I recently submitted an entry for Bon Appetit Magazine’s Blended Burger Contest. If you are trying to eat less meat and reduce your carbon footprint overall without going to extremes, you should check out the blended burger concept.
For a classic, non-blended burger recipe, check out my Home-made Big Mac.
What is a blended burger?
A burger that is partly made of ground meat, but also partly made of vegetables/other plant-based ingredients. In the case of Bon Appetit’s competition, the beef was blended with ground mushrooms. I used crimini mushrooms becaue they have a rich flavor compared with button mushrooms.
What Kind of Ground Beef Should I Buy?
The fattier the ground beef, the more juicy and tender it is. 80% lean beef is even fattier and juicier, but 85% lean ground beef works well and is much healthier.
How do I season my blended burger patty?
It depends on personal taste as well as the other burger toppings you will be using. If you are going to be using salty toppings (blue cheese, bacon, pancetta, pickles), then I would just season the surface of the burger patties. But if you plan on using relatively sweet or acidic toppings (onion jam, ketchup, roasted bell pepper), seasoning the inside of your burger patty should be fine as well. Test it out and see which method you prefer.
What toppings should I put on my burger?
- California style: crispy bacon, onion jam, and fresh figs, arugula
- Classic style: cheddar cheese or American cheese, thousand island dressing, raw onion, fresh tomato, and fresh lettuce
- Tex-Mex style: chipotle mayo/aioli, roasted poblano peppers, pepperjack cheese
- Asian style: miso mayo sauce, cabbage slaw with sesame ginger dressing, fried egg
What is Romesco Sauce?
How do I form the perfect burger patty?
Do not smash or press your burgers as they cook. That will release all the juices and result in a dry patty.
For burger patties, always make the patty a bit larger than your bun. Burger patties shrink when they are cooked, and if yours is too small it throws off the ratio of your cheeseburger.
When shaping the burger patty, make slight dent in the middle. Burgers plump up in the middle as they cook, so making a dent toward the middle will allow it to be flat/even when cooked.
How do I cook my burgers?
I have a tutorial on searing steak that covers the basics of meat searing. The basic principles are simple:
- Hot oil
- Hot pan
- Room temperature meat
- Cast iron skillet
- Do not move the meat around once it is in the pan!
- Flip only once
- The thicker the burger, the more time it needs to cook
Price Comparison
What did I spend to make these burgers? Brioche buns ($2), ground beef ($2), crimini mushrooms ($1), arugula ($.50), tomato ($1), roasted red pepper ($1), garlic ($.20).
Restaurant ($10-13) vs. Home-made ($3.58)
Gastropubs sell fancy burgers that are about 3x the price of how much it would cost you to make a similar dish at home. And the best thing about making it at home is you get to choose your own toppings without having to pay an extra $1 or $2 for bacon or cheese.
Blended Cheeseburger with Romesco Sauce
Equipment
- cast iron skillet
Ingredients
Roasted Tomatoes
- 1 large beef steak tomato cut into 4 slices
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
Romesco Sauce
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 piece jarred roasted bell pepper
- 1/4 c sun dried tomatoes
- 1/4 c toasted almonds
- 1/4 c olive oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1/4 tsp lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flake
Burger Patty
- 4 crimini mushrooms minced
- 1/2 lb 85% lean ground beef
- 1/4 tsp dried rosemary
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tbsp oil
Toppings & Buns
- 2 slices provolone cheese
- 1 handful arugula
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 pinch black pepper
- 2 brioche burger buns
Instructions
- Preheat toaster oven to 350 degrees F. Place garlic cloves into the oven and allow to roast 30 minutes or until garlic is softened.
- While garlic is roasting, turn on your conventional oven to broil or highest heat setting. If you do not own a toaster oven, roasted the garlic first and then broil the tomatoes afterward.
- Slice tomatoes and place onto a baking sheet. Season with olive oil and salt. When oven has pre-heated, place tomatoes in the oven 6 inches from broiler. Broil for 15-20 minutes or until the top of the tomatoes have a golden brown crust.
- Prepare burger patties. Use a food processor to pulse crimini mushrooms until they are finely minced, about 10 seconds. Add minced mushrooms and rosemary to ground beef. Mix until just incorporated, but do not over-mix.
- Form 2 burger patties. Make them slightly bigger than your burger buns, as burger patties shrink during cooking. Make burger patties approximately 3/4 inch thick on the edge, with the center slightly thinner than the edges. This will allow space for the center to rise during cooking.
- Season both surfaces of the burger patty with salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Take broiled tomatoes out of the oven and set aside.
- When roasted garlic is softened, remove from oven. Wait until they cool ~10 minutes. When garlic has cooled enough to handle, squeeze roasted garlic out of their paper skins.
- Combine roasted garlic with romesco sauce ingredients: roasted bell pepper, sun dried tomatoes, toasted almonds, olive oil, salt, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, lemon juice, and red pepper flake. Using a food processor, blend until the sauce is smooth like the texture of pesto. Scrape down the sides for even blending. Set aside.
- Heat a cast iron skillet on high until it just begins to smoke. Turn the heat to medium and drizzle in olive oil. Place burger patties into the cast iron skillet. Cook burgers 2 1/2 minutes on each side for medium rare and 3 minutes on each side for medium, flipping only once. If your burger patties are thicker than 3/4 inch, they may need extra cooking time.
- Flip burger patties once a golden brown crust has formed at the bottom of the patties. After flipping the burger patties, place provolone cheese slices on top and cover with a lid for the remaining 2 1/2 minutes-3 minutes of cooking. This will melt the cheese.
- When burger patties are done and cheese has melted, set aside.
- Dress arugula with lemon juice and black pepper.
- Assemble the burgers. For each burger, spread 2 tbsp of the romesco sauce onto the bottom bun. Then place the burger patty on top of the romesco sauce. Place 2 slices of roasted tomato on top of the burger patty, followed by arugula salad. Finally place the top bun and enjoy!
Tag me on instagram @jennskitchendiary to share your version of a gourmet burger!
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