The Burger Broads are back in the saddle again with another new burger, this one in honor of Tina’s favorite show: The Equestranauts. For those who are uninformed on the universe of animated shows within an animated show, The Equestranauts feature four ponies with a bond of friendship greater than any force in the universe. As Lizetti and Zoseph come up on their 11th friendversary this summer, this is something we can surely relate to. But enough about us! Let’s trot on over to the drink pairing.
Pony Up to the Bar
After primping and grooming, the bronies and Equesticles at Equestra Con attend a party which conveniently has its own signature drink: Horse Medicine. It for sure contains ketamine, as noted by How to Drink’s Greg Titian, but Greg uses more conventional, human-friendly intoxicants in his interpretation.
The Broads really appreciate Greg’s dedication to the theme, choosing an apple flavor to reflect a horse’s favorite snack. Also it’s green. Unsettlingly green. To make for yourself, mix 1 oz lime juice, 1 oz simple syrup, ½ oz Midori, and 2 oz applejack in a shaker. Pour over ice and top with seltzer.
The Mane Event
We happened to use parsley in our previous burger, so when we saw it was the featured ingredient in this episode’s burger, we were eager to make it right away! We had all that fresh parsley (and oregano) laying around, and what better to use them for than chimichurri.
We largely followed Rachel Ray’s Argentine Chimichurri Burger recipe, but with slight modifications. In particular, we left cilantro out of the chimichurri mostly because we didn’t want to buy even more herbs we’d need to find other uses for, but it turns out it made the sauce more authentic. While a popular addition, traditional Argentinian chimichurri actually doesn’t use cilantro!*
Another signature dish of Argentina is provoleta, or grilled cheese. No, we don’t mean Kraft singles between buttered slices of Wonderbread. We mean slabs of cheese, specifically a provolone-type cheese, grilled or fried straight up. Rachel (first name basis) used this in her recipe, and we gave it a try as well. Emphasis on try. In hindsight, we should have watched a video like this to prepare ourselves.
Pickled onions
The red onions for this burger will be lightly pickled, so get that started first. Toss ¼ red onion, thinly sliced with ½ tbsp red wine vinegar. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
Chimichurri
In a food processor, pulse together ½ cup fresh parsley, ½ cup chopped green onion, ⅛ cup olive oil, ⅛ cup lemon juice, 1 tbsp fresh oregano leaves, 1 tbsp red wine vinegar, 1 small seeded and chopped jalapeno, and 2 garlic cloves. Pulse until you reach a chunky sauce of your desired consistency, and season with salt to taste.
Burger
Mix approximately ⅔ lb ground beef with ½ tbsp worcestershire sauce. Form into two patties, and season each side with salt and pepper. Cook 3-4 minutes per side.
Cheese
This is where things get a little out of hand for us. The instructions are simple enough: clear any browned beef bits from the pan and put in 2 slices of ¼ thick provolone until melted and the bottom is slightly crispy (1-2 minutes). For a tip on the provolone, you’ll have to get this from your deli counter, and at Harris Teeter this is known as the “dinner cut”. We were very excited about the provoleta, but we never achieved the crispy bottom and ended up with two large gooey globs of melted cheese. While not the desired result, who can really complain about gooey melty cheese?
Assembly
It’s best to start preparing for burger assembly before you start on the cheese. After lightly toasting the brioche buns, layer your bottom buns with desired fixings (pickled onions, tomato, and Lizetti included avocado). Place a burger patty on top, and then add the chimichurri. When the cheese is ready, flip the cheese onto the chimichurri burger. This is likely easier if you achieved the crispy provoleta, but in our case I’d say we poured the cheese on instead. Finally, add any additional toppings such as lettuce. Zoseph also made a spur of the moment decision to add an over-easy fried egg.
Yay or Neigh?
We can not rein in our unbridled enthusiasm for this burger. The chimichurri sauce was just the right consistency for a burger topping, and the flavors hit all the right spots. The jalapeno barely came through, so if you desire more kick, you might want to go for a stronger pepper (or use red pepper flakes as many other recipes suggest). However, this had no impact on our enjoyment of the burger.
We did feel that the amount of cheese was a little much, especially as the cheese thickened a bit while cooling. If only we had succeeded at frying the provolone! Again, this didn’t stop us from eating every last bite.
*Source: All of the internet.
Bob's Burgers by Broads 