It's memorial day weekend, one of the canonical weekends in the American grilling calendar. It's fitting then to offer a recipe for one of my favorite burgers. The best part about these burgers, as you'll discover, is that the cheese is mixed right in. No, it's not like those gross "cheese" stuffed Slim Jims that you buy at a gas station or the Oscar Meyer hot dogs with a vein of "cheese" running down the middle (what ever happened to those by the way??). In this case, the feta accents the meat nicely without overpowering it.
If you've never shaped your own burger patties, this is your chance. You won't believe the difference between one made with human hands versus the pre-shaped patties made by a stainless steal coated hydrolic press (ok, I don't actually know how they make them pre-formed but that's the image I have in my mind). Making patties takes patience and practice so don't be discouraged if your first batch doesn't turn out quite right. You'll become a patty pressing pro in no time. Besides, the next canonical grilling weekend, July 4th, will be here before you know it.
Canonical Feta Burgers
Make sure your feta is crumbled to the size of peas, any larger and you'll have trouble shaping the patties. When shaping the patties to the desired thickness, press the ball gently between your palms to flatten only slightly (not all the way). Rotate burger 90° and press again with palm. Repeat rotation/press until you reach desired thickness.
Pattie falling apart? Try flipping it over during pressing.
If the edges look like they're "cracking" hold the patty in the palm of one hand and use the other hand to squeeze the burger around the edges--just like you'd squeeze a glass when you pick it up. Rotate the patty in your hand and repeat the squeeze until cracks disappear. This will make the burger get thicker so press with palms to re-flatten.
1 lb. ground sirloin
3 Tbsp. worcestershire sauce (use Lea & Perrin's brand, it's gluten-free)
1/2 c. feta cheese (crumbled to the size of peas)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
Fix'ns: lettuce, tomato, mayo, glutten-free bun
Combine all ingredients in large bowl and mix well with hands to combine. Remove 1/4 of the mixture, roll into a ball with your hands. Gently press down using your palms to flatten until 1/2 or 3/4 in thick. Cook on grill or pan fry on medium heat, 4-6 minutes per side (don't cook on too high of heat otherwise the outside will burn and inside will be raw). Serve with lettuce, tomato, mayo and your favorite gluten-free bun.
Makes four 1/4 lb burgers.
3 comments:
How did you know this is what's on the menu today? We're grillin up sides of WA asparagus (end of the season)and having sliced strawberries w/ whipping cream. What's with the agave nectar? Do you use that in place of powdered sugar to sweeten the cream?
Yeah agave nectar can be substituted for sugar in most recipes, I added 1.5 tablespoons per 1 c of heavy whipping cream, poured it into the whipped cream dispenser and voila.
Ever try ground buffalo instead of ground beef? It's heavenly. Seriously, the best burgers I've ever had...
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