Turkey Sliders with Grilled Bacon and Apple Slaw

This little beauty of a recipe came to me out of thin air. Fine, maybe not out of thin air, but certainly out of some kind of air. Come to think of it, what’s thick air? Humid air? Dirty air? Rain? I feel like it would be easier and/or more likely to pull things out of any of those. Maybe that’s where the saying came from… or maybe it came out of thin air.

This is going nowhere. Moving on.

This recipe is based on my simple and delicious turkey burger recipe that’s become one of my standard dinners. As I was searching for burger buns I came across a package of King’s Hawaiian rolls – you know, in the orange bag? – which inspired me to make sliders. I decided to stick with turkey (to maintain the perception of healthiness) and make some sort of slaw to complement the protein. I figured if I added a dash of spice to my original recipe I could create something salty and sweet to go with it. As an apple and a few other ingredients found their way into my cart, I remembered that my friend had just given me a package of his homemade bacon, which I knew I could weave into my creation.

I got home and got to work.

Burger Ingredients:

• 16 oz ground turkey (lean)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup finely shredded pepperjack cheese
• 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
• 2 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 tsp chipotle tabasco sauce
• 3 cloves garlic – minced
• 1 small shallot – finely diced
• 3 green onions – finely diced
• salt and pepper

Slaw Ingredients:

• 1 large fuji apple – julienned
• 2 medium carrots – julienned
• 3/4 cup green cabbage – julienned
• 1/2 lb bacon – grilled and finely chopped
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• salt and pepper

Other Stuff:

• King’s Hawaiian Rolls
• Sweet Baby Rays
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese (to make cheeseburgers)
• Any other damn thing you want to put on the burgers

To prepare the Burgers, simply prepare and mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl. If you’re thinking about subbing out the cheese, I would caution you that the richness, saltiness and moisture of the pepper-jack is important to the creation of moist sliders, especially given the use of lean turkey for the protein. Turkey dries out very quickly, so make sure you add something (such as, half a cup of pepperjack cheese) to ensure that your burgers turn out nice and juicy.

Form the mixture into eight to ten slider-sized patties (2-3 inches wide, 1/4 inch thick) and preheat the grill over medium-high heat.

To make the slaw julienne (I use this mandolin, it’s affordable and very easy to use) the apple, carrots and cabbage, and mix them with the other ingredients. It’s that simple.

These burgers are THIN, so pay attention when you cook them. Place the patties on the preheated grill, and close the lid, cooking for an initial 3-4 minutes. Flip the patties, apply cheese, and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes. That’s it. There’s no second flip, and certainly no extensive cooking times. If you’re worried about the turkey being cooked, slice one of them open after resting them for a few minutes.

See? They’re done. Huh. Should have trusted me.

Give the rolls a quick toasting (you’ll probably have to halve them first) and assemble the burgers by placing the cooked patties on the grilled buns and topping them with a spoonful of the mixed slaw (and perhaps a dollop of BBQ sauce).

Serve with beer, and enjoy!