Portabello Mushroom Swiss Burgers

Sometimes the simplest things can be the hardest to master.  Take a homemade burger, for instance.  I have had some pretty great burgers at restaurants, and I’ve cooked many burgers at home.  In fact, one time I tried to get really fancy and make pizza burgers (pepperoni and mozzarella stuffed inside the hamburger patties), which my best friend refused to even try because “who wants pizza and burgers at the same time?!”  Her argument, not mine.    Through a lot of trial and error, though, I’ve learned that when it comes to ground meat topped with melted cheese and smashed between two buns, simple really is better.

But simple doesn’t have to mean boring.

The great thing about the burger-making method I’ve discovered is that it’s really about getting the meat to come out juicy and flavorful. But, I also like to put a little spin on things.  I mean, I was the one who experimented with pizza burgers.  So I’ve taken a classic mushroom swiss burger but instead of the mushrooms topping the burger meat, I’ve made the mushrooms into the buns.

Let’s take this one step at a time…

For starters, I recently bought a standard Weber charcoal grill.  It’s not rubbing two sticks together, but there is something, I don’t know, primitive (and not at all in a bad way) about cooking with charcoal.

Look, you can certainly use a gas grill.  It’s faster and more convenient, definitely less temperamental than a charcoal grill.  Whatever your heat source of choice, this recipe will work. In fact, you can cook your burgers in a cast iron skillet and roast the mushrooms in the oven if you want.

For me, though, when it comes to red meat, I find that my best burgers come off the grill, my best steaks come out of a pan.

Will someone quote me on that? Maybe one day.

The Beef

I’ve often found non-restaurant burgers tend to be dry and overcooked.  I think this is because restaurants typically use higher fat (73%) ground meat, and they also don’t cook the burgers to death (unless you specifically ask them to, of course).   There is more flavor with fat and ground meat is just juicier when it isn’t well done.  When cooking at home, I try to make things as healthy as possible without skimping on the flavor.  So, I generally use ground meat with no more than 15% fat, but I add a little oil, along with seasoning salt, such as Tony Chachere Creole Seasoning (just something a little more than your standard salt and pepper) to the meat before forming the patties, and I cook my burgers to medium temperature.

BUT, most importantly, the secret ingredient I have found to making the juiciest homemade burgers is…

*Drum roll please*

That’s right, good old fashioned frozen water, aka ICE.

Just stick an ice cube in the center of each of your burger patties right before they go on the grill.

Now, I can’t take credit for coming up with this ingredient all on my own.  Instead, I stumbled across the tip to use ice cubes while looking online for the best burger recipes.  You can read about it, too, here.

But why ice?

Essentially, the moisture released when the ice melts gives the meat the juiciness you’re looking for in a restaurant-quality burger but without all that fat.  And really, we are all just trying to stay alive and well while still enjoying our food, aren’t we?

The Mushrooms

Let’s move on to the mushrooms,  What you’re looking for are those big portabello mushroom caps.  Whole Foods actually sells the mushroom caps in bulk which I find to be cheaper than the packaged one sold in other grocery stores.

Remove the gills and stems with a spoon and clean the tops of any dirt or residue by wiping them clean with a damp paper towel.  Then, spray just enough olive oil spray to coat the mushrooms on both sides and sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic power over them.

Set aside until you are ready to grill.

The Technique

Cooking the burger patties and mushrooms caps is the simple part. I’ve already told you about my super duper top secret weapon, the Ice which you should have already stuck in your patties.

Once you have your grill (or pan) fired and ready, you want to cook your mushroom caps for a few minutes on one side and then flip.  Same goes for the burgers, but you’ll want to cook them a tad bit longer than the mushrooms.

The Cheese

Sticking with tradition, I use swiss cheese with these mushroom burgers but you can certainly use any other sort of cheese you’d like or have on hand.  I throw mine on right before I remove the burgers from the grill so the cheese gets gooey and melty.

The Toppings

I used to like only cheese (and literally nothing else) on my burgers.  Talk about simple.  But, I recently discovered, through one of the several meal delivery kits I’ve tried, that baby bok choy supplies the perfect crunch.  Add onions, a fresh tomato (creole here in South Louisiana if they are in season, but a beefsteak will do just fine), some pickle chips and then your favorite condiments (mustard, mayonnaise ketchup), and you’re in business.

But really, top these burgers with whatever fixings you want.  In fact, forget using the portabello mushroom caps altogether and use traditional hamburger buns instead.  Whatever.  The most important thing to take away from this post is the method for cooking the burgers.

However, you slice it, you’re gonna love this recipe once you get your hands on it.  But keep plenty of napkins handy.  Things can get a little messy.

Portabello Mushroom Burgers

This recipe is a twist on a classic mushroom and swiss burger because the portabello mushroom caps act as the "buns". Mind blowing, I know!

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Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

  

• 8 portabello mushroom caps cleaned and gills removed
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
• 1 lb lean ground meat
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 tablespoon Tony's Seasoning
• Ice cubes
• 4 slices Swiss cheese

Instructions

 

• Spray mushroom caps all over with cooking spray, or brush all over with a little oil.
• Sprinkle garlic, salt and pepper mix all over mushrooms. Set aside.
• Mix meat, oil and Tony's in a bowl.
• Form the meat mixture into patties and place in refrigerator until ready to use.
• When ready to cook the burgers, take small ice cubes and place in center of ground meat patty.
• Grill the mushrooms for about 3 to 4 minutes per side, until they soften.
• Grill burgers for 4 minutes, then flip and continue cooking another 4 to 5 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
• Place a meat patty on top of a mushroom cap turned upside down. Add the cheese, and whatever other burger toppings you like. I personally like a tomato, mustard and baby bok choy instead of boring old lettuce. Place another mushroom cap on top. Repeat for the other 3 patties.