Burgers with Havarti cheese, red cabbage slaw and Russian dressing

Burgers with cheese, red cabbage slaw and pickled okra Russian dressing

Adapted from “Bobby Flay’s Grill It.” This recipe leaves me with the same question I had going in: Why do they only sell pickled okra in large containers when clearly no one could want that much? Even pickling okra doesn’t overcome its sliminess, so I guess it’s testimony to the overall flavors that this works out to be a nice burger.

Ingredients

½ cup mayonnaise

3 tablespoons catsup

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion

¼ cup finely diced pickled okra

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves

½ small head of red cabbage, thinly sliced

1 large carrot, peeled and finely shredded

¼ cup rice wine vinegar

2 teaspoons honey

2 tablespoons canola oil

1½ ground beef

Slices of Havarti or Gruyere cheese

4 hamburger buns

Method

Make the dressing by mixing together the mayonnaise, catsup, mustard, red onion, okra, parsley and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

Mix shredded carrot and cabbage in a large bowl. Whisk together rice wine vinegar, honey, oil and salt and pepper. Toss with slaw. Let sit at room temperature for at least 15 minutes or up to an hour before serving.

Form ground beef into four burger patties. Brush with canola oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until done on both sides. Top with cheese and cover up to a minute until melted.

Spread tops and bottoms of buns with some of the Russian dressing. Place burger on bottom half and top with some of the slaw mixture and bun top.

Rating: Like every other recipe I’ve tried from this book, the sides are the star of the show. The slaw is very brightly flavored on its own, and the dressing is highly flavorful despite the okra factor. Combined, they make a very fine burger, but each part almost disappears in the whole. The recipe makes plenty of extra dressing and slaw, which will be great used as a spread and side dish. But again, okra? The seeds alone are a downside, let alone the slime. Now I have God's own supply to disguise in other dishes or else decide it won't upset the balance of my compost.