Grilling season is coming to an end for many in the state of Wisconsin. I think this is officially the last day of summer, and as much as that pleases me (I love fall in Wisconsin), it disappoints me as well. I mean winter is coming, and that can get pretty long here in our state. With that said, my grill continues to heat up all year round, but for those that tuck them away until spring time, I figured I would give you my simple burger sauce recipe. Think of it as the ‘Big Mac’ sauce in a way, and one that really brings a great grilled burger together.
Yes, I ate that, well most of it.
Special Burger Sauce Recipe
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp French dressing
2 tbsp sweet pickle relish
2 tbsp minced white onion
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp granulated sugar
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
1/2 tbsp white vinegar
That’s it. Pretty much things most folks might have in their refrigerator. As I love a burger with just mayonnaise and pickles, I figured I would step it up and mix these together to give a sweet, tangy, and creamy sauce. This one totally delivers.
Special Burger Sauce Recipe Ingredients
Place all of the ingredients in a small mixing bowl, and whisk until thoroughly combined.
When your burger is done grilling, slather it on the top, and bottom buns and enjoy. This one was stacked with a sauced bottom bun, lettuce, burger, pickles, onions, more sauce, another sliced bun, cheese, burger, bacon, tomato, more lettuce, sauce, and top bun. IT WAS A DOOZY.
If you are looking for a great sauce, not only for a burger, but along the lines of a great club sandwich, give this one a shot. It only gets better after a couple of days stored in the refrigerator as well. Hope you enjoy!
Fry sauce, or simply a ‘special sauce’ is probably the easiest thing to make and typically served with french fries. I think fry sauce can pretty much go on anything, including burgers, and fries of which I did. Fry sauce is a classic sauce and has been around for ages. Think of it as somewhat of a Russian dressing. The simplicity is essentially a combination of mayonnaise and ketchup, but I add a couple of different twists making this fry sauce super addicting one.
Fry Sauce Recipe
Let’s get started on this excellent condiment.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup of your favorite mayonnaise
1/4 cup of ketchup
1 tbsp pickle juice
1 tbsp your favorite hot sauce
pinch of salt
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
hot fries, optional
Add everything but the hot fries to a mixing bowl. Mix well. Cover and place in the refrigerator for later use.
How to make fry sauce
When you are ready to serve, drizzle onto your hot fries (I used roasted garlic and rosemary baby yukon potatoes), or serve on the side. I also smeared a generous amount onto my grilled burger. Talk about simplicity at its finest, and a delicious tang of a condiment to boot. If you are looking for all of that, give this one a shot, and feel free to double the amount for later use. Hope you enjoy!
On a recent visit to our local grocery store, I noticed that pork tenderloin was on sale. I love me some pork tenderloin, and it is something that I have not made in quiet some time, so I decided to pick a couple of them up knowing exactly what I was going to do with them. This grilled pork tenderloin and mushroom sandwich may be one of my favorites, and I do not kid when I say that. My wife loves it, my kids love it, and so that makes it a real winner in my book.
Grilled Pork Tenderloin and Mushroom Sandwich Recipe
Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 tbsp salt, to taste
1/2 tbsp cracked black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
8 oz package of Baby Portabella mushrooms, cleaned and thinly sliced
Slices of Provolone cheese
French bread sliced sandwich style
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp red onion, diced (optional)
1/4 cup mayonnaise (optional)
Begin by drizzling olive oil over the pork tenderloin, and coat it well. Rub the minced garlic all over the pork tenderloin. Now wash your hands well. Generously sprinkle salt and pepper all over the tenderloin, and use a fork or tongs to turn as you continue to sprinkle. Place in a ziplock bag and let marinate for at least an hour.
If you are fortunate enough to grill, light it up, and bring to a medium-high heat. Lube your grates with a bit of oil (use tongs and paper towel), and place the tenderloin on the grill, searing all sides. Reduce the heat, and cook until no longer pink. Remove from the grill, and let rest for approximately 10 minutes, sealing in the juices.
In the meantime, to a skillet, add the butter. Bring to a medium heat, and add in the mushrooms, cooking for about 15 minutes. Take the pork tenderloin off of the grill, and let it rest on a plate. Once rested, slice the pork tenderloin into thin medallions.
Grilled Pork Tenderloin and Mushroom Sandwich Ingredients
Slice your French bread. Add a slices of cheese to the bottom layer to cover. Add slices of pork tenderloin across the cheese, top with some of the sauteed portabella mushrooms, and then cover the mushrooms with more provolone cheese.
Preheat your broiler. Place the sandwich(es) underneath the broiler, cheese exposed, and cook until the cheese is melted, being careful not to burn the bread.
While the sandwich is cooking under the broiler, add the mayonnaise and red onion to a small bowl and mix well. Season with additional salt and pepper. This will serve as the condiment to the sandwich, and trust me on this one, this condiment is hard to beat.
Remove the sandwich from the broiler, plate, and serve. Hope you enjoy.
It’s official, well it’s been official, it’s finally grilling season in Wisconsin. Not that I haven’t been grilling all year long, but the weather is finally getting a lot more nice in Wisconsin. So this past Mother’s day weekend was full of cooking for my loved one(s). As we progressed into the weekend, I decided to use up a bag of frozen lemongrass I had. I’m trying to purge my freezer and use up lots of yummy leftovers. As I was thinking of what to make with the lemongrass (I always have Thai on my mind when it comes to lemongrass), I decided on making a lemongrass infused oil, and use that for grilling a spatchcocked whole chicken. The lemongrass infused oil was phenomenal, but a simple marinade was also created to make this Thai lemongrass chicken even better.
Start by marinating your chicken. To a small mixing bowl, add in the ingredients for the Thai lemongrass chicken, with the exception of the chicken, and mix well. Rub the marinade all over the chicken. Cover and place into the refrigerator, at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight.
During this time, make the lemongrass infused oil.
Lemongrass Chicken Ingredients
To a food processor, add the lemongrass. Pulse and blend until you have broken down the lemongrass. Take a good smell. I love that smell.
Heat a small pot on medium-low heat, add in the oil, and add in the shredded lemongrass and garlic. Cook this on medium low heat for about 40 minutes. Then strain the oil into a container. Reserve for grilling, and for later use.
Before grilling, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and set it on the counter, allowing it to take the chill off.
Heat up your grill. Again, I use charcoal and some wood chunks, but use what you got. The goal is to cook it over indirect heat as you do not want a burnt chicken. So when you are ready, set the chicken on the grill grate, and cook for about 40 minutes, brushing with the lemongrass infused oil during the grill period. Cook until your meat thermometer reads a safe temperature.
Thai Lemongrass Chicken
Plate, and shower with sliced green onions and additional cilantro if desired.
The end result is really, really great chicken. You are left with not only a garlic flavored chicken, but one that has the subtle hints of a lemon-lime and ginger flavor from the awesome lemongrass infused oil. It was a hit, and a great start to the weekend. Hope you enjoy!
Start by marinating your chicken. To a small mixing bowl, add in the ingredients for the Thai lemongrass chicken, with the exception of the chicken, and mix well. Rub the marinade all over the chicken. Cover and place into the refrigerator, at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight.
During this time, make the lemongrass infused oil.
To a food processor, add the lemongrass. Pulse and blend until you have broken down the lemongrass. Take a good smell. I love that smell.
Heat a small pot on medium-low heat, add in the oil, and add in the shredded lemongrass. Cook this on medium low heat for about 40 minutes. Then strain the oil into a container. Reserve for grilling, and for later use.
Before grilling, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and set it on the counter, allowing it to take the chill off.
Heat up your grill. Again, I use charcoal and some wood chunks, but use what you got. The goal is to cook it over indirect heat as you do not want a burnt chicken. So when you are ready, set the chicken on the grill grate, and cook for about 40 minutes, brushing with the lemongrass infused oil during the grill period. Cook until your meat thermometer reads a safe temperature.
Plate, and shower with sliced green onions and additional cilantro if desired.
