%
Iron 1mg 5%
Potassium 120mg 3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)