Sunday Special: Chipotle Mayo Sliders

Hello again everyone! 95% of the time, I really enjoy living in the midwest. The people are great, the prices are low and the quality of life just feels better. What's the other 5%, you ask? The weather. More specifically, midwestern spring weather. This week will be the third straight that I've set out to with a recipe destined for the grill and (hopefully) this week will be the week I finally prepare said dish. Two weeks ago, we dipped into an unusual polar plunge, falling from 70 degrees the day before to a chilly 40. (Not grilling weather, obviously). The second week, the temps dropped into the mid 40 once again, but came with a bonus - rain! Washed out, I was once again forced to postpone my recipe into the next week.

Long story short, when you're cooking (especially grilling) it's not a bad idea to have 'Plan B'. For this week's "Sunday Special" I thought I'd share one such plan B recipe that I cooked up last week. By utilizing everything you typically have in your kitchen this recipe can be a good "emergency dish" in case something goes wrong with your original plan (alternatively, you can just cook it because it looks tasty. Either option works.)

The Recipe: Chipotle Mayo Sliders
This is an Out of the Culinary original recipe

The Recipe:
(Serves 2-3)

1 Pound 80/20 Ground Beef
1/4 Cup Bread Crumbs
1 Tablespoon Yellow Mustard
1 Egg (Beaten)
2 Tablespoons Mayo
1 Tablespoon Sriracha Seasoning
6 Tea Rolls (Fresh baked are better, but store bought work in a pinch)

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.

In a small dish, combine the sriracha and mayo with a fork until well blended. Store in the refrigerator until just before serving.

Form you hamburgers by combining the beef, egg, mustard and bread crumbs in a large bowl. Once the mixture is well mixed, simply form the meat into golf ball sized portions, flattening them slightly in your hand.

Transfer the burgers to a lightly seasoned grill pan and cook for 3 to 5 minutes on each side or until they are evenly browned.

The one issue with sliders is that they are a bit thicker than a standard burger. This means that they take a bit longer to cook through than your standard burger and if you simply cook them like a standard burger, you're likely to chard the outside long before the centers are done. The solution? Your oven.

If your grill pan is oven safe (and it should be - don't buy pans if they can't go into the oven - multitasking pans are your friend!) simply pop in into the oven for 10 minutes to allow them burgers to cook through (you can also use a baking sheet, if necessary).

After 10 minutes, your sliders should be cooked through. Top the burgers with some shredded cheese if you so choose and pop them back into the oven for an additional minute to melt the cheese. Then, simply spread a layer of the sriracha mayo on each bun, add the burger and enjoy!

The Results: