The Best Greek Burger (Gyro Burger)

The best Greek burger (Gyro Burger) is a juicy tasty burger recipe that tastes just like a gyro! An easy to make unique burger with all the Greek flavors you love! This grilled lamb burger is sugar-free, gluten-free, low carb, and keto too!

Recipe Video

Why You'll Love This Gyro Burger

I may be biased, but I LOVE this burger, and so does my family! I tested it three times to get it perfect and they went nuts over it. They were certainly happy I served the burgers multiple times in one week. LOL! 🙂 -Kori

Tastes Just Like a Gyro - Maybe Even Better?

I love Greek food, so I've tasted my fair share of gyros. With the chargrilled taste that these burgers have, along with the melted feta cheese, herbs, peppers, and onions inside the burger - this has so much flavor! More even than a typical gyro 🙂 Give it a try!

Tasty Burger Recipe That is Out of The Ordinary

Try something new! This tasty burger recipe is not your normal burger, but after you make it you will wonder why you haven't had it yet! 

Low Carb and Keto Burger

If you are following a low-carb or keto diet, this burger fits the bill. With only 1.7 grams of net carbs and 34.9 grams of fat (coming from lamb, olive oil, and feta cheese), this is a great burger option to try. It also works well if you are in a house with mixed dietary needs (which is totally my house). See below for low-carb/ketogenic options for what to serve with the gyro burger. 

If, for some reason, you need to make some changes, you can reduce protein by making your patty smaller. You can increase fat by adding cheese as a topping, you can add some olive oil with some tzatziki sauce and serve on top too. 

34.9 g fat | 1.7 g net carbs | 20.7 g protein

What Is A Gyro?

A Gyro is a delicious Greek wrap or "sandwich" typically wrapped or stuffed in pita bread. The meat filling is often made with seasoned ground lamb or thinly sliced roasted lamb, or a ground lamb and beef seasoned mixture.

You can also find it made with chicken or beef. While there are many variations (as every cook likes to put their own stamp on things), the Gyro may also include lettuce, tomatoes, olives, red onion, feta cheese, and tzatziki sauce. 

How Do You Pronounce Gyro?

Gyro pronunciation varies depending on where you are. In Greece, the G is silent, and so it is pronounced like "Euro". In other words (in my non-webster dictionary explanation), it sounds very similar to "YEAR-OH". In English, however,  the G is not silent, so it is often pronounced as JY-ROH.

Out of habit, I pronounce it with the G silent, but I've pronounced it both ways when ordering in restaurants here in the U.S. and have never had any issues. There is no right or wrong way. If you're in Europe, definitely pronounce with the G silent. 🙂 

How to Serve

Here are some serving ideas for lamb burgers:

What To Serve the Greek Burgers On:

Low carb options:

• Low carb pita bread
• Low carb wraps
• Chaffle made with a mild white cheese
• Wrap in lettuce
• Serve over a simple salad

Other bread options:

• Pita bread or pockets
• Bread rounds (like Arnold's bread rounds)
• Hamburger buns
• Brioche buns
• Flour Tortillas

Best Lamb Burger Toppings:

Honestly, add whatever toppings sound good to you. Make it like a regular American style burger if you want it would go well with cheddar cheese, tomatoes, onion, and all the typical burger topping. To make it more like an authentic Greek burger, these are my favorite toppings:

• Lettuce (arugula is really good - it adds a bit of a peppery taste)
• Tomato slices
• Red onion slices
• Diced kalamata olives 
• Tzatziki sauce. Make your own tzatziki sauce - it's SO GOOD!
• Feta cheese (the burgers have feta cheese in them already, but you may be one of those who can never have enough cheese - like my husband from Wisconsin. LOL!)
• You could also thinly slice a cucumber. Since I use tzatziki sauce and it is made with cucumber I typically skip the cuke slices. 

Sides That Go Great with Gyro Burgers:

There are so many things that you could serve with a Greek gyro burger! 

• A simple green salad with lettuce, tomato, onion, olives, cucumber, and feta. For the salad dressing use tzatziki sauce or a cucumber dill dressing.
• The thing I absolutely love to serve alongside the burger is a good Greek Salad. Here is my recipe and it would be a perfect side dish to the Greek burger! Best Greek Salad Recipe
• Grilled corn on the cob (not low carb)
• Buffalo cauliflower is a flavorful side that you might enjoy.
• Grilled squash and zucchini tossed with a little olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper. 
• Zucchini Carpacchio - a super easy side dish. I would sub the goat cheese for feta, and sub fresh oregano, or mix oregano and thyme. YUM!
• Grilled romaine hearts. So good.

What You'll Need

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 cup red onion
• 1/4 cup bell pepper
• 1 tsp garlic, minced
• 1 lb ground lamb
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 tsp ground marjoram
• 1 tsp rosemary, dried
• 1 tsp oregano, dried 
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• optional toppings: tzatziki sauce, lettuce, tomato, red onion, diced kalamata olives, and more feta.

Tools

• A grill or grill pan (you can also cook in a skillet)
• Skillet
• Grilling tools such as a long-handle spatula
• Instant read thermometer
• Large bowl
• Parchment paper or wax paper
• Measuring cups
• Measuring spoons

How To Make

1. In a skillet over medium-high heat, saute green bell pepper and onion in the olive oil until soft. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. 
2. In a large bowl, mix ground lamb, pepper, and onion mixture (with olive oil and all pan juices included), garlic, egg, feta cheese, marjoram, rosemary, oregano, salt, and pepper together until blended.
3. Divide meat into 4 portions (a little more than 1/2 cup for each portion). Press into 1/2" thick patties. 
4. Preheat grill to 450 and 500º (high heat). Place patties on the grill and cook for 3 minutes. Flip the patties, and continue grilling for an additional 3- 5 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 160°. 

For more tips on how to make these Greek gyro burgers see the Helpful Hints section below!

Top Tips

• Make your burgers a constant size by measuring the ground meat mixture. I've found that a "slightly heaping" 1/2 cup full of gyro burger mixture makes them very close in size.
• Make your patties 1/2" thick the lay your meat on parchment, wax paper, or nonstick foil square, to easily place them on the grill and keep them from sticking to each other.
• The key to a good burger is fat content. You do not want meat that is too lean. The olive oil that you use to cook the pepper and onion is added to the ground lamb. The feta cheese also adds more fat. If you 
• Use an instant read thermometer to test doneness. Cook the burgers for 3 minutes, flip, then after 3 more minutes start checking the first burgers you set on the grill. After this the temperature goes up quickly so keep your eye on them. Ground lamb safe temperature is 160º. See "Common Questions" below for more information.
• Try not to poke or smoosh your burgers after you start cooking them (except to check their temperature). This releases the moist juices! 

FAQs

Here are the most common questions we get asked about the Greek gyro burgers. 

What temperature should lamb be cooked to?

Ground lamb should be cooked to 160º per the USDA Safe Minimum Internal Temperature Guidelines. In general, ground meats like ground beef, lamb, pork should be cooked to 160º. They are always cooked to a higher temperature than whole cuts because there is more opportunity for bad bacterial growth in ground meats.

In case you want to know, ground poultry like chicken and turkey should be cooked to 165º. 

Can I substitute ground beef or mix some ground beef and lamb?

Yes, absolutely! Keep in mind that lamb has a very distinct flavor and that is the reason for choosing it for this burger. However, mixing beef and lamb or even making these with all ground beef would still be great. You would end up with a slightly different flavor than the recipe intended - but it would still be darn good. Use meat that is 80/20 for best flavor!

The Best Greek Burger (Gyro Burger)

The Best Greek Burger! A juicy tasty burger recipe that tastes just like a gyro. An easy to make unique burger with all the Greek flavors you love! This gyro burger is sugar-free, gluten-free, low carb, and keto too!

4.63 from 8 votes

Print Recipe Save Saved!

Author Kori Butler

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Course Main Dish Recipes

Cuisine American | Greek

Servings 4 servings

Calories 409 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ ¼ cup red onion
• ▢ ¼ cup bell pepper
• ▢ 1 teaspoon garlic (minced)
• ▢ 1 pound ground lamb
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ ¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
• ▢ 1 teaspoon rosemary (dried)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon oregano (dried)
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground marjoram
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon pepper
• ▢ optional toppings: tzatziki sauce (lettuce, tomato, red onion, diced kalamata olives, and more feta.)

Instructions

 

• In a skillet over medium-high heat, saute green bell pepper and onion in the olive oil until soft. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. 
• In a large bowl, mix ground lamb, pepper and onion mixture (with olive oil and all pan juices included), garlic, egg, feta cheese, marjoram, rosemary, oregano, salt, and pepper, together until blended.
• Divide meat into 4 equal portions. Press into 1/2" thick patties. 
• Preheat grill to between 450 and 500º (high heat). Place patties on the grill and cook for 3 minutes. Flip the burgers and continue grilling for an additional 3- 5 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 160°. 
  
  

Video

Kori's Tips

Helpful Hints

• Cut 4 squares of parchment paper or nonstick foil and press patties on to foil. This makes placing on the grill easier and keeps the burgers from sticking to each other.
• Use an instant-read thermometer to test doneness.
• Serving the burgers with tzatziki sauce is one of the best ways to eat this burger. It isn't quite a gyro burger without it. 🙂

Nutrition

Serving: 1burgerCalories: 409kcalCarbohydrates: 2.4gProtein: 20.7gFat: 34.9gCholesterol: 129mgSodium: 667mgFiber: 0.7gSugar: 0.9g

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Gyro burgers taste just like the popular Greek recipe but as burgers on the grill so you get that nice chargrilled taste! A juicy lamb burger gyro recipe that everyone will go nuts over! I'm always looking for a unique grilled burger recipe! Served over lettuce this burger is a great low carb, gluten free, keto burger. #gyros #gyroburger #grilling #burgersongrill #bbq #burgers #burgerrecipe #lambburger #lowcarb #keto #ketogenic #feta #sugarfree #glutenfree