Chimichurri Burgers

The most deliciously, spicy, saucy, cheesy epic chimichurri burgers. Ever. Ground beef seasoned to perfection, grilled and topped with cheese and homemade chimichurri sauce.

Truth number 1: My mind always on food, recipes and well, coffee. Pat could be telling me a random story and I’ll put my mug down to say… “what do you think about doughnuts that are like brownies?” I know! How incredibly annoying! Luckily he’s use to it by now and loves me anyways, but you get the point: Food on the brain should be a legit medical condition.

Truth number 2: I love me a big, juicy, beefy burger.

To Make These Chimichurri Burgers You Will Need:

• garlic
• parsley
• vinegar
• lemon
• kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• ground chipotle pepper
• olive oil
• onion
• garlic
• Serrano chile
• cumin
• chili powder
• ground beef 80/20 ratio
• pepper jack cheese slices
• sturdy hamburger buns

These are big-o-burgers that are so flavorful and juicy and cheesy and a little on the spicy side, you’ll just die from flavor overload. Pretty basic ingredient, pretty darn delicious burger.

Place 6 clove of peeled garlic into your food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add in 1 bunch fresh parsley and 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar.

Next add in the juice from 1 medium lemon juice, kosher salt and pepper – to taste, 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle powder and 3/4 cup olive oil.

Turn it on and blend until combined. Taste and add more salt and pepper as desired.

Store it in an airtight container and pop it into the fridge until you’re ready to serve. You might want to take it out about 30 minutes before your ready so it can warm up to room temperature.

If you have leftover chimichurri sauce, you totally have to make these steak fajitas! SO GOOD!

Moving on to the burgers. Finely dice up an 1/2 a large onion, 1 serrano pepper (discarding the ribs and seeds for less heat), and 4 cloves garlic.

Drizzle olive oil in the pan and heat over medium-low temperature.

Sauté until the vegetables start to soften.

Add in 1 tablespoon cumin and 1/2 tablespoon ancho chile powder and stir.

Heat for a minute or two on the stove.

Remove the peppers and onions to a plate to cool down, like completely.

Season 2 pounds 80/20 ground beef with a little salt and pepper because that’s how we do.

Once cooled, add those veggies into the bowl with the ground chuck.

Mix by hand until it all comes together.

Be careful not to over-mix.

Form the hamburger mixture into patties. I did 4 big burgers, but you could scale them down to 6 if you wanted to.

Brush a little bit of oil over the top of your griddle. I made these in March so here in the mitten it was COLD, however you can totally grill these on the grill, just omit this step.

Lay the burgers down and griddle for 5-6 minutes and then flip.

Once flipped, lay down a slice of pepper jack cheese. Oh I love this cheese on burgers, it melts perfectly and it’s spicy. Love!

I cover the burger with a pan lid; the steam will expedite the whole oooey-gooey cheese thing.

Toasting the bun is totally optional, but I love a good toasted bun. I even leave mine on a little longer so it chars a bit… I’m weird like that though. I also like fresh tomato, burnt onions and fresh avocado and then I smother the thing in that chimichurri sauce.

Poof! These deliciously spicy, saucy, cheesy chimichurri burgers.

So good you won’t believe your taste buds.

Now I’m not telling you what to do or anything but let’s just say you might want to wear a bib.

Enjoy! And if you give this Chimichurri Burgers a try, let me know! Snap a photo and tag me on twitter or instagram!

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Yield: 8 servings

Spicy Chimichurri Burgers

The most deliciously, spicy, saucy, cheesy epic chimichurri burger. Ever. Ground beef seasoned to perfection, grilled and topped with cheese and homemade chimichurri sauce.

Prep Time: 30 minutes mins

Cook Time: 15 minutes mins

Total Time: 45 minutes mins

Ingredients

FOR THE CHIMICHURRI

• 1 bunch parsley, rinsed and patted dry
• 6 cloves garlic, smashed, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 medium lemon, juiced
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
• 3/4 cup olive oil

FOR THE BURGERS

• 1/2 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 serrano pepper, seeded and minced
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1/2 tablespoon ancho chili powder
• 1 teaspoon olive oil, plus more for the griddle
• kosher salt, to taste
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 pounds ground chuck
• 8 slices pepper jack cheese
• sturdy hamburger buns

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:

• grilled red onion
• sliced avocado
• sliced tomato

Instructions 

MAKE THE CHIMICHURRI:

• In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, throw in the smashed and peeled garlic cloves, secure the lid and pulse until minced.
• Add in the leaves of an entire bunch of parsley, the lemon juice, vinegar, kosher salt, black pepper, chipotle powder and olive oil. Pulse a few times until mixed but not fully pureed. This should be made a day or even two ahead of time so the flavors can meld. I store mine in a glass jar.

MAKE THE BURGERS:

• In a small skillet add a olive oil; sauté the diced onion, garlic and serrano until softened. Add in the cumin, ancho chili powder and stir. Cook for one minute and then transfer to a clean plate to cool.
• In a large bowl combine the ground chuck, cooled onions/peppers and a couple of pinches of kosher salt and black pepper. Mix by hand until combined. Be careful not to over mix. Form into 8 medium burgers (or 4 large) and let them rest for a few so they come up to room temperature.
• Brush a griddle with a drizzle of olive oil and preheat to 375°. Once hot place the burgers onto the griddle. If you're making a larger, well done burger cook for 5-6 minutes before flipping. Now top the burgers with slices of pepper-jack cheese. Cook for another 5 to 6 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the burger is fully cooked or cook to your personal doneness. Adjust the times if you are making smaller burgers.
• While the burgers were resting, I quickly threw sliced red onions onto the hot griddle until soft and charred.
• Serve on a toasted hamburger bun and top with a few spoonfuls of the chimichurri sauce, griddled red onions, fresh slices of tomato and avocado.

Serving: 1burger, Calories: 691kcal, Carbohydrates: 26g, Protein: 30g, Fat: 52g, Saturated Fat: 16g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 27g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 99mg, Sodium: 711mg, Potassium: 495mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 950IU, Vitamin C: 19mg, Calcium: 284mg, Iron: 5mg

Author: Laurie McNamara

Course: Mains & Entrees

Cuisine: Argentine