I stand corrected! When people ask me what to do with an organ meat blend, I usually tell them not to make burgers. But Sarah changed my mind. This creative recipe has enough savory flavors to save the day. I’m excited to share this quick and easy recipe for the Best Kidney Burgers!
When Unfamiliar = Strong
Organ meats are delicious. And so is kimchi. But if you’ve never had these foods before, they can be unfamiliar – and strong! Along those lines, adding an organ meat blend to a flavorful dish – like tacos or Bolognese – is a better option.
When my friend Sarah told me she was making a kidney/ground beef blend, I was excited. It’s such an easy way to eat nose-to-tail with all its benefits. When she told me she was making burgers, I thought “uh, oh.” Yet, by the time I responded, she’d already made the burgers and left a message that they were delicious!
Wait, what? My family would probably eat kidney burgers, but not necessarily someone who had never eaten kidney before. I had to try them out. What did she do?
Sarah’s Best Kidney Burgers
Alas, Sarah had co-oped a ‘best burger’ recipe for her blend. It was savory with many seasonings – exactly what I would suggest for an organ meat blend. She nailed it.
After my own family gobbled these up, I knew that I had to share!
Quick ✔️ Easy ✔️ Delicious ✔️ Thank you, Sarah!
Years ago, when I started this site, I only dreamed of creating a community that shares my passion. Until then, it was a lonely road! Thank you for being here!
Sarah's Best Kitchen-Sink Kidney Burgers
Ingredients
- 1 beef kidney, trimmed of connective membranes
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 1 egg, mixed in a bowl
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 T garlic powder
- 1 t soy sauce
- 1 t Worcestershire sauce
- 1 t dried parsley or 1 T fresh
- 1 t basil
- 1 t oregano
- 1 t rosemary
- 1 t salt
- 1/2 t pepper
Instructions
- Cut kidney in large cubes and pulse in food processor until it resembles ground beef.
- Add kidney to ground beef along with remaining ingredients - egg, onion, garlic, garlic powder, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, basil, oregano, rosemary, salt and pepper. (Note: if omitting either the soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce, increase salt by 1/2 teaspoon for each omission.)
- Mix well by hand and form into patties.
- Grill for 4-6 minutes (depending on the size of your patties) before flipping for another minute or two.
- Serve with your favorite fixings!
sounds great. in other recipes on your website I saw a preparation of kidney (soaking or pre-boiling) is it needed also here?
I ask because as I did with heart, I want to thaw it, then blend it as ground meat, and freeze in 100gram bags. in that way preparation would not be so possible I believe.. any ideas?
my partener goes along with the heartY bolognese / meatballs, liver is too much, and I am trying to integrate more organs 🙂
Hi Lena,
Such a thoughtful question! Nope, I don’t do any of the other soaking/prep when I blend kidney – I just rely on the spices of the dish and it usually comes out great. As you noticed, I do more prep when I am serving it whole, but that’s not always necessary either ;).
Go for it – these hamburgers are great. We also do a lot of tacos and bolognese with ground kidney, too. I actually think that kidney is more mild than liver, especially in a blend.
Good for you supporting your farmers and going straight to the source for the good stuff! Keep it up!
xo
Janine
Thanks!!
with liver I couldn’t blend, my partner couldnt stad the taste 🙂
but beef heart goes into a hearty bolognese, and meatballs. we’ll give a try to kidney variations 🙂
thanks for the wonderful website!!