Smash Burgers With Fresh Milled Sourdough Buns
What Says Summer More Than A Juicy Burger With All the Garden Veggies and Special Sauce. Includes Plenty of Adaptations + a Recipe for Homemade Sourdough Buns.
A grilled hamburger piled with all the fresh garden goodness is truly one of summer’s most perfect meals. My family is loving smash burgers this year. We make them with tortillas or fresh milled sourdough buns. If we have neither tortillas or buns on hand, burger bowls are where it’s at. And let’s not forget the special sauce. I make it in big batches and we use it as a condiment for almost every meal around here. Let’s dig into the options:
Smash Burgers - ground beef spread thin on top of a tortilla, or smashed with the bottom of a stainless bowl in a hot cast iron skillet, or on a cast iron grill top. Serve with raw cheese, fresh greens, tomato, pickles, pickled onions and jalepenos and special sauce. A side of tallow fries makes this the perfect summer dinner.
Burger Bowls - Layer lettuce, fresh sliced tomatoes, cucumbers or pickles, red onion (fresh or pickled) , avocado, burger patty, and special sauce in a deep bowl with plenty of room for chopping. Tuck some tallow fries into the bowl for the perfect summer meal.
Summer Smash Burgers
With Fresh Milled Sourdough Buns, Special Sauce + Tallow Oven Fries
TOOLS
Grill
Cast Iron Skillet
Large stainless steel bowl
Spatula
INGREDIENTS
Burgers
1 lb ground beef (makes about 5 burgers)
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
One large sweet onion
Toppings: pickles, pickled onions, fresh lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, cheese,
Buns (makes 8)
345 g milk
45 g honey or sugar
10 g salt
100 g starter
500 g fresh milled flour - 50/50 hard wheat and soft wheat
45 g soft butter
Special Sauce
1/2 cup mayo
1/3 cup ketchup
2 Tbsp Bbq sauce
1 Tbsp Dijon
1/3 cup chopped pickles and a few splashes of pickle juice
1-2 Tbsp Fresh Dill (optional)
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
Tallow Oven Fries
Chopped potatoes
Tallow for cooking
Salt, pepper, garlic powder, thyme and rosemary
METHOD
For the buns: mix all ingredients with dough hook in a stand mixer for 10 minutes on low. Cover bowl and let sit 4-6 hours, then move to the fridge overnight, or shape right away if baking them the same day (I prefer the flavor when proofed overnight in the refrigerator.)
Dump dough on counter and divide into equal sized balls - about 130 grams per section of dough is a good size for a burger bun. Shape each bun by folding the edges toward the center and rolling tight like you would when making a sourdough loaf- see video for demo. Cover 9x13 with a damp kitchen towel and let sit on counter for 3-4 hours, until buns have a good rise.
Preheat oven to 375º and bake for 20 minutes, turn oven down to 350 and bake an additional 10 minutes. Let cool 30 minutes before slicing. As an option, you can butter the tops of the buns + sprinkle sesame seeds on top when they come out of the oven.
If you’d like to use homemade tortillas for the smash burgers, you can find the recipe here.
For the special sauce, mix all ingredients together and store in the fridge. This can be made 2-3 days in advance, or just before serving the burgers.
For the tallow fries: Preheat oven to 425º. Chop potatoes into equal sized rounds or matchsticks. Line baking sheet with parchment paper and scoop tallow onto baking sheet. Put in oven to melt - this will take about 2-3 minutes. Once tallow is melted, carefully remove baking sheet from the oven and add potatoes, salt, pepper, garlic powder, thyme and rosemary. Toss until potatoes are coated evenly and in a single layer. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden and crispy on top.
Preheat cast iron skillet or flat top over medium heat. Make sure skillet/flat top is well seasoned.
For the smash burgers: Combine ground burger meat with salt, pepper, and garlic in a bowl. Scoop ground beef loosely into 1/2 cup measuring cup, dividing each ball into equal portions and placing back into the bowl. One lb of ground beef will make about 5 burger patties.
Add 2 Tbsp butter and sliced onion to the skillet/cook top and saute´ for 3-5 minutes, or until onions are slightly caramelized. Use 1 tbsp onion per smash burger.
If using tortillas: spread out one portion at a time onto a tortilla. You can use the bottom of a stainless steel bowl to press the burger out thinly, or just press it out with your hands. Spread 1 tbsp grilled onions in a single layer at the center of a well seasoned cast iron skillet or on your cook top. Set the hamburger side on top of the onions. Cook for 3 minutes, then flip, tortilla side down, and add cheese to the top of the burger meat. Remove from skillet after 1 minute.
For Burger Bowls or smash burgers with buns: Smash burgers on top of onions and cook for 2-3 minutes each side, depending how hot your grill is. Place burger patties on top of a sourdough bun or bowl of fresh garden veggies. Drizzle with special sauce and serve with tallow oven fries.
Bonus Recipe: Tuna Ceviche Sushi Bowls with Sriracha Mayo
Friday held an unexpected surprise when my father in law caught a Yellowfin Tuna off the coast of North Carolina and dropped several bags off for us to eat over the weekend. We made ceviche and served it with sushi rice, chopped cucumbers, and sriracha mayo for the most delicious, simple summer poke bowls. I don’t recommend this recipe unless you have access to super fresh fish. If you do, it’s so easy and delicious!
TOOLS
Sharp knif
e
Cutting board
Bowl
Citrus juicer
INGREDIENTS
Ceviche
Fresh Caught Tuna - about 1 lb, chopped into small bite sized cubes
5-6 limes - can use lemons or oranges if thats what you have
2-3 fresh jalapenos
1 bunch fresh cilantro
1 shallot
1 cucumber, diced
1 avocado, diced
Sriracha Mayo
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 Tbsp sriracha
1 tbsp honey
dash of salt and pepper
Other ingredients for bowls: seaweed sheets, pickled onions and jalepenos or ginger, extra diced cucumbers, sesame seeds, furikake, sprouts, green onions, etc
METHOD
Cook sushi rice according to instructions (make sure you rinse well before cooking). Add a couple splashes of rice vinegar, 1 tbsp sugar, and 1-2 tsp salt depending on how much rice you make.
Combine all ceviche ingredients in a medium sized bowl and keep cold on ice.
Whisk sriracha mayo ingredients in a small bowl.
Build poke/ceviche bowls by layering rice, ceviche, chopped cucumbers, diced avocado, pickled onions, seaweed, sesame seeds, etc and drizzle with sriracha mayo.
Other Meal Ideas for the week:
This Grilled Cabbage/Peanut Salad has been on repeat over here the past few weeks. It’s so simple and perfect as a side dish with any grilled protein. The peanut dressing is so good! If you find yourself in a rut with recipes and needing some fresh ideas - Caroline’s Substack is one of my favorites!
Mango Turkey Burgers. These require lots of chopping, but are so good! I try to double or triple the recipe and freeze half the burger patties for an easy dinner down the road. I first found this recipe in one of my favorite books, Bread and Wine by Shauna Niequist. Buy the book and enjoy the summer read and a dozen or so new recipes. The blueberry crisp has been another staple for our family for over a decade.
Sourdough Pizza Night - we love making sourdough pizzas on Friday nights, but this is a wonderful any day of the week meal. Keep the heat outside by cooking pizzas on the grill.
Cottage Cheese, Roasted Beet, Seasonal Fruit + Arugula Salad. I am currently making this salad with watermelon or peaches. Spread cottage cheese on the bottom of a tray or shallow bowl, top with roasted beets, chopped fresh fruit and fresh arugula. Drizzle with a vinagrette made with olive oil, apple cider vinegar or coconut vinegar, dijon, a little citrus juice, citrus zest, maple syrup or honey, salt and pepper. This salad is so good and can be adapted to any type of fruit that’s in season. Greek Yogurt can be subbed for cottage cheese.
Please connect with me in the comments or via the chat feature - I love communicating with and feeling like we are gathering together in our kitchens throughout the week.
