Name: Southwestern Burgers
Total time: PLACEHOLDER
Cuisine: Southwest (Tex-Mex)US & Canada
Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds 85 percent lean ground chuck; 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese; 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro; 4 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo; 4 teaspoons yellow mustard; 4 teaspoons taco seasoning (from packet)

Why This Recipe Works

To keep our Southwestern Burgers’ toppings from sliding out from beneath the bun, we created a recipe that put them inside the burger, where they couldn’t fall out. We added our recipe’s ingredients straight into the burger mix. Our recipe calls for 85 percent lean ground beef, which kept the burgers from being too greasy. And because the ingredients were mixed into the meat, we found it best to cook the burgers to well-done. The Monterey Jack cheese kept them from being dry or tough.

Before You Begin

Although we usually enjoy our burgers medium-rare, with extra ingredients added, tasters found that the burgers were too soft unless cooked through (basically, well-done).

Instructions

Break beef into small pieces in medium bowl. Add cheese, cilantro, chiles, mustard, and taco seasoning. Using fork, toss until evenly distributed. Divide mixture into 4 equal portions and lightly pack into 1-inch-thick patties.

When coals are ready and grate is hot, dip wad of paper towels in vegetable oil and use tongs to rub oil over grate. Grill burgers over very hot fire, without pressing down on them, until well seared on both sides and cooked through, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer to plate, tent with foil, and let rest 5 minutes. Serve.