Summer and a juicy grilled burger go together like peanut butter and jam… peas and carrots…or in this case, pepper jack and garlic aioli. And lucky for me, burger inspiration moved in right across the street! There is a new burger place in town friends, and it’s called Rustic Burger. It is my absolute favorite place to grab a burger (and sweet potato fries…drool) If you live near Valencia California, be sure to stop by. But if you aren’t a local don’t fret, because I am sharing my tips for making a fantastic burger with plenty of delicious burger inspiration from Rustic Burger.
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The Secrets to Making a Perfect Burger!

There are common mistakes made when making a burger that can take your burger from fabulous to dry and flavorless in no time! So read, learn and apply these tips my darlings and your next BBQ will be the talk of the town!

The Meat:

Don’t go for lean when it comes to a burger. Lean ground beef makes for a dry, flavorless burger. Keep it 80/20. Yup, 20% fat that is what I’m talking about! Don’t be putting your hands all over it either. Just take a portion of ground beef and form it into a patty with as little handling as possible. Over handling makes a burger less tender. If you can, use grass fed beef. Better for you, better for the planet.

ButcherBox delivers grass fed beef right to your door!

Size matters:

Make the patty a half inch wider than your bun. Otherwise it will shrink and appear miniscule, even with toppings. Six ounces of meat ought to do it. About 3/4 of an inch thick. Make sure the patty is flat so toppings will stay put.

Left: The Blue Cheese Burger with caramelized onions, blue cheese and arugula. Center: The Farm Burger with bacon, provolone, a fried egg, tomato, arugula and aioli. Right: The Cali Burger with pepperjack, bacon, avocado. tomato, shredded lettuce and homemade mayo!

Seasoning:

Always season after forming patties. Salt dries out food so add it only to the surface instead of working it in. I use Maldons Sea Salt. And love my battery operated pepper grinder because I can handle the burger patty with one hand and season with the other! I usually keep seasoning simple, sea salt and pepper. The flavor on our burger comes from the toppings and aioli spread.

Prepping the Grill and Cooking:

Before firing up the BBQ, clean and oil the the grill. Actually it’s best to clean the grill after the last use. Simply remove whatever you have been cooking, turn off heat and scrape with wire brush. Then when you are ready to use the BBQ again, just use a paper towel with a little coconut oil on it to wipe down the grill and prevent sticking. And whatever you do don’t press on the hamburgers with your spatula! That presses out the juices that make a moist, flavorful burger. Cook at 400 degrees for 5-6 minutes for medium…that is how I like it. But if you like it well done then cook it for 10 minutes, I won’t judge you (well maybe a little;)

Now that you know how to make a perfect burger let’s talk toppings!

Of course you can choose whatever toppings you wish, but I will be offering you three options: A bacon cheeseburger with a fried egg, a cheese burger with grilled onions and blue cheese, and last but not least a Cali inspired burger with pepper jack, avocado, bacon and garlic aioli!

The Farm Burger: Bacon, provolone, fried egg, arugula and aioli.

The Recipe: The Organic Kitchen Burger

Tips and what you will need: Homemade mayo or garlic aioli is a great addition to this burger. See my recipe here. If you don’t want to make your own mayo I recommend using a store bought version made with olive oil. If you are making the blue cheese burger, you will need to know how to caramelize onions!

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How to Make a Fantastic Burger~ Three Recipes!

Prep 20 mins

Total 20 mins

Author Linda Spiker

Yield 1

Three recipes Inspired by The Rustic Burger Restaurant. Read "the secrets to making a fantastic burger" (above) before preparation.

Ingredients

• PER BURGER: 6oz grass fed beef, 80/20 ratio (20% fat)
• Sea Salt
• Pepper
• aioli (you can use store bought mayo or click the link above to make your own)
• hamburger buns
• For Farm Burger add:
• 2 slices of bacon per burger
• shredded lettuce
• tomato slices
• one fried egg per burger
• cheddar cheese or provolone
• garlic aioli (recipe link in blog post above)
• For Cali Burger add:
• avocado slices
• two slices bacon per burger
• tomato slices
• one slice pepper jack cheese per burger
• arugula
• garlic aioli (recipe link above)
• For Blue Cheese Burger add:
• caramelized onions (recipe link above)
• blue cheese (as much as desired)
• arugula
• aioli (recipe link above)

Instructions

1. Depending on what burger you are making have aioli, avocado, tomatoes, cheeses, caramelized onions (see link above) and bacon prepared in advance. If using a fried egg, make sunny side up right before burgers are done.
2. Without overworking meat, form patties making them 1/2" wider than bun.
3. Season with sea salt and pepper and set aside.
4. Use a paper towel to wipe coconut oil on grill. Turn heat to 400 degrees.
5. Cook meat to liking, place a slice of cheese on the burger the last minute of cooking. (5 minutes, flipping halfway through for medium)
6. Remove from grill.
7. Spread bun with aioli, place burger on bun, add suggested toppings above. Last , add the top bun spread with aioli!

Courses Dinner

Cuisine BBQ

Need Some Sides for Your Burger?

I have some suggestions: Corn Off The Cob, Mexican Street Corn, Simple Grape and Avocado Salad.

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