Chipotle Beef Burgers
on Jun 21, 2019, Updated Dec 10, 2023
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These burgers have a spicy kick, but you can adjust the heat level to your taste. Just one ingredient more than plain burgers, but so much more interesting!
This is a total cheater recipe in that it’s barely a recipe. But if you haven’t brought a little can of chipotles in adobo into your home you are missing out for sure. It’s one of my favorite little hack ingredients. And yes, it’s been around forever, and yes, it kind of “peaked” fad-wise a while back, when it was included in a bajillion dishes and recipe around the country with a fervor (and had a fast casual Mexican restaurant named after it). But it’s just not fair to let the pendulum swing all the way back to the days before it was uber-popular. Because it’s a really great product.
Chipotles in adobo sauce are smoked jalapeno peppers which have been stewed in a sauce with tomatoes, garlic, vinegar, salt, and various spices such as cumin, oregano and paprika. A perfect canned convenience product, and something I would probably not make myself.
All you need to do is puree a little 7-ounce can of the peppers and sauce, transfer it to a plastic container, then tuck it into the fridge and scoop out teaspoons whenever you need it. It lasts for a couple of months, though I have noticed that the intensity of heat increases as it stands, so take that into account as you use it.
Yes, the puree is somewhat spicy, but as with many flavorings, when used judiciously it just adds a warm undercurrent of smoky heat to all kinds of dishes: chilis, stews and soups, bean dishes, deviled eggs, sauces, chicken salads, potato salads, barbecue sauces, dips…you name it!
Serve these sliders with:
- Creamy Corn and Potato Salad with Bacon and Lemon Buttermilk Dressing
- Kohlrabi, Green Cabbage, and Broccoli Rabe Slaw
- Tomatoes with Mint Basil Pesto
- Perfect End of Summer Pasta Salad
- Grilled Onions
Chipotle Beef Burgers
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef 80/20%
- 2 tablespoons pureed chipotles in adobo sauce see Note
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ⅓ cup minced onion
To Serve (pick and choose what you like):
- Sliced tomatoes
- Sliced onions
- Lettuce leaves
- Mustard
- Ketchup
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine the beef, pureed chipotles in adobo, salt and onion. Hands are best for this.
- Form the mixture into 8 patties, and use your thumbs to make slight indents in the center of each burger, which will cause them to end up flat when they cook.
- Preheat the grill to medium high. Grill the burgers for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, until they are done to your liking. Serve on the buns (toasted if you wish) with lettuce, tomatoes, onions or anything you like!
