The Ultimate Bacon Cheeseburger
- Level: Easy
- Yield: 4 servings
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 4 servings
- Calories
- 1193
- Total Fat
- 95
- Saturated Fat
- 31
- Carbohydrates
- 31
- Dietary Fiber
- 2
- Sugar
- 7
- Protein
- 51
- Cholesterol
- 203
- Sodium
- 1474
- Total: 45 min
- Active: 35 min
Ingredients
One 12-ounce package thick-cut bacon
4 burger buns
1 1/2 pounds ground beef (preferably 80/20)
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable oil, for oiling grill grates
4 slices (1/4 pound) American cheese
1/2 cup store-bought ranch dressing
4 leaves Bibb lettuce
2 Roma tomatoes, sliced
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
Directions
- Put the bacon in a large nonstick saute pan over medium heat. Cook just until the fat is rendered out, 5 to 7 minutes. (The bacon should not brown at all.) Remove the bacon from the pan and place in the bowl of a small food processor. There should be about 2 tablespoons of bacon fat that has collected in the pan.
- Place the buns into the warm bacon fat, cut-side down. Toast the buns they are until golden brown around the edges, about 2 minutes. Set aside for burger assembly.
- Pulse the par-cooked bacon in the food processor until it is coarsely ground, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Transfer the bacon to a large mixing bowl. Add the ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Use your hand to gently work the bacon and seasonings into the ground beef. Divide the meat into 4 portions (6 to 7 ounces each). Loosely pack the meat into 4 thick patties, using your thumb to create a shallow dimple in the center of each. Sprinkle the outside of each patty with salt and pepper as desired.
- Preheat the grill and generously oil the grill grates. Place the patties on the grill and cook to the desired degree of doneness, 3 to 5 minutes on each side. Top each patty with a slice of American cheese and cover the grill to allow the cheese to melt, 30 seconds.
- Assemble the burgers and top with ranch, lettuce, tomato slices and red onion. Serve immediately.