Grilling season is officially here and even even if you don’t have a grill, you’re STILL not excused from making burgers!
Here is a great recipe that involves searing the burgers in a pan and then finishing them off in the oven on a wire racked roasting pan.
Not only were these burgers fun to make because I got to do them with my mom who was in town visiting, but I got top shelf advice from the head chef at Butcher Box, where I also got my beef for the burgers! (Thank you, Butcher Box! Thank you Yankel Polak!)
Quick plug / ad: If YOU’D like to see what all the BB fuss is about, check out ButcherBox.com/EASY for $20 off your first box PLUS free bacon for the life of your order! It helps out Teresa Strasser and me more than you know because BB is also a sponsor of our podcast Easy Listening!
Ok. Back to this delicious recipe.
I made two different kinds of stuffed sliders – one stuffed with spinach dip and one stuffed with grated cheddar and diced chilis. Both were topped off with caramelized onions and sautéd mushrooms.
I’m going to include a lot of info directly from Yankel so you KNOW it’s good and sprinkle in my thoughts as well.
Let’s do this!!
Burger Meat
2 lbs ground beef (sub with turkey or pork or even mix together – just make sure you cook to proper temp, according to the meat included!)
1 tsp garlic salt (or 1/4 salt, 1/4 tsp garlic powder)
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning (or just Oregano, but I prefer the blend)
1 tsp dry mustard
Spinach dip to stuff with
(This will make a bit of extra dip so people can shmear on top if they’d like!)
1/2 cup hand grated Parmesan
5 oz wilted spinach
1/2 tsp lemon zest
3/4 cup sour cream
Cheddar / Chili to stuff with
(You will also have extra toppings to sprinkle on top of the slider after it’s finished!)
1/2 cup hand grated cheese
1 oz can of diced mild chilis (feel free to go hotter if your palate can take it)
Toppings
1 large yellow onion
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbs olive oil
12 oz of mushrooms, sliced (white, baby bella and crimini all work great.)
1 tbs olive oil
1/4 cup white wine OR diluted white wine vinegar (1/8 cup vinegar 1/8 cup water OR 1/4 cup stock.)
Here are Yankel’s overall directions – why mess with perfection!
1. Cook the spinach and make the spin dip filling, and put in the fridge.
2. Once its in the fridge, preheat your oven to 350 (finishing the sliders in the oven is way easier and minimizes the grease in your kitchen).
3. Set up your slider patties. (2 lbs of meat will make roughly 18 patties – 9 sliders).
4. Fill the sliders, form them and then give them a light coating of salt and pepper (or refer to my seasoning ingredients above if you want a touch more flavor in the actual patties).
5. Preheat your pan, add the oil, wait till you see a wisp of smoke and then sear the sliders 2 minutes per side. Do two batches if the pan isn’t large enough to comfortably hold them all.
6. Transfer to baking sheet or simply place pan with sliders in oven for another 10 minutes or if you’re using a thermometer, the inside should be around 135 and rising. (If you want to top them with more cheese, do it about 3 minutes before they are done cooking.)
7. Let them rest 2-3 minutes before eating, the insides will continue to cook for a few minutes.
9. Drizzle with sauce, add toppings, and enjoy!
Here are some bonus notes directly from Chef Yankel:
- To make sure it stays juicy, start the pan on high heat, use a high heat oil, avocado or refined coconut oil or ghee (clarified butter) would definitely be the best, sear both sides for a minute or two, or until lightly browned, and then lower the heat to medium low and continue to flip periodically.
- You could also put them directly into a 350 preheated oven right after browning both sides, same deal though, either flip periodically or transfer to a wire rack on a baking sheet so they get even heat and don’t over cook on one side.
- Figure 10-15 minutes in the oven after searing or about 10 minutes in the pan on low heat. You’ll know they are pretty much done because they’ll expand a bit as the spinach dip heats up inside.
- For the meat, once you’ve separated it into portions, form a ball and toss it back and forth between your hands 4 or 5 times. This will compress the meat a bit, force some of the air out, and your sliders will be less likely to wind up looking like meatballs.
- For an awesome Keto ranch dressing, mix equal parts mayo and sour cream, garlic and onion powder, salt, dried Italian seasoning, a squeeze of lemon juice and some parsley.
Hi there! My name is Gina Grad and I’m a Los Angeles-based broadcaster and longtime comfort food appreciator. I’ve been on the radio here in SoCal since 2006 but since I’m originally from Kansas City, I’ve been eating the best casseroles, stews and one-pot meals the Midwest has to offer over the course of my entire life.
Hi Gina! Do you think I can actually grill these on a charcoal grill or are they going to be too messy?
Hi Jenny! According to my convo with Chef Yankel, they should be ok IF you were very careful when you flip them as the dip / cheese causes them to expand / open a bit and I wouldn’t want all your “stuffed stuff” to ooze out the side! But it will surely taste amazing that way! xoxo, GG
Hi Gina! Do you think I could grill these on a charcoal grill or will it be too messy???
Excellent question! I think they would be ok IF you were very careful when you flip them as the dip / cheese causes them to expand / open a bit and I wouldn’t want all your “stuffed stuff” to ooze out the side! That said, grilling them over charcoal would taste amazing!! xoxo, GG
So delicious and I perfect for food prep!
I’m so glad you you think so, Shannon!! xo,GG
I am a mother and this helped me!
YAY!!!
Is it either use the spinach dip or cheddar chili for the filling? Or does the recipe call for both? I didn’t see the cheddar chili in the directions.
Either! Thank you for letting me know, Andrew – I’ll fix! xoxo, GG
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