For years, my idea of a decent burger looked like ground beef and lots of garlic salt. To be honest, I still think those two simple ingredients can yield a pretty darn delicious burger but clearly I had room for improvement. It didn’t take long for Ryan to take over all burger-making responsibilities in our relationship and over the years, he’s mastered the art of a great burger. Ryan’s one big Black Friday purchase this year was a new grill and he’s been jumping at the chance to put it to good use now that the weather is nice again so we’ve been doing a lot of grilling around here.
Ryan’s burger recipe isn’t anything fancy — far from it! — but the simple ingredients always result in the most deliciously juicy and flavorful burger. It’s a great basic burger recipe to stand up to all of your favorite toppings. Though he never measures anything, I hovered over his shoulder (not at all annoying, right?) and made him measure everything as he prepared a batch of burgers for our family so I could share a breakdown of his go-to burger recipe with you guys today.
But wait! There’s more! Though Ryan’s burger recipe is easy and tasty on its own, we’ve been tag-teaming the burger game a bit lately and I’ve been in charge of making caramelized onions to go with our burgers. There’s not much I love more than caramelized onions on burgers or hot dogs (or a lot of things, actually), and making them in the slow cooker has been a game-changer. They’re so incredibly sweet (without any added sugar) and buttery and I cannot get enough of them.
To make caramelized onions on the stove top, you pretty much have to hover over them for what feels like forever and stir them at regular intervals. I am much more of a set it and forget it kind of girl, so preparing a giant batch of caramelized onions in the slow cooker is much more my style. And it’s EASY you guys. So, so easy! We’re talking three ingredients and very little hands-on time.
I did another grocery delivery to our house from BJ’s Wholesale Club to make this recipe duo to photograph for you guys but, to be honest, most of the ingredients came out of our pantry and freezer because I previously stocked up on some of our summertime grilling essentials in bulk during my last BJ’s visit.
Buying bulk quantities has been a great way for me to save our family money since I can pick up a three-pack of grassfed ground beef and freeze two of the packs or grab a giant tub of organic coconut oil or organic maple syrup since our family goes through that stuff at record speed.
Ryan’s Go-To Burger Recipe with Slow Cooker Caramelized Onions
To make the burgers in this recipe, I just thawed a pack of the organic grass-fed ground beef I had stored away from BJ’s in our freezer and added spices and we were good to go! (I told you this recipe was easy!) For the caramelized onions, I added a bag of the Wellsley Farms organic onions to my BJ’s grocery delivery order in addition to the Wellsley Farms organic butter which is all kinds of creamy and delicious.
If you’re looking to host or attend a summertime cookout in the coming weeks, BJ’s is a great spot to pop in for a visit because they’re truly a one-stop shop for everything from outdoor decor and affordable fresh food (up to 25% less than other grocery stores) and even grills! The butchers at BJ’s will also cut fresh meat according to your specifications or re-cut and re-package any meats you’d like at no charge so you can get your grill on!
And the next time you’re planning to fire up the grill, please take a little time in the morning to prepare a batch of caramelized onions in your slow cooker. They go well with just about everything from the simple burger recipe I’m sharing with you below to brats, hot dogs and chicken thighs. You won’t regret it, I promise!!
And, as always, if you try either of these recipes, please let me know! Happy grilling, friends!
Slow Cooker Caramelized Onions
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Three ingredients + a slow cooker = Sweet and buttery caramelized onions without any time spent hovering over the stove
Ingredients
- 3 pounds Wellsley Farms organic yellow onions
- 3 tablespoons Wellsley Farms organic butter
- Wellsley Farms pink Himalayan salt, to taste (optional)
Instructions
- Turn slow cooker on low.
- Peel and slice onions.
- Slice butter into thin pieces and rub the bottom of the slow cooker with a bit of the butter (it should begin to slightly melt) so the bottom of the slow cooker is coated in a thin layer of butter.
- Place the sliced onion on top of the butter and cover for 10-14 hours. If you are awake/around, feel free to periodically stir the onions, though this is not necessary. (Note: The time you decide the onions are done from 10-14 hours is really up to YOU, depending on how you like your onions. At the 10 hour mark, the onions will still have a slight bite to them and won’t be mushy. The longer they cook, the softer they become.)
- Using a slotted spoon or tongs, remove onions from the slow cooker and discard (or save!) any remaining juice. (The leftover onion juice makes a fantastic addition to soups. I never toss mine!) Enjoy the onions on top of burgers, hot dogs, chicken, steak, etc. Store any remaining onions in an airtight container in the refrigerator or in the freezer for future use.
Ryan’s Go-To Burger Recipe
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Yield:Description
An easy burger recipe that serves as the perfect basic burger to stand up to all of your favorite toppings!
Ingredients
- 1 pound grass-fed ground beef
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Montreal Steak Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl until spices are evenly distributed. Shape beef into four burger patties.
- Place burgers on the grill over medium heat and grill for approximately 4-6 minutes before flipping and grilling for another 5 minutes or until the burgers reach an internal temperature of 160°F.
- Serve burgers on a fresh bun with desired toppings. Enjoy!
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In the fall, you can take those slow cooker caramelized onions, add some broth and seasonings and turn them into French onion soup. It’s a great way to make it.
oh my gosh that sounds heavenly!!!
This is basically my burger recipe! The worcestershire really adds a nice zing to the burgers, right? I’ll have to try the slow cooker version of onions because caramelized onions are my favorite!
Whoa, that french onion soup idea above just had my mouth watering, ha! We love doing burgers in the summertime. I don’t know if he watches this silly show or not, “Bob’s Burgers” but my husband has Bob’s burger cookbook and it’s hilarious! Lots of fun ideas for burgers!
Yum!
Quiet Easy and Simple, but ofcourse Delicious too.
I can’t wait to try the onion recipe! We’re grass fed beef producers in Alberta, Canada- it’s neat to see how many people prefer it to conventional beef. Thanks for the recipes!
oh, dear — with your pwer off for so long I hope your freezer does not defrost!