Possible Cooking Methods: Oven Air Fryer
Pimento cheese spread on a burger turns ordinary burgers into something special. You can find a ready-made pimento cheese in your grocery store, but it’s really easy to make your own. You can roast the potato wedges directly on the sheet pan without any trouble, but for fluffier potatoes, parboil them first on the stovetop for 3 minutes or microwave the potatoes in a bowl of water for 3 minutes. Drain away the water and be sure to pat the potatoes dry with a clean kitchen towel before baking them.
2 to 3 Russet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into wedges, lengthwise
canola or olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1½ pounds ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
½ cup pimento cheese spread (see below)
4 hamburger or Kaiser rolls
sliced tomatoes
lettuce leaves
Pimento Cheese Spread:
1½ cups grated Cheddar cheese
2½ tablespoons diced pimentos
¼ cup mayonnaise
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt
Oven Directions
Serves:4
Cooking Time:40 minutes
1. Pre-heat the oven to 450°F.
2. Toss the potatoes with canola oil, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and spread them out on a large sheet pan. Transfer the sheet pan to the oven and bake at 450°F for 25 minutes.
3. While the potatoes are cooking, make the burger patties. Combine the ground beef, 1 teaspoon of salt, onion powder and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl, using your hands to mix all the ingredients. Divide the mixture into 4 equal portions and then form the hamburgers, being careful not to over-handle the meat. Make an indentation in the center of each patty to help keep the burger flat as it cooks.
4. Turn the potatoes over with a spatula and push them to one side of the sheet pan to make room for the burgers. Add the burgers to the sheet pan and return the pan to the oven. Cook for 5 to 10 minutes (5 minutes for rare, 7 minutes for medium and 9 minutes for medium-well burgers).
5. Remove the sheet pan from the oven and set the oven to broil. Remove the fat from the sheet pan by carefully tilting the pan and pouring off the grease from the corner. Flip the burgers and top each burger with spoonfuls of pimento cheese spread. Return the pan to the oven and broil for 3 minutes, until the pimento cheese spread has melted on the burgers and the potatoes are crispy.
6. Remove the pan from oven. Place the rolls, cut side up on the oven rack for 1 minute to the toast buns.
7. Serve the burgers on the toasted buns topped with sliced tomatoes and lettuce leaves and with the steak fries on the side.
Additional Cooking Directions for
Don’t discount the importance of good lettuce and tomatoes on a burger. If it’s a special burger, then it deserves special attention to all the ingredients - and isn’t every burger special?
Air Fryer Directions
Serves:4
Cooking Time:43 minutes
1. Pre-heat the air fryer to 400°F.
2. Toss the potatoes with canola oil, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and place them in the air fryer basket. Air-fry at 400°F for 18 minutes, tossing the potatoes a few times during the cooking process.
3. While the potatoes are cooking, make the burger patties. Combine the ground beef, 1 teaspoon of salt, onion powder and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl, using your hands to mix all the ingredients. Divide the mixture into 4 equal portions and then form the hamburgers, being careful not to over-handle the meat. Make an indentation in the center of each patty to help keep the burger flat as it cooks.
4. Remove the steak fries from the air fryer and set them aside, loosely tented with foil to keep them warm.
5. Pour a little water in the bottom of the air fryer drawer to prevent any grease from smoking. Add the burgers to the air fryer basket and air-fry at 370°F for 16 to 20 minutes, depending on the desired doneness of your burgers. Flip the burgers over halfway through the cooking process. When 2 minutes are left on the timer, spread the pimento cheese spread on top of each patty.
6. Remove the burgers and let them rest for a few minutes. Return the steak fries to the air fryer and air-fry for 2 to 3 minutes, until crispy.
7. To toast the buns, place the rolls cut side up in the air fryer and air-fry at 370° for 1 to 2 minutes.
8. Serve the burgers on the toasted buns topped with sliced tomatoes and lettuce leaves and with the steak fries on the side.