Summertime, and the living is easy, barbecues flames are jumping, and the price of beef is high.
According to the Chicago-headquartered National Restaurant Association’s What’s Hot 2014 Culinary Forecast, almost half of 1,300 chefs surveyed recently in the United States said that gourmet or specialty burgers are a hot trend. However, with the US Department of Agriculture reporting beef prices at record highs, Richie Jenkins, Butterball Foodservice’s senior director of marketing, is reminding restaurant operators that menuing turkey burgers will help keep their food costs in check.
Turkey is in a prime position to meet the demand for a flavorful, low-cost alternative, to beef, according to Garner, North Carolina-headquartered Butterball, the world’s largest vertically integrated turkey processor. Its foodservice division is gearing up promotion of a full line of turkey burgers that are easily customizable to fit a wide variety of flavor profiles and satisfy taste preferences of patrons.
Among the offerings are: All American Grill Turkey Burger (dark meat with a classic grilled flavor); Savory White Turkey Burger (made especially for health-conscious diners, it features top-grade white meat); All Natural Turkey Thigh Burger (made from 100% thigh meat, this is Butterball’s most premium burger); Mediterranean Turkey Burger (white meat, lightly seasoned with garlic and pepper).
In addition, Butterball ground turkey can serve as the foundation for chefs to prepare their own signature burgers. For example, it can be combined with ground beef to create a healthier, less costly alternative to traditional burgers. Among recipes suggested are: Three Philosophers Sliders (distinct flavor profiles of sour, salty and sweet), and Hawaiian Turkey Burger (grilled pineapple, cucumber, arugula, green onion and sweet soy sauce).