It’s #nationalcheeseburgerday! Who knew?!
I feel like the food holidays are kind of over the top and ridiculous sometimes. I mean, do we really need a national bologna day? I mean, no offense to bologna lovers out there, but…really?! It’s a little bit of a stretch. The cheeseburger holiday, however, is one I can definitely get behind. Cheeseburgers are definitely in my top 10 favorite foods of all time forever and ever…and ever.
To celebrate, I made you an epic cheeseburger. And when I say EPIC, I mean amazingly-awesome-super-fantastic-over-the-top-yum EPIC. Yes. This is a burger to top all burgers.
We start out with your basic beef patty that’s been jacked up a bit with some tangy mustard and Worcestershire sauce and LOTS of black pepper. It may not sound like much, but let me tell you, the flavor these burger patties have is incredible. Totally in love with the savory tang and the “pop” of the whole mustard seeds.
Then the toppings come in, and this is where things get really interesting. Not only do we have a fig and caramelized onion compote going on, but we also have some panko-crusted, pan-crisped goat cheese in the mix. Um, yes. The most epic cheese to put on a burger. Yup. I said it. And I’m sticking with it.
THEN!!! We’re taking said mustard-studded burger patty and topping it with peppery baby arugula, the sweet and slightly tangy fig-onion compote, and the crispy-yet-melty goat cheese rounds and sandwiching the whole shebang between a salty pretzel bun. I’m dead. Just…can’t handle the awesomeness.
I celebrated my 32nd birthday last Friday, and instead of letting my husband cook me a nice birthday dinner when he got home from work, I had these waiting for HIM. I wanted a burger on my birthday. I was craving it. Needing it. And boy, did these come through for me.
We sat down to dinner that night, anxiously anticipating the flavor bomb that was sure to explode in our mouths, and we were not disappointed. I once heard someone say that a good burger is one that drips so much with flavor that you should be elbow deep in it. Welp, these definitely did that.
SO MUCH FLAVOR. Like, I cannot even explain how good these are. I know I get overexcited about food sometimes, and you may hear me declare on more than one occasion that I’ve discovered my newest favorite food, but really…these are incredible. And we will be making them time and time again.
Whether it’s National Cheeseburger Day or not.
Mustard Burgers with Crispy Goat Cheese & Fig-Onion Compote
Ingredients
For the Compote:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 4–6 dried figs, chopped (quantity depends on the size of the figs – you want roughly ⅓ cup chopped)
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- Salt and pepper, to taste
For the Burgers:
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon coarse-ground mustard
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- Salt and pepper
- 1 lb ground beef
For the Crispy Goat Cheese:
- 8 oz goat cheese, sliced into 4 equal sections
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil, for frying
To Serve:
- 4 pretzel rolls, sliced in half and warmed
- ¼ cup mayo
- 1 cup baby arugula
- The fig-onion compote
- The crispy goat cheese rounds
Instructions
For the Compote:
- Heat the butter and oil together in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and a pinch of salt and cook for 10 minutes or until the onions are soft and beginning to caramelize. Add the figs, vinegar, and sugar and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes or until thick and jam like. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.
For the Burgers:
- Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium-high. Whisk together the mustards, Worcestershire, and a generous pinch of salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Gently fold in the beef and mix until all the ingredients are combined. Form the mixture into 4 burgers patties. Place on the hot grill and cook for 4-5 minutes per side. Remove from grill and tent with foil until ready to serve.
For the Crispy Goat Cheese:
- Form the 4 slices of goat cheese into round patties, about ½-inch thick.
- Place the flour, eggs, and breadcrumbs in three separate shallow bowls or baking dishes. Season all three with a little salt and pepper.
- Add 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil to a small skillet and place over medium heat.
- Coat the goat cheese rounds in the flour, shaking off the excess. Then dip in the eggs to coat, allowing the excess to drip into the bowl. Carefully place the coated cheese in the breadcrumbs and turn gently until the cheese is evenly coated on all sides with the breadcrumbs. Place breaded cheese on a paper-towel lined plate and continue with the remaining cheese.
- Once the oil is shimmering, gently add the breaded cheese to the pan, one or two pieces at a time, and cook for 1-2 minutes per side, or until the breadcrumbs are golden brown and the cheese is soft when gently touched. Transfer the fried cheese rounds to the paper-towel lined plate and sprinkle immediately with a tiny bit of salt. These are best served warm, so I recommend preparing the cheese at the very last second.
To Serve:
- Spread the bottom half of each roll with a little bit of mayo and then top with the arugula. Top that with the burger patty and then the crispy goat cheese. Then spread some of the compote onto the top half of the bun. Sandwich together and serve immediately while both the burger patty and crispy cheese are still warm.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 servings
Hi There. I'm Molly. I'm a food-obsessed, self-taught cook and I can't wait to share my passion for all things culinary with you. My love for egg yolks is just the tip of the iceberg!
Wow. If being a little over the top and ridiculous is wrong, I don’t want to be right. Especially if we’re talking about a burger like this one. This looks absolutely incredible!
Thank you!