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YIELDS:

3 servings

PREP TIME:

0 hours 15 mins

COOK TIME:

0 hours 5 mins

TOTAL TIME:

0 hours 20 mins
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ingredients

1 Lb. Ground beef, 80/20

3 Kings Hawaiian Pretzel Buns

6 Slices American Cheese

6 Dill pickle slices

3 Slices Beefsteak tomato

3 Slices Yellow onion

1 Cup Iceberg lettuce, chopped

6 Tbsp. Special sauce (recipe below)

Kosher salt and freshly Ground Black pepper

Cooking Spray

SPECIAL SAUCE

1/2 Cup Mayonnaise

2 Tbsp. Ketchup

4 Tsp. Sweet Pickle relish

1 Tbsp. Onion, finely minced

1 Tsp. White Wine Vinegar

1 Tsp. Sugar

1/8 Tsp. Kosher Salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Make the sauce by mixing all the ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and chill at least an hour and up to overnight.

2. Add a large pinch of salt and pepper to the chopped meat.  Form ground beef into 6 even balls. (divide chopped meat in half, then each half again into 3 pieces.  Roll each portion to form 6 balls of meat).

3. Flatten the balls of meat into “smashed” patties with the back of a spatula. Sprinkle both sides with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.  NOTE:  you can also just add the balls to the skillet and smash right in the skillet using the back of a spatula.  This will save you a plate or cutting board in cleanup.

4. Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Spray with cooking spray. Once really hot, but not smoking, add the patties (in batches if needed) so they are not touching in the skillet. Cook for about two minutes until brown and crispy. Gently flip over. Top each with a slice of cheese and cook for another 1-2 minutes until really crispy and the cheese is melted.

5. Meanwhile, toast the buns in the over under the broiler or on a grill or grill pan.

6. To assemble the burgers, on the bottom bun, spoon 1 tablespoon of the sauce. Top with a patty with cheese then top with a second patty and cheese creating a double decker. Top with two pickles. On the top bun half, spoon another tablespoon of sauce, top with 1/4 cup of lettuce, a slice of onion and a tomato slice. Gently lift and place your loaded top bun on top of the bottom patties. It is easy if you hold the tomato with your thumb and the top of the bun with your forefinger,

7. To serve, insert a long food pick into the burger. Have extra sauce and ketchup on the side. Dig in!

NOTE: Here is another Sunday Slider recipe for you.  This one is pulling from my high school days working at Burger King.  The all important training I received from Whopper College has not been forgotten!  How you assemble the burger is as important as how you cook it… LOL.  I created the “special sauce” years ago as my nod to McDonalds but at the end of the day, this is just a great smashed burger!  Lots of ooey-gooey cheese and some fabulous, fresh and crunchy toppings.  The small slider size doesn’t mean you have to skimp… did I mention, I’m loving these pretzel buns?  I’ve been using them a lot lately and if you like the Hawaiian Sweet rolls, you are going to love these.  These pretzel buns are slightly larger than traditional slider buns but smaller than a traditional hamburger bun making them the perfect size!  I’ve used them for a couple of other slider recipes so be sure to check out my Chicken & Swiss sliders and my Crab Cake Sliders too.

The double decker slider gives you a full 1/3 pound of meat so the guys will love it.  Don’t think you can open your mouth that wide? (I heard a couple of grumbles from friends.) Well, just use one patty with cheese!  Obviously, you can use any cheese you like but good ‘ole American is still my favorite on a burger.  And once I heard multiple chefs say the same thing, I felt validated (I mean really, should I need “validation” to eat a burger?  LOL)  Another big component is in this burger is the ratio of fat in the meat.  Everyone has gotten very lean (Hey, I almost always use ground turkey.) but a really delicious, moist burger relys on the fat.  Use 80/20 meat and you’ll see the difference.  As you know, I say all food is good food in moderation.  So just make this burger occasionally and enjoy every bite.

Don’t forget to sign up for my newsletters and get recipes sent right to your inbox.  Whip up this burger and enjoy!