Sliders

Here in Rhode Island we don’t have an In ‘n Out Burger, a Chick-fil-A, a Jack in the Box, Hardees, Arbys, or a Sonic (much to my husbands disappointment). Heck we had one Krispy Kreme and it went out of business. I’ve read about all these restaurant chains on food message boards and blogs, and the only one I’ve ever been to was a Sonic when we were in Pennsylvania. (The strawberry limeade was good. The onion rings – eh). So I’m sure it will come as no surprise after reading that list that we don’t have White Castle. I never even knew White Castle burgers existed until I saw the movie Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. Isn't that pathetic?

A few years ago I started to see the White Castle sliders pop up in the frozen food section of my local mega-mart. I don’t buy frozen pre-made burgers, so a White Castle burger still never made it to my table, enough though I loved the idea of a little burger grilled with a layer of onions and topped with a pickle. I love onions.

So sliders are “in” now. I see them on restaurant menus; heck even the late Billy Mays was hawking a Big City Slider Maker on TV. Talk about the mother of all unitaskers.

I knew one of the talented bloggers I follow would eventually come up with a great recipe for delicious sliders that I could make at home, and they did. Thanks to Big Red Kitchen, you too can make these cute little burgers right in your own little kitchen (and they are easy too).



Sliders
Recipe from Big Red Kitchen.
Printable recipe
½ cup dried onion flakes
2 pounds ground chuck (80/20 ground beef)
½ teaspoon seasoning salt
6 slices cheddar cheese
24 small party rolls or slider rolls
24 dill pickles

Evenly spread the onions on the bottom of a 9x13 inch-baking dish. Gently press the ground beef on top of the onion flakes. Press evenly, making one giant pattie. Sprinkle with seasoning salt. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Using a paper towel, pat the excess grease from the top of the ground beef. (My note - there was way too much grease to pat these with a paper towel. I ended up pouring the grease into an old pickle jar while my husband held the hamburger with with a spatula so it wouldn't fall out. Worked out pretty well). Top with cheddar cheese and return to the oven for 2 minutes, or just enough to melt the cheese. (I didn't return these to the oven, the heat of the burger melted the cheese). Remove from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes. Cut into 24 patties.

Arrange the bottoms of the rolls on a large platter and using a spatula, place the patties on the bottom of the rolls. Top with a dill pickle if desired, then slap a top on those bad boys. Serve immediately.



Note: BRK stored these upside down in an airtight container in the refrigerator. This will prevent the bottom bun from getting soggy from the onion layer. To reheat, place a few on a microwave safe plate and heat for 20 seconds, and then check at 5-second increments after that until warm.