Beef burger with cheddar and bacon on a brioche
A classic burger with cheddar, bacon, tomato, lettuce and onion. You can serve it with a tasty sauce, or keep the sauce on the side if you prefer. Same goes for the tomato and onion, but you can always decide that later of course!
Preparing the burger
Slice the onion into rings, the tomato and pickles into slices, and the lettuce into strips. For a fresh touch, you can mix the lettuce with a little white wine vinegar. Optional, not required.
If you find the flavor of raw red onion too strong, you can sauté the onion briefly with some olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. This is very personal. You can also leave the onion out entirely, since it can be a little overpowering.
Decide beforehand which sauce you want to spread lightly on the bun. We used mustard mayonnaise (2 tbsp mayonnaise, 1 tsp wholegrain mustard) and served ketchup on the side. But sauce is personal, so do it your way!
Slice the brioche buns open in advance.
Cooking the beefburger in the pan
Once everything is ready, it’s time to cook. Use two pans: one for the burgers and one for the bacon. Start the bacon over medium heat so it can slowly get crispy. You don’t need oil or butter for this. For the burgers, use a frying pan with a good non-stick coating. Brush the burgers with a little olive oil and season with freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of sea salt. Place them in the pan (two at a time) and press down lightly.
Here’s the trick: after a minute, you can brush the burgers with a little mustard and chipotle (on the cooked side). Chipotle is great to have in your pantry, since its smoky flavor can boost both burgers and dressings. We didn’t use it for these burgers, since the meat already has so much flavor. But it’s definitely worth trying sometime!
Fry the burgers over high heat (cooking time depends on thickness). Then place the bacon and cheese on the burgers, add a small splash of water, and cover the pan with a heatproof lid or dish to melt the cheese. About 30 seconds is enough. Meanwhile, toast the sliced brioche buns in the bacon pan.
Building the burger
Remove the buns from the pan, spread the bottom half with a little mustard mayo, and build your burger with lettuce, the burger with cheddar and bacon, tomato, and onion. Ketchup and pickles on the side, and you’re ready.
Serve your burgers immediately, otherwise the buns will go soggy. But why would you wait when you’ve got such a tasty burger right in front of you?
ENJOY!