HAMBURGERS.
There isn’t much noted history about this all-American beefy dish, but from what has been claimed, the first hamburger was created in 1885. Now whether it was first created in New Haven, Connecticut, or Hamburg, New York, will be left for y’all to decide. The dish flourished in the early 1900s and has become an American staple with our population serving up nearly 50 billion burgers yearly!
The hamburger is as versatile as The Shrimp Bubba made in Forrest Gump. Many still go for the classic: American cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, and condiments. However, I’m going to serve y’all up a Southern burger recipe that will easily have your pickiest of family members coming back for more at your next grill out.
Bacon jam has been my secret weapon for the perfect burger bite for quite some time. Nothing beats smoky, thick-cut bacon, onions, coffee, and brown sugar married together into a jam-like consistency. It takes time to create this heavenly jam, but it’s well worth it.
Bacon Jam
Ingredients
2 lbs thick-cut bacon (cut into ½ inch pieces)
2 large sweet onions (thinly diced)
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup room temperature water
½ cup fresh-brewed strong coffee
½ teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Instructions
In a large skillet, cook bacon on medium heat for 10-13 minutes.
Use a strainer spoon to remove bacon from the grease and put to the side. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of bacon grease from skillet. (Tip:Keep excess bacon grease in a mason jar for later use.)
Add the diced sweet onions to your skillet and sweat the onions for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the brown sugar to the onions and mix until the sugar is
melted. Drop temperature to low heat and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
To the sugared onions add; bacon, water and coffee, mix well. Raise temperature to medium heat. Cook onions for 30 minutes, gently stirring every 5 minutes until the onions are a jam-like consistency.
Take skillet off the heat and add balsamic vinegar to the skillet and gently mix.
Serve hot or refrigerate for later use.
Grilled Hamburger
Ingredients
2 lbs ground chuck
1 pack onion soup mix
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
2 large eggs
3 dashes Worcestershire
Directions
In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients, making sure that the eggs are mixed into the meat well.
Separate the hamburger meat mixture into ¼ lb sections.
Patty out the burgers and put a small, thumb-sized indention into the center of the patty.
Place the patties onto a baking sheet lined with wax paper and place in your freezer so that the patties can set.
Preheat your grill to 350-375 degrees.
Grill your hamburgers 3-4 minutes allowing your burgers to get good grill marks.
Gently flip your burger. Cook for 2-3 minutes for rare, 4-5 minutes for medium rare, and 6-7 minutes for medium well.
Chelsea Gieselmann is a mom, photographer, columnist, food blogger, and home-cook. Cooking has been a passion of hers since she was old enough to cut out biscuits with the mouth of a mason jar. Her great-grandmother taught her the basics and she is ever so grateful to have been able to learn from her. Since then, she has honed in her craft a great deal and continues to. Instagram: @Southrngritskitchen
