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Avocado, Chorizo, and Pepper Jack Cheeseburger

By: Chris

17 March 2023 at 16:36

[FTC Standard Disclosure] We received no compensation for this post. Any links which may earn us a commission are tagged [Affilate Link].

A chorizo, avocado, and pepper jack cheeseburger is a delicious twist on the classic American cheeseburger. This burger features a juicy patty made from ground chuck and topped with gooey melted pepper jack cheese. We crown it with creamy avocado and flavorful chorizo. The combination of smoky, spicy, and creamy flavors creates a mouthwatering burger experience that's sure to satisfy any craving.

Avocado, Chorizo, and Pepper Jack Cheeseburger cooked on a Big Green Egg

Alexis was craving a griddle-cooked burger while I wanted mine grilled. No problem. I used my modular cast-iron grate from Craycort, which let me swap a grate section out with a griddle plate as shown below.

Craycort's modular grate system lets me use various inserts like this griddle plate, a chicken throne or a veggie wok.

I've been using cast iron grates from Craycort for about 14 years. In addition to being a fantastic cast-iron grate, the modular design lets you add other components like this griddle, a vegetable wok, or a chicken throne.
Craycort

Not that you need a recipe for a burger, but here is what we did.

Avocado, Chorizo, and Pepper Jack Cheeseburger

By www.nibblemethis.com

Published 03/17/2023

Six-ounce burgers topped with pepper jack cheese, avocado, and chorizo on a brioche bun.

INGREDIENTS

18 ounces fresh ground chuck
Fire and Smoke BBQ's The Classic for seasoning
3 brioche buns, toasted
3 slices Tillamook pepper jack cheese

For the avocado mash

1 avocado, peeled and pitted
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
pinch salt

For the quick chorizo chili

4.5 ounces Mexican chorizo (raw, not the smoked style)
1/4 cup finely diced onion
1 ounce finely diced red bell pepper (I used 1 mini-sweet red pepper)
1 ounce finely diced jalapeno

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat a grill to 450f°. I used a Big Green Egg Mini-Max with a full Kick Ash Basket of coal. I used a propane torch to light the coal in 3 spots and when it hit 350f, I gradually started shutting the lower vent to bring it to 450f°.
Form the burgers. I used a burger press to create three 6-ounce burgers.
Make the avocado mash. Smash the avocado together with lemon juice and salt.
Make the quick chorizo chili. Preheat a grill-safe skillet for 5 minutes. Add a splash of oil and then cook the chorizo until the fat begins to render out, about 1-2 minutes. Then add the jalapeno, onion, jalapeno, and red bell pepper and saute until they are tender. Remove from heat. The total time should be about 5 minutes.
Grill the burgers. I cook the grilled burger for about 4 minutes per side and the griddled burger for about 3 minutes per side. I season the burgers when I flipped them. I used maybe 1/2 teaspoon of The Classic. I top it with a slice of pepper jack cheese during the last 90 seconds.
Build the burgers. Put the burger on the toasted bun bottom, and top it with the avocado mash, chorizo, and the bun top.

Yield: 3 burgers

Prep Time: 00 hrs. 10 mins.

Cook time: 00 hrs. 10 mins.

Total time: 20 mins.

Tags: burger, cheeseburger

Getting everything in place.

Using the Thermapen IR to accurately measure the temp of the cast iron skillet

Make sure you give your cast-iron time to pre-heat. I THOUGHT this was ready to go but when I temp-checked it using my Thermapen IR, it wasn't quite 450°f yet. My sister got me this combo food and surface thermometer and I love it. No more guessing.
Thermapen IR [Affiliate Link]

Making a quick chroizo chili for a delicious burger

Cooking the chorizo in a skillet that's over 80 years old - a Griswold #5.

Cooking burger patties on the big green egg mini-max

Don't you just love the sizzle when you put food onto the griddle and/or grill?

Griddled or grilled? Your choice when using a Craycort cast iron grate on the Big Green Egg kamado grill

Options are always a nice thing, right?

I like using the Mini-Max over a large Egg because it's often just the two of us and the Mini-Max saves fuel.

The Classic is one of my go-to SPG-type seasonings for the kitchen or grill. Keep an eye out for Mikey and Cowboy Kev on the Eggfest circuit or you can mail order their seasonings:
Fire and Smoke The Classic

Mmmmm a pepper jack cheese blanket!

I always look forward to a cheese-draped burger.

These burgers were FANTASTIC. I wouldn't change a thing.

Mushroom Swiss Burgers on the Grill

Nibble Me This

By: Chris

3 October 2022 at 16:12

[Standard FTC Disclosure] We received no compensation for this post. Any link which may earn us a commission is tagged as [Affiliate Link].

We've been chowing down on mushroom Swiss burgers in the past few weeks. Not that you need a recipe for mushroom Swiss burgers, but I have a basic recipe that I follow for the mushroom topping, and it's easy to prepare one of three ways; sauteed, saucy, or creamy.

I add chopped bacon to my mushroom topping to add a smoky, salty element.

Fun Fungi Facts

Here are some fun facts about mushrooms from Harold McGee's epic On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. [Affiliate Link]

Mushrooms are natural flavor enhancers. They naturally contain monosodium glutamate, and many also contain guanosine monophosphate.
Mushrooms don't have cellulose like plants. Instead, their cell walls are made of chitin which is the same thing as the exoskeletons of crustaceans.
Mushrooms produce octenol (an 8-carbon alcohol) and there is more in the gills. Therefore, mature mushrooms that have opened have more gills and more flavor while unopened mushrooms like button mushrooms have less flavor.

Whole Mushrooms vs Pre-Sliced

I prefer to buy whole mushrooms and slice them myself.

Mushrooms continue to be quite active for days after being picked. Enzymes continue to develop and store flavor compounds in the gills.
If you slice them up before packaging, it disrupts that process and also lets the mushrooms start to dry out.
For me, the loss of flavor isn't worth the 30 seconds you save from buying pre-sliced mushrooms.
Prep tip: If you don't have knife skills, you can use an egg slicer to slice your mushrooms instead.

Here's the topping recipe that I use. When you do the sauteed version of this, it's basically mushroom ragout and we've tossed it with pasta or used it as a base for mushroom soup.

Mushroom Swiss Burger cooked on the CharBroil Cruise Grill

We didn't have any frozen fries or tots and the only potatoes I had on hand were these bite-size "ruby sensations" that we bought at Food City. If fries are just bite-sized pieces of fried or roasted potatoes, doesn't that make these.....ROUND FRENCH FRIES!?!?

Mushroom Topping for Mushroom Swiss Burgers

By www.nibblemethis.com

Published 10/01/2022

This topping can be served in one of three ways; sauteed, saucy, or creamy. You can substitute butter for the bacon fat if needed.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons bacon fat
12 ounces baby bella mushrooms, freshly sliced thin
1/2 cup yellow onion, peeled and sliced
5 slices smoked bacon, raw, chopped
1 ounce bourbon
1 ounce stone ground mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

Preheat a medium cast-iron skillet over a 350°f grill.
Saute the mushrooms. Add bacon fat or butter to the skillet and saute the sliced mushrooms for 2 minutes.
Stir in the bacon and cook for 3 more minutes.
Stir in the onions and cook until the onions are softened and the bacon has started to brown, about 4-5 more minutes.
Flambe the bourbon.

Keep your face, extremities, important documents, and anything else you don't want to be burned from above the skillet.
Wear heat-resistant gloves.
Don't do this unless you've been trained or at least watched 3 YouTube videos on how to flambe.
What I'm trying to say is don't do this if you don't know what you're doing and don't sue me if you burn off your eyebrows.
Remove the skillet from the heat, add the bourbon and quickly use a long-necked lighter to ignite the bourbon flames which will create a brief fireball. It will burn down and the flames will self-extinguish in about 15-20 seconds.

Sauteed Version: Stir in the stone-ground mustard and Worcestershire sauce and simmer for 1 minute until thickened. Taste and add salt or Worcestershire sauce as needed.
Saucy Version: After step 6, add 1/2 cup or so of beef stock and let simmer until the liquid reduces by half. Stir in a slurry of 1 tablespoon each of corn starch and cold water to thicken.
Creamy Version: After step 6, add 1/2 cup or so of heavy cream and let simmer until the liquid reduces by half. Stir in a slurry of 1 tablespoon each of corn starch and cold water to thicken.

Yield: enough for 4 burgers

Prep Time: 00 hrs. 10 mins.

Cook time: 00 hrs. 15 mins.

Total time: 25 mins.

Tags: sauce

Here are two of my recent burgers.

For the first burger, I used my CharBroil Cruise grill with infrared cooking and automatic controls to cook at the specific temperature of my choosing. That's pretty unique for gas grills which usually just have a dial with settings of low, medium, and high.

Seasoned with Jalapeno Steak Butter from Pepper Palace and cooked on the CharBroil Cruise grill

I started with fresh ground chuck from Food City and made 6-ounce burger patties. I heavily seasoned those with Jalapeno Steak Butter Seasoning from Pepper Palace. I've been using it on burgers a good bit lately - I enjoy the jalapeno flavor and mild sting.

There was no specific reasoning for the 535°f, I meant to do 525°f and didn't notice that I rolled past it on the dial.

I cooked the burgers for about 3 minutes per side. If you're wondering why you don't see flames, the CharBroil Amplifire system has a metal emitter plate just under the grate and above the flames. It prevents flare-ups and cooks using infrared heat which keeps the food more juicy.

I like to use two pieces of Sargento Baby Swiss per burger. Perfectly cheesy!

For the "round french fries", I tossed them with oil and plenty of the Jalapeno Steak Butter seasoning. I put them in a cast iron cooker on the upper rack of the CharBroil Cruise and cooked them for about 30-45 minutes at 425°f until they were tender.

The mushrooms amplify the cheesy, beefy burger.

I cooked this next batch of Mushroom Swiss Burgers on a flat-top griddle.

Sometimes I opt for convenience and use Schweid & Son's premade burgers. They are fresh, Certified Angus Beef® Brand beef. The All American is USDA Choice while the One Percenter is USDA Prime. Also, when making Mushroom Swiss Burgers, it makes sense to season them with a mushroom-based seasoning like Fire and Smoke's Shiitake Steak Rub or my Umami Steak Seasoning recipe.

Mushroom Swiss Burgers on the Blackstone grill

Cooking burgers on a flat-top grill are probably my favorite way to go, even if I'm not doing smashburgers.

Mushroom Swiss Burgers on the Blackstone griddle

Look at that pile of deliciousness! I would have eaten it just like this except I like to avoid 3rd-degree burns on my lips and tongue.

Mushroom Swiss Burger on a toasted brioche roll

Umami for the win! I love a toasted brioche bun as well.