Tuesday, August 21, 2012

California Roll Burgers


The minute I saw these burgers on Use Real Butter, I'm pretty sure I immediately started drooling.  Start out with a pretty basic burger - use the highest quality beef you can, add a little fish sauce (just trust me), and grill them.  Mix up a quick crab salad and wasabi mayo, then pile it all on a toasted bun with the obligatory lettuce and tomato, plus some chopped nori, avocado slices, and pickled ginger.  It is one intense burger.  I was pretty full after eating only half of it, but it was so good that I couldn't bear to let any go to waste.  Don't you hate that?

As soon as I made these, I started envisioning a spicy tuna roll burger... and then I got pregnant.  I later saw that Jen was ahead of me, and had recently posted one.  You'd better believe that I'll be enjoying one pretty quickly after these babies are born!  Without a doubt, sushi is the hardest thing to give up when pregnant.  For some reason I crave it all. the. time now.

I know summer is winding down, but even if you only plan to use your grill one more time, I beg of you - make these burgers.  You most definitely won't be sorry!

California Roll Burgers
adapted from Use Real Butter

feel free to customize these to your tastes.  Leave off any of the components you don't care for, or add anything else you do like.  The original recipe called for roe as one of the toppings, but I don't care of the texture so much, so I left it off.  I topped mine with a little extra siracha sauce for a spicier burger.  I also followed Jen's lead and served it with the Terra root chips.  

Prepare all the toppings and refrigerate them before you grill the burgers, so you can assemble and eat as soon as they come off the grill.  The combo of hot burger with cold toppings is really great.

  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 tsp fish sauce
  • kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 6-8 oz crab meat, picked through for shells
  • 1 Tbs mayonnaise
  • dash of soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp wasabi powder (more or less to taste)
  • pickled ginger
  • nori (seaweed sheets) cut or torn into thin strips
  • avocado slices
  • lettuce or spinach, washed and torn
  • tomato slices
  • challah or brioche buns, halved
  • Siracha, for serving
Combine the ground beef with the fish sauce, and season with salt and pepper.  Using a light hand, loosely form the beef into 4 patties.  Season the outside with additional salt and pepper.

For the crab salad:  Combine the crab meat with 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise and soy sauce, taste, and season with salt and pepper.  Cover and chill until ready to use.

To make the wasabi mayonnaise, stir the wasabi powder into 1/4 cup of mayonnaise.  Taste and add additional wasabi or mayonnaise to adjust to your liking.  Cover and chill until ready to use.

Prepare the grill to medium-high heat.  Oil the grates, then grill the burgers to desired doneness, flipping once.  Brush the cut side of the buns with oil or butter and grill them as well.

To assemble:  Starting with the bottom bun, layer the lettuce, tomato, burger patty, crab salad, avocado, nori, and pickled ginger.  Spread the top bun with some of the wasabi mayonnaise, drizzle siracha on top if desired, and serve immediately.





10 comments:

j3nn said...

I saw these too and thought, "WOW! Brilliant!" -- Clearly fusion foods are like a whole new world to me, but this combo sounds amazing.

Jessica said...

Yum! 2 fabulous worlds colliding!

Just think how delicious that first bite of sushi will be after the boys are born! :)

Shawnda said...

I love this idea so much - one of the fancier fancy burgers I've seen! And the Spicy Tuna burger sounds fab, too.

LynnieBNC said...

W O W!!! I LOVE THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!! It just sounds unbelievable!!!!!

Kelsey said...

This sounds like an amazing combination of flavors, temperatures, and textures. A burger with "sushi" on top--Michael would be in heaven!

Joanne said...

I really can't imagine giving up sushi when I'm pregnant but I guess I'll have to! I'll just have to think of fun sushi substitutes like this burger!

Anonymous said...

Especially being Vietnamese, I love the addition of fish sauce to this burger! You go, Josie!

Cara said...

ooh you've just reminded me that I saw these on Bridget's blog and I've been meaning to try them!

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