The Intrepid Eater’s Top 10 Burger Recipes

Burgers can be made with more than just beef!

Here are 10 of my favourite wild burgers from the Intrepid Eater archives. From fish to wild mushrooms, big game to waterfowl, these burgers draw inspiration from all around the world, but were made with ingredients I found close to home. I hope you enjoy!

In no particular order:

#1: Moroccan Lake Trout Burger

These delicious lake trout burgers are the perfect thing to make with some of your big catch.

By creating chopped trout and trout paste, then combining them with some breadcrumbs, you can achieve a wonderful burger texture without the use of other binders like egg, which creates a strange texture.

#2: Caesar Chicken of the Woods Burger

Since chicken of the woods resembles real chicken so much, it makes a great stand-in for chicken in recipes. That inspired me to make these Caesar chicken of the woods burgers.

For this recipe, you’ll want to use only the freshest of specimens—no pale, dry mushrooms here. If you cut the mushroom off of where it’s growing and it begins dripping water onto your hands, you know you’ve got the good stuff.

#3: El Ciervo Diablo – Spicy Venison Burger

Watch out! This hot and spicy venison burger is liable to set your head on fire!

Every once in a while, I like to masochistically challenge myself by eating something stupidly spicy. I’ve never truly understood why I (and many others) get these cravings which provide nothing but hurt… Must be something broken in our brains!

#4: Venison Falafel Burgers with Feta and Tzatziki

This recipe was years in the making. I visited Jordan in 2019, and one of the many highlights from my trip there was a falafel shop in Amman that sold the best falafel sandwiches I’d ever tried. It really put the falafel shops back home to shame. As I watched the talented man whipping up and frying dozens of falafel at a time, I thought to myself, falafel are good on their own, but wouldn’t they taste fantastic with meat?

I’ve been meaning to carry that thought through into action for years now, and I finally did it. The result? Deliciousness – and even better since it’s venison!

#5: Moose Burgers on Bannock Buns with Chanterelles and Cranberry Ketchup

These smokey moose burgers have bacon ground in with the moose meat, are stuffed with ramp butter, seasoned with spruce salt, topped with cranberry ketchup and sautéed chanterelles, and served on special bannock buns!

#6: Buffalo Buffalo Burgers

Yeah, yeah, it’s technically bison, not buffalo, but how could you possibly name this dish anything else?

Ground bison meat has a bold enough flavor that it not only can stand up to the piquant Buffalo sauce, it’s actually flattered by it. Blue cheese, another big, bold flavor, fits in nicely as well, proving that three isn’t always a crowd. The cheese and sauce are also there to help add some extra moisture and richness to what is generally a very lean meat.

#7: South African Boerewors Burgers with Chakalaka and Slap Chips

These burgers aren’t traditionally South African, but they are made up of elements that are.

The first, boerewors, is an Afrikaner farmer’s sausage made from beef or game meat and seasoned liberally with coriander seed, and sometimes cloves, allspice, and nutmeg. I took boerewors ingredients and turned them into a burger instead of the traditional sausage.

The second, chakalaka, is a type of spicy relish or side that is also served at braais along with the meat. It usually consists of onions, peppers, cabbage, carrots, and canned beans, which are all mixed and cooked down with curry spice. Turns out, this makes a great burger topping!

#8: Aussie Kangaroo Burgers with the Lot

I came across some ground kangaroo meat recently, and even though I didn’t harvest it myself from the wild (the flight to Australia seemed a little long for a burger recipe…) I thought it would be a fun inclusion to the Intrepid Eater recipe catalogue.

If I was to make a kangaroo burger, I figured I’d better do it the way the Aussies do and make it with “the lot”.

A burger with the lot, best eaten on the beach, is a mile-high burger with loads of toppings that must include pineapple, beet, bacon, and a fried runny egg. Other toppings like onions, lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, chili sauce, and ketchup sauce are more than welcome too.

Pineapple and beets on a burger?! The combination may sound odd, but it actually works!

#9: Juicy Wild Turkey Burgers with Herby Aioli

Between the mayonnaise and the panade, my turkey burgers came out fantastically – juicy, soft, and still tasting like wild turkey. The herby aioli was the final touch that brought the burgers from yummy to delicious!

#10: Green Chile Snow Goose Burgers

Any green chile burger is great, but made with wild snow goose? It’s like the perfect grass-fed beef burger with even more flavour.

Sky carp? More like hamburger of the sky!

Bonus:

Listen to our Wild Burger episode of the Wild Fish and Game Podcast to learn everything you need to know about making wild burgers!