[FTC Standard Disclosure] We received no compensation for this post. I am fortunate to cook with the Flavor Anonymous guys at Memphis in May each year and recently they were kind enough to send me a box of their exciting rubs and seasonings.
Hungry? How about this triple-decker smash burger with bacon and layers of roasted jalapeno cream sauce?
Don't panic, that's not as big as it looks - it's only a slider. A slider with a half-pound of beef on it but still a slider.
The Gringo Jalapeno sauce is a cream sauce with fire-roasted jalapeno and the Dirty Gringo rub from Flavor Anonymous. This rub has Southwestern flavors with smoky chiles that bring a lot of flavor to this sauce. I originally made it as a dip for hot wings but it also goes great on burgers.
Gringo Jalapeno Sauce for Wings and Burgers
Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup half and half
1 jalapeno, fire-roasted, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
[FTC Standard Disclosure] We received no compensation for this post.
The black and blue burger, a burger topped with blue cheese, is one of the classic burgers. You either love them or hate them. I'm a lover of these pungent flavored burgers, they make my mouth water like a car hitting a fire hydrant.
I did a spin on this time-honored burger for happy hour tonight. Some folks are wary of blue cheese because of the intense flavor. Instead of the typical blue cheese crumbles, a thick, creamy gorgonzola sauce graced our burgers. The milder flavor works better on a burger for me.
This burger is bursting with flavor! The sharp taste of the cheese sauce, the smoky/salty bacon, and fresh ground chuck patty make this a spectacular burger.
I start off making the cheese sauce because I like to give it time to rest and thicken. That way it stays on top of the burger on the grill instead of dripping off into the flames below.
[FTC Standard Disclaimer] We received no compensation for this post; however, we utilize Amazon Affiliate links to partially offset our costs.
We have made a boatload of juicy and delicious burgers this Summer, and this Hatch and Guac Burger is among the best of them.
It's a 6-ounce beef patty cooked on a coal-fired griddle to get the grilled taste but with a flavor-delivering crust of which Maillard himself would be proud. We put it on a bed of mixed greens and topped it with fire-roasted Hatch chiles, a slice of Grainger County tomato, homemade guacamole, and fried tortilla strips.
But a great burger isn't just about toppings and condiments. For me, a phenomenal burger patty starts with two factors -
the freshness of the grind and
the cuts used in the grind.
We used brisket and sirloin for the ground beef that we used for these burgers. Let's talk about grinding before jumping into the recipe.
[FTC Standard Disclosure] I received no compensation for this post.
We get so busy "doing" on the weekends that we'll often eat lunch so late that we just combine it with an early dinner. Do you do that? That's what we did last weekend when we made these classic, big honkin' Cowboy Burgers for our lunch-dinner.
This elbow-dripping burger starts with an 8-ounce patty of fresh ground beef and is loaded with smoky cheddar cheese, crispy bacon, bourbon-laden BBQ sauce, fried onions, and homemade spicy pickles.
As always, I have my cooking notes, tips, and more mouth-watering pictures below the recipe. Enjoy!
[FTC Standard Disclousre] I receive no compensation for this post.
Have you ever had the Louisiana side dish Maque Choux? It's a creamy, delicious, and slightly spicy corn dish that I learned from a Cajun friend that relocated to Knoxville after Hurricane Katrina.
I was thinking about this recipe and it occurred to me that it is pretty close to Tex-Mex style dishes. I made a few tweaks and turned it into a Tex-Mex Style Maque Choux. We made some burgers featuring a chorizo and beef blend patty, so I thought the Maque Choux would be a fabulous accompaniment. Here is what we did for this cook.
After making this recipe a third time in less than a month, it dawned on me that Tex-Mex Style Maque Choux is really just a form of Mexican grilled street corn (aka Elote) taken off of the cob. So call it Tex-Mex Maque Choux or call it Elote, I don't care.
[FTC Standard Disclosure] I received no compensation for this post from anyone, including, but not limited to: Sargento, Food City, Kingsford, PK Grill, or JJ George. I'm just linking the stuff I paid for and used.
If you follow any burger threads on social media, you know that the trendy thing is towering stacks of half a dozen smash burgers, dripping with cheese. They look amazing, but for me, they are over-the-top. I'm not a snake with a jaw that I can un-hinge at will.
This burger is simple and doesn't look like much. It doesn't even have a shred of lettuce. But this was the best burger that I have had in the past couple of years. It's a straightforward ground chuck patty, a seasoned slice of tomato, grilled onions, aged Gouda, mayo, toasted bun, and sorghum-bourbon bacon.
[FTC Standard Disclosure] I received no compensation for this post. Obviously, I benefit from the sale of my second book that is linked.
This past week, I got to spend time with my parents and siblings in my hometown. I have been teaching grilling classes, judging at BBQ contests, and other grilling events every weekend. As fun as those are, the constant go, go, going on weekends can start to feel like a grind. This week was a chance to recharge and stoke that inner fire.
My parents were inbound from an all-day drive from the mountains, so my sister and I thought we would make them dinner. Growing up, I always loved it when we had burgers on our grill that my dad had made from an abandoned beer keg. My mom would often make her sweet and tangy BBQ baked beans. So, Rhonda and I decided on burgers and BBQ beans, specifically, Pimento Cheese Burgers.
A backyard classic - burgers, bbq beans, and chips.
For the beans, we have Alexis' #1 Barbecue Beans recipe in The Offset Smoker Cookbook. That is a spectacular recipe, and it won Alexis her first First Place at competitions. But my mom varied her bean recipe all the time, and they were all good. So Rhonda and I decided to wing it and just made this one from what we had on hand.
We happened to have some "seasoning bacon" from Rhonda's home-cured, home-smoked bacon. That's the ends that you cut off to square the edges of the slab of bacon. Typically, we would use chopped smoked pork or brisket.
[FTC Disclaimer] Certifed Angus Beef® Brand is a sponsor; however, this isn't one of their sponsored posts.
I had a craving for a good burger this weekend. Despite the soaking rain, I fired up one of my kamado grills and made a favorite of ours - the BLAT Burger.
Yeah, that's a horrible name, but that's what we call it at our house.
It started out being a BLT burger long time ago.
Then it morphed into a club sandwich burger by adding grilled turkey.
Finally, I swapped the tomato out for avocado and added the pepper jack cheese.
I'm not doing a recipe for this post because I think you get the basic idea from the pictures.
I grilled these on the flat side of my GrillGrates, instead of straight grilling them. I just wanted a hot, flat surface. I could have also used my Little Griddle, a cast iron griddle insert for my Craycort grates, a cast iron skillet, or my flat top grill.
Griddling the turkey does 2 things. It warms it up, and it creates the Maillard reaction that makes the flavor.
For the burgers, I used Schweid and Sons C.A.B. All American burgers that we bought at Food City. They also sell The One Percenter, which is the same thing except made with USDA Prime Certified Angus Beef. These are my preferred burger patties when I'm not making them myself.
I grill my burgers in the 450-500f range and do 4 minutes per side. I don't worry about using oil on the GrillGrates. The seasoning is enough, and the burgers will only stick if they aren't ready to flip yet.
Grill marks look good on a burger, but the crust from a hot flat surface is unbeatable, IMO. When I flipped the burger, I seasoned this side with finely ground salt and pepper.
[FTC Disclaimer] No compensation was paid for this post, and full price was paid for the products.
We smoked a couple of hams over the holidays, and this one was a solid winner.
I started with a smoked boneless ham. This particular one was an applewood smoked ham packed for Sam's by Smithfield. I like these or one of their Smokehouse Reserve hams when Sam's has them. They don't stock them all of the time but when they do we grab a few.
I lightly wiped it with a little peanut oil, perhaps a tablespoon, and then seasoned it heavily with Gentry's Ham Bone BBQ Seasoning. This is a new rub, at least it is to me. It is a sweet rub with the warmth of cinnamon and all-spice that pairs perfectly with ham.
I smoked it with more applewood on a large Big Green Egg. I was using a spider rig/stone/drip pan combo. No particular reason for that versus a plate setter, it was just what I had nearby. I'm using Craycort grates as usual. I went at 275°f for about 1 hour and then foiled it for the second hour.
While the ham cooked, I made a thin glaze of more Ham Bone, Dr Pepper, and Jim Beam Apple. Alexis picked up that miniature at some point, and it seemed like a good use here. You could probably just use any bourbon, but the apple flavored bourbon worked well here.
This cheese burger is a bit over the top with gooey Oaxacan cheese, spicy chorizo chili, and deep fried slices of avocado.
But this burger needed to be a bit over the top because Kita at Girl Carnivore is hosting a Burger Month with an epic burger every day of August. Yes, the official Burger Month is in May but is one month really enough for burgers?
Kita is on the Char-Broil All Star Bloggers with me and she also knows a thing or two about burgers. She and Clint Cantwell (Grillocracy) teamed up and kicked the rest of the food bloggers' butts in the best custom burger grind competition at the Certified Angus Beef #GrillTalk session this summer. So I wanted this burger to be extra special to make up for the crushing emptiness that I felt in my burger soul after that humbling defeat! (Kidding, we all get along great and it was all in good fun. Plus they cheated:) )
Here is why I picked the Tex-Mex characters that I did.
Chorizo
I love the edge that chorizo brings to a chili sauce for burgers and dogs. This is the raw style Mexican chorizo, not the cured, hard Spanish style. It is highly seasoned and packs a flavorful punch without being too spicy.
Oaxcan Cheese
The Oaxacan style cheese is what we call Mexican mozzarella - it's semi-soft, has a mild buttery taste, and is an excellent melting cheese. That makes it a perfect candidate for cheeseburgers. I've seen this cheese even at Walmart so hopefully you can get your hands on some. If not, you can substitute mozzarella or maybe some thin sliced pepper jack cheese.
Deep Fried Avocado
Ahh the deep fried avocado slices. We got this idea from a food truck that was selling fried avocado tacos and man, were they fantastic! The crispy texture contrasts the chili and cheese. The richness helps tame the spiciness of the chili sauce. You could just use avocado slices without frying but if you have time, it's worth deep frying!
Chorizo Chili Burger with Deep Fried Avocado Slices
www.nibblemethis.com
Published 08/25/2015
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds ground chuck
salt, pepper, and granulated garlic to taste
4 hamburger buns
4 ounces Oaxacan cheese
For The Deep Fried Avocados
1 avocado, seeded, peeled, and sliced lengthwise
1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon fajita seasoning or taco seasoning
2 eggs lightly beaten with 2 tablespoons cold water
Make the Deep Fried Avocados. Preheat oil between 350 and 375°F. Season the flour with fajita seasoning, coat avocado slices, and knock off excess. Dip in the egg wash and then roll in the bread crumbs. Carefully deep fry until golden, 60 - 90 seconds and remove to a resting rack. Season with salt to taste as soon as each batch comes out.
Make the chili. Place all chili ingredients in a medium saucepan over a medium high heat burner. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer, stirring and breaking up the pieces of meat. It should take about 45 minutes to reduce to a chili sauce consistency. Taste for seasoning and add more salt/pepper if desired. If you want more heat, kick in some of your favorite hot sauce.
Preheat your grill to 450°F. Obviously the grates should be scrubbed clean and spritzed with a high temp oil just before the burgers go on.
Keeping the meat as cold as possible and handling as little as possible, form the ground chuck into four 6 oz patties. Sprinkle some salt, pepper, and granulated garlic over the patties only right before they go on.
Grill the burgers until the brown color creeps up the edges and liquid starts to push out of the tops - about 4-5 minutes. Flip and cook another two minutes. Top with slices of the cheese, close the grill lid, and cook until the burgers reach an internal temp of 160°F - about another 2-3 minutes. Remove to a resting rack. [If you know the risks and know how to mitigate them by grinding your own meat, feel free to cook them to medium rare instead.]
Toast your buns. Lightly brush the buns with some melted butter and toast on the grill until slightly crispy and brown.
Yield: 4 Big Booty Burgers
Make sure that your oil is at temp before dropping the avocados in or you will get a soggy, nasty mess. A trusty Thermapen or other super fast read thermometer is your best bet for checking this out.
I hate deep frying inside the house because of the lingering odors, that is why I love using my grill's side burner for deep frying outside.
Waiting to season the burgers at the last minute keeps the salt from drawing moisture out. Salt, pepper, and garlic are fine, but I cheated and used my NMT Beef Rub (black pepper, green pepper, garlic, onion, bell peppers, oregano, salt) for a bit more flavor.
This isn't a sponsored post but I have to say that I have really enjoyed my Char-Broil Commercial Series gas grill this summer. The TRU-Infrared panels and cast iron grates deliver even, powerful heat without drying out my food - unlike any gas grills I have used in the past. For a charcoal and wood guy, I have been really impressed with this gasser. If you're in the market for a gas grill, you should check these out at Lowe's.
The sizzle and smoke of grilling burgers is a part of summer magic, whether it's something a bit involved like this recipe or something as simple as a plain grilled burger.
The Oaxacan cheese is from the Oaxaca state of Mexico. It is rich, buttery, and melts easily. It is great on burgers, in queso sauce, and casseroles.
I liked to put my burgers on a resting rack when they come off. If they go directly on a flat surface like a plate, the heat gets trapped and will create a steaming effect on the bottom, making it easier to lose juices.
This was a fantastic burger. More involved than your usual cheeseburger but well worth it.
So put this burger on your "try soon" list and hop over to Girl Carnivore to see a month's worth of killer burgers.
[FTC Standard Disclaimer] We received no compensation for this post, but I am a member of the Char-Broil All Stars and they are a sponsor. Thermoworks is also an equipment sponsor.
"What are you doing?" Clint asked as I stood at the hotel window with my zoom lens camera in one hand and my kitchen timer in the other.
I was shamelessly shigging, I guess. I was watching the Burger Fi cooking crew five stories below and watching how they did their sliders on a flat top griddle and, yes, I was even timing their burger flips using a kitchen timer.
Burger Fi crew as seen from my hotel room. Wonder if they had "that feeling" they were being watched.
My friend, Clint Cantwell, and I were in Atlanta to do cooking demonstrations for Big Green Egg at the Taste of Atlanta. The event had 90+ restaurants serving and 4 live cooking demo stages. I got to cook with some great people at the festival and at the Big Green Egg corporate location - my next post will be about all of that. But this post is about these sliders.
Burger Fi is a relatively new burger chain that focuses on building a better burger by using simple, quality ingredients like all natural beef. They recently opened a store in Knoxville on the Strip by campus and it is quite popular. But my first time getting to try Burger Fi was at this food festival, where I got the double slider and fries.
Isn't it cool how they brand their buns?
After an event like this, I like to come up with a recipe inspired by the event so I decided to put my spin on the sliders they were serving. I used their principles to guide what I was doing with my sliders.
Use quality, all natural beef - Burger Fi is one of many restaurants serving Meyer Natural Angus. I went to the Meyer Ranch last year and saw first hand how they manage their cattle with no hormones or antibiotics. They are an incredible organization that puts out top notch beef.
Keep it simple - they let their quality ingredients shine. So I keep the seasonings simple, just some salt, pepper, and garlic.
Hand cut fries - the fries were crispy, golden, and melt in your mouth delicious. They fry theirs of course but I decided to do a fire roasted version.
Branded buns - When I won a burger contest hosted by McCormick GrillMates a few years ago, one of the prizes was one of those customized steak brands so you can sear your initials into a steak or burger. I hadn't used it yet but thought I would try it on the buns like they do.
I upgraded the cheese to white cheddar which works great on burgers. I also skipped the lettuce and tomato and added pancetta. They used a flat top griddle and I have one but I wanted to use my Big Green Eggs so I opted for a griddle plate on the grill instead. You could use a skillet, salt block, or grilling stone instead. Use what ya got. You might have to do the burgers in small batches depending on the size.
These would be ideal for a tailgate situation because you can make the ground beef balls hours in advance. That is why I don't add the salt to the beef mixture - it can draw out moisture from the meat. Instead I only season with the salt as the burgers are cooking.
I have thought about trying "butter bomb" burgers for quite a while but it took a trip to Vegas to finally get me to make one.
A "butter bomb" burger is kind of like a Jucy Lucy [sic] but instead of cheese in the middle, you just stick a pat of butter. Why? I guess 20% fat isn't enough? Actually, most use some type of compound butter so it is more about adding flavor than fat or moisture. But first, back to Vegas. Skip ahead to the recipe if you must.
I am lucky enough to be a part of the 2014 Char-Broil All Star team and flew out to be a part of the National Hardware Show in Las Vegas.
I'll go more into our exploits there later in this post but the part pertinent to the recipe was our hands on cooking session at Le Cordon Bleu. One of the recipes that we prepared with Chef Tony Ramos was a pan seared strip steak, Tahi chile butter, stir fried vegetables, and Furikake Musubi.
The plate that I cooked with my partner, Curt.
People had their favorites but everyone loved the Thai chile butter. So fast forward to this past Friday night when I was doing a full practice cook for a KCBS BBQ competition (chicken, ribs, butts, and brisket) on the our trailer pit at the front of our house.
Last week I received a care package from the folks at Steakhouse Elite. The package contained some of their Kobe crafted ground beef, hamburger patties, hot dogs and these tips:
Five Tips For Grilling A Better Burger This Summer
It’s all about the beef: A successful barbeque starts long before you light the charcoal: Begin with the best beef, and you’ll end up with a better burger or hot dog. Steakhouse Elite uses Wagyu beef for a luxurious buttery flavor.
Clean and pre-grease your grill: Preheat your grill, and after the heat has been on the rack for five or 10 minutes, clean the grilling surface with a long-handled wire brush. Then, dip a paper towel in vegetable oil and use barbeque tongs to apply a coating of oil so your food won’t stick.
Carefully cook your burgers: One of the biggest mistakes people make when grilling is to turn their burgers too soon or too often. After placing your burgers on the grill, don’t turn them until the juices rise to the top. The clearer the juice, the more well-done your burger is.
Don’t forget the dogs: Hot dogs are always pre-cooked – the point of grilling them is to heat them thoroughly and produce extra flavor and snap. Roll them lightly on the grill to brown them evenly and achieve a consistent temperature throughout each dog.
Give it a rest: When cooking is complete, remove your burgers and franks from the grill, cover with foil and let them rest for about five minutes before serving. This allows the juices to distribute evenly for maximum flavor.
The products arrived fresh, not frozen, so I didn't want to delay in putting them to use. I gave our neighbor the ground beef and we used the burgers and dogs. For my burgers, I wanted to go simple but powerful so I made this sauce to be the only condiment other than a little greenery.
One of the positive things about cold winter days is that they are ideal for cold smoking cheeses.
A few weeks ago we hickory smoked a batch of cheddar, colby jack, Gouda, Edam, and fontina cheeses for about 90 minutes. They have now "aged" vacuum sealed for two weeks, the smoke flavor has balanced out, and they are ready to eat.
What better way to give the smoked cheddar a test spin than on these Smoked Cheddar and Bacon Burgers.
It's almost the end of summer, do you need to break out of the burger boredom? This burger will certainly do the job with all of the flavors of a hot wing packed into a burger.
I cooked these on a griddle plate for two reasons. First, the raw texture is a little too soft for grill grates. Second and more importantly, getting an even crust across the burger builds more flavor by maximizing the Maillard reaction. You could certainly do these indoors on a griddle or skillet if the mood strikes you.
Sure you can just buy a commercial poultry rub, light Ranch dressing, and pre-made wing sauce for this. But I like to make my own when I have the time because it's cheaper and better.
Today is the first day of summer! I think summer should always start on a Friday. Don't you?
To kick off the season, I wanted to grill burgers. Pimento cheese burgers have been quite popular for the past few years and I have made them a few times. Tonight I added a fire roasted jalapeno for a spicier version.
Instead of one big 6 oz patty, these burgers use a stack of thin burger patties with layers of bacon and spicy pimento cheese.
The new season of BBQ Pitmasters fires up this Sunday, June 2nd on the Destination America channel at 9pm Eastern time (8pm cst). I had the opportunity to interview world champion pitmaster, author, and restauranteur Myron Mixon about the show and his new book, Everyday Barbecue.
I made these easy blue cheese stuffed burger inspired by the spirit of Everyday Barbecue. Grilling and BBQ isn't magic or voodoo. It does not have to be hard and you should be able to enjoy it during the week too. This another entry of mine for Destination America's Red, White, and Food during their Meat Week.
Want to elevate your backyard burger to the next level this summer? Here's an idea that hit me at lunch yesterday.
Take your favorite sub sandwich ingredients and use that to dress your burger! I can't think of too many subs that wouldn't make a great burger topping.
One of the food trends that we discussed at the Kingsford Invitational* back in November was Beer Goes Gourmet.
Beer Goes Gourmet
While wine used to be the go-to beverage for gourmands, beer is asserting itself both in the kitchen and on the table. For a marinade or braising liquid, it simultaneously tenderizes while enhancing the smoky flavors of meat cooked on the grill. Since the United States currently has the highest number of breweries since the pre-Prohibition era, now is the time to experiment with unique brews and barbecue. So, crack open a six-pack and save some for Chris Lilly's Shock Top Honey Mustard Glaze. ~reprinted courtesy of Kingsford
This burger is inspired by that. Instead of just throwing on a piece of cheese, I made a veloute sauce for the cheese sauce base but instead of stock, I used beer as the liquid. I used a lager to contrast the spicy jalapeno and briny manchego cheese.
Manchego Jalapeno Burgers
by www.nibblemethis.com
Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 20 min
Ingredients (4 burgers)
You'll need
1 1/3 pounds ground round or ground chuck
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp granulated garlic
4 hamburger buns
desired toppings such as pickles, lettuce, tomato, and red onion
For the Manchego Jalapeno Cheese Sauce
1 T butter
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 T all purpose flour
3/4 c Stella Artois beer
1 c manchego cheese, shredded
1 t cilantro, finely chopped
1/2 to 1 t minced fire roasted jalapeno (see notes)
1/4 t smoked paprika
1/8 t salt
1/8 t pepper
1 T non-fat Greek yogurt or sour cream
Instructions
Season the beef with salt, pepper, and garlic. Divide into 4 equal portions (5.3 oz by weight) and form into patties 5" in diameter. Place in the refrigerator.
Melt butter in a pot over medium-high heat. Saute garlic for 1 minute and then stir in the flour to form a blond roux.
Add the beer in 1/4 c increments, whisking continuously to blend between additions. Simmer until slightly thickened, 7-10 minutes.
Whisk in cheese in small batches until melted and smooth.
Stir in the seasonings and yogurt. Taste and add salt/pepper to adjust if desired.
Preheat a charcoal grill to 450f.
Grill burgers until done, about 4 minutes per side.
Place burgers on buns and ladle the cheese sauce over the patties. Add other toppings as desired.
Fire roasted jalapeno note: For spicier sauce, use 1/2 Tbsp of jalapeno. If you prefer, you can use canned green chiles for convenience but I like the smoky flavor of roasting my own jalapeno. Tips for fire roasting chile peppers.
Tip: If your sauce gets too thick while sitting, just whisk in a little more beer (1/2 tablespoon at a time).
In the beer-food pairing class at Anheuser-Busch, we learned that lager has a crisp, dry finish that gives a perfect contrast to spicy cuisines.
My favorite tool for peeling and seeding roasted chiles - a grapefruit spoon. The serrated edges work wonders.
I also made a version of the Chris Lilly's pickle recipe except the pickles weren't grilled and I sliced them instead of spears, still tastes great.
I served this with sweet potato fries (from frozen, I didn't prep them myself) and a fry dipping sauce of mayo, Worcestershire sauce, cinnamon, and ginger.
*[Note: The Kingsford Invitational will be on television shortly, I'll let you know when it broadcasts.]
Ribs Quickie
I also smoked some pork back ribs (what most places market as "baby back" ribs) last weekend but I didn't do a post since it was nothing new. Here's the condensed version.
I remove spare rib membranes from the end but baby backs are easier to remove from the middle.
A quick slather of yellow mustard as a binder. I didn't mean to make the first two look like the letter A.
Used Melissa Cookston's basic rub recipe.
Smoked at 250f with cherry/hickory wood for almost 5 hours. Spritzed with apple juice a few times. Never foiled.
I overlapped them a little to get them to fit.
Never got any plated shots the first night.
But they were good leftovers the next night, albeit much darker after reheating and second dose of Blues Hog.
That is one of the best things about being a BBQ hound - knowing you have a bunch of leftover BBQ in the fridge for quick dinners during the week!
