I was looking to make a meat patty for burgers that was a bit different. My Chief Food Taster isn’t a huge beef fan, and really when it comes down to it, 100% beef burgers are great, but pretty common. I wanted something that was savory, tender and had a lot of depth of flavour. I came up with this a couple of years ago and have been playing with the mix since. Each time they are a bit different as I don’t normally use a recipe, but in order to share it with you, I have created one – and here it is!
This recipe makes about 40 to 48 – 6 ounce meat patties. It can be cut in half, but if you’re making the mess anyway…
10-12 lb Regular Ground Beef
2-3 lb Ground Pork
2-3 lb Italian Sausage – removed from casing, meat only
4 tbsp Butter
2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 Medium Onions – chopped fine
2 Medium Shallots – chopped fine
12 cloves Garlic – minced fine
¼ cup Balsamic vinegar
2 Soft Hamburger buns
6 tbsp Milk or cream
6 eggs Beaten well
¼ cup Kitchen Bouquet
½ cup Worcestershire Sauce
2 tbsp Franks Hot Sauce
This recipe needs a very large bowl. Very large…
In a large sauté pan, melt butter and olive oil over med heat until bubbling stops
Add onions, and 2 tsp of kosher salt, cook until soft and lightly browned
Add shallot and cook for 5 min
Add garlic and cook for 1-2 more min, just until the garlic is fragrant
Add balsamic vinegar and stir until liquid is absorbed
Remove from heat, place in heat proof bowl and allow to cool to room temp
In a small bowl, add bread and milk. Press together with a fork until a smooth paste is formed (you’ve just made a panade)
Add eggs and stir to combine well.
In the previously mentioned large bowl, place all of the meat
Add all the other ingredients into the cauldron bowl
Mix to combine very well – this is a hands on project, the only implement that will work is your hands. Don’t overwork the meat, but make sure it is well combined
As with any food, in order to make sure the taste is what you are after, you need to taste it. In this case, as raw hamburger isn’t a good idea to eat, make a patty and fry it over medium heat in the pan that you sautéed the onions it. There should be lots of flavour, so seasoning adjustment shouldn’t be needed.
Salt and Pepper is best added to the patties during cooking as needed.
Option A)
Portion the meat into 6 oz balls, and place on a baking sheet. Place into freezer for 24 hours.
Once fully frozen, remove trays and place meat balls into zip lock bags, then return to the freezer.
To use, remove the needed number of meat balls from the freezer. Allow to defrost in the fridge fully, this can take up to 48 hours.
They can then be shaped into patties and grilled over flame or seared in frying pan.
Option B)
If you have a smoker, then you can smoke the patties over a good wood like hickory. Season the patties with some Jan’s Rub, then smoke them until they are about 145 degrees internal, then finish on the grill. With the extra ingredients, they can be cooked to the recommended 165, but I usually stay a bit south of that, and live to tell the tale. You can smoke them in big batches, and freeze them. I thaw them in the fridge, grill until hot all the way thru, then serve with (or without) the Gooey Cheese Burger Spread.
Option C)
This meat mixture also work great for the meat in a pasta sauce, or combined with a variety of other ingredients for a chili or adult Sloppy Joe filling.