Up North Venison Burger with Michigan Cherry BBQ

Name: Up North Venison Burger with Michigan Cherry BBQ
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 1 lb ground venison, or 80/20 ground beef; 4 slices thick-cut bacon; 1/4 cup Michigan tart cherry preserves; 1/2 cup ketchup; 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar; 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce; 1 tsp smoked paprika; 1/2 tsp garlic powder; 1/4 tsp cayenne; 2 slices smoked cheddar; 2 brioche buns; 1 cup arugula; 1 cup Better Made Original Potato Sticks; Better Made Barbecue Seasoning Shaker, for the patties and the finish

The burger that tastes like the drive north.

Prep 25 min

Cook 10 min

Total 35 min

Serves 2

Intermediate

Venison is lean enough to go dry on you, so this one works rendered bacon fat into the grind before the patties get formed. The sauce is Michigan tart cherry cooked down with smoke and vinegar until it glazes. Potato sticks go on last and stay crisp all the way to the final bite. No ground venison in the freezer? Use 80/20 beef and skip the bacon fat.

Ingredients

1 lb ground venison, or 80/20 ground beef

4 slices thick-cut bacon

1/4 cup Michigan tart cherry preserves

1/2 cup ketchup

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp cayenne

2 slices smoked cheddar

2 brioche buns

1 cup arugula

1 cup Better Made Original Potato Sticks

Better Made Barbecue Seasoning Shaker, for the patties and the finish

Instructions

Cook the bacon in a cast iron skillet over medium heat until crisp. Set the bacon aside and pour off 3 tablespoons of the fat. Let it cool until it thickens but still pours.

Work the bacon fat into the ground venison with your hands, stopping the moment it is combined. Overworking it makes the patty tight.

Form two half-pound patties wider than your buns, press a shallow dent in the center of each, and season both sides with the Barbecue Shaker. Chill them while you build the sauce.

Whisk the cherry preserves, ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and cayenne in a small saucepan. Simmer uncovered over medium-low 15 to 20 minutes, stirring now and then, until it coats the back of a spoon. Keep it warm.

Get the skillet or grill to high heat. Cook the patties 4 minutes a side, to 135°F for medium-rare. Lay a slice of smoked cheddar on each in the last minute and cover so it melts.

Toast the buns cut side down until golden.

Build it: bottom bun, arugula, patty, bacon, a spoon of cherry BBQ, a hard handful of potato sticks, one more drizzle of sauce, top bun. Finish with a shake of Barbecue and eat it immediately.

BETTER MADE TIP

The arugula is not garnish. It sits under the patty as a moisture barrier so the bottom bun survives the sauce. Sauce goes on twice for the same reason: the second drizzle is what the potato sticks grab onto.

Adapted from the venison burger at Grillseeker.