Outside interests
Let’s grill homemade chili dogs, burgers and mushrooms this Memorial Day
If there’s one thing we can count on come Memorial Day, it’s that most of us will spend at least part of the holiday weekend hunkered over a hot grill.
Summer means being outdoors, and most cooks can’t wait to trade their ovens, air fryers and Instant Pots for the smoky, sizzling pleasure of cooking on a gas or charcoal grill.
Grilling has only increased in popularity over the years, thanks to a growing interest in home cooking and entertaining. According to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, 70% of all households and 80% of American homeowners own a grill or smoker, a 6% increase over 2019. By 2032, experts anticipate the barbecue grill market will reach a whopping $10 billion in revenue.
And it’s not just for dinner. About 12% of homeowners grill for brunch and 7% like to prepare their breakfast on a hot grate outdoors.
Memorial Day is second only to July 4 for grillers, so chances are you’ll be out there, poised for action. You might even have some cool new tools or gadgets: One of the busiest days of the year for buying new grills is the Saturday before Memorial Day, known in the industry as “Back to Barbecue Day.”
The only question is what to cook — and by which method.
HPBA’s latest “State of the Barbecue Industry” report notes that gas is still the most popular method for grilling. But charcoal, which many agree is better for flavor, is quickly catching up, jumping to 65% of ownership in 2021.
Also not that much of a surprise: two of the most popular foods to grill are also among the easiest and least expensive to prepare, hamburgers and hot dogs.
It’s estimated that Americans will consume roughly 7 billion hot dogs over the course of summer — that’s 818 hot dogs every second from Memorial Day to Labor Day. We love our burgers even more, collectively eating some 20 billion burgers a year, according to the USDA. Wowza!
If you’re hosting a crowd for your Memorial Day cookout, it’s tempting to keep it simple. But it’s also a holiday. So why not step it up a notch with extra-special recipes?
For hot dog lovers, we suggest a homemade Detroit-style chili sauce that takes just a half-hour to prepare (and can be made beforehand). Thinner than traditional chili, with a finer texture, it adds a creamy, beefy puddle of extra flavor with just the right amount of spice.
Rather focus on building the best possible burger? It could start with sirloin you grind yourself at home. It’s easier than it sounds — all you need is a food processor and some cold butter — and will taste fresher than ground beef from the grocery store.
And if you want vegetables to shine, portobello mushrooms have a beefy, earthy flavor that makes for a magical meatless burger. Adding a slice of tomato and smoky grilled onion and some cheese will elevate it further, and microgreens add an extra-refreshing and healthful bite.
Crushed saltines thicken this Detroit-style chili sauce, made on the stovetop in about a half-hour. Allbeef hot dogs are best (we used Hebrew National Beef Franks), but for a true Detroit-style Coney dog, look for dogs that are a blend of beef and pork and have a natural casing. We added a generous stripe of melted cheese sauce to make it even more finger-licking and messy.
The chili sauce can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to a month.
Grilled Chili Dog
For chili sauce:
6 ounces 80% lean ground beef
¼ cup finely chopped onion
3 saltines, crushed 1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon chile powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
½ teaspoon granulated sugar Pinch ground allspice
For hot dogs:
4 hot dogs
4 hot dog buns
Cheese sauce such as Velveeta, optional
½ cup finely chopped onion
Make sauce: Combine beef and 1 cup water in a saucepan and whisk until beef is broken into small pieces. Whisk in onion, saltines, tomato paste, Worcestershire, paprika, chile, garlic and onion powders, salt, pepper, sugar and allspice.
Bring beef mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, whisking occasionally, until sauce has consistency of thick gravy, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.
Prepare a grill for medium heat. Lightly oil the grill grates.
Grill hot dogs, turning frequently, until lightly charred in spots, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove to plate and immediately toast the buns on the grill, about 30 seconds.
Place hot dogs in buns and distribute chili and cheese sauces among hot dogs (about ¼ cup each). Sprinkle with onions and serve.
Makes 4 hot dogs.
Recipe adapted from Cook’s Country June/July 2023
Love a burger with a craggy crust and juicy interior? Grinding your own meat — we like sirloin beef tips — is the way to go.
Processing the meat in small batches will assure an even grind, and don’t forget to create a divot in the center of each patty to prevent burger bulge.
A final trick: If you freeze the burgers before grilling, you’ll get a better crust, with a still-tender interior.
Grind-Your-Own Sirloin Burgers
1 ½ pounds sirloin steak tips, trimmed and cut into
½ -inch chunks
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1 ¼ teaspoons salt, divided use
1 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste
4 hamburger buns, toasted on grill if desired
Place beef chunks and butter on a large plate in single layer. Freeze until meat is very firm and starting to harden around the edges but is still pliable, about 30 minutes. (This firms it up so the meat processor blades cut cleanly.)
Place a quarter of the meat and 1 tablespoon of butter in food processor and pulse until finely ground into pieces the size of rice grains, 15 to 20 pulses, stopping and redistributing meat around bowl as necessary to ensure beef is evenly ground. Transfer meat to a baking sheet, and repeat grinding with remaining three batches of meat and butter.
Spread mixture into even layer on the baking sheet and inspect carefully, discarding any long strands of gristle or large chunks of hard meat, fat or butter.
Sprinkle ¾ teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper over meat and, using two forks, gently toss to combine. (Do not overwork or burgers will become dense.) Divide beef mixture into four portions, then gently shape each portion into ¾-inch-thick patties about 4 ½ inches in diameter. Using your fingertips, press center of each patty down until about ¼ inch thick, creating slight divot.
Transfer patties to platter and freeze for 30 to 45 minutes. (This will allow a crust to develop when cooking.)
Prepare grill for mediumhigh heat (400 degrees).
Sprinkle burgers with remaining ½ teaspoon salt and a bit of ground black pepper. Grill patties divot side up over direct medium-high heat until browned and meat easily releases from grill, 4 to 7 minutes. Flip burgers and continue to grill until browned on second side to your desired doneness ( 130-135 degrees for medium, about 7 minutes).
Transfer burgers to plate and let rest for 5 minutes. Transfer patties to bun and serve with favorite toppings.
Makes 4 burgers.
Recipe adapted from “The Outdoor Cook” by America’s Test Kitchen
According to HPBA, more home cooks are leaning into less expensive grilling options, such as vegetables. This burger, which features a portobello mushroom cap, fits the bill.
The original recipe calls for arugula, but my grocery was out so I used basil microgreens. I also swapped feta for goat cheese.
Grilled Portobello Burgers With Feta and Microgreens
4 portobello mushroom caps, gills removed
1 large red onion, sliced into
½ -inch-thick rounds 3 tablespoons PLUS 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided use
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons fresh minced thyme
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 ounces crumbled feta (about ½ cup)
1 cup microgreens
¼ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
4 hamburger buns, toasted on grill if desired
Thinly sliced tomato
Cut 1/16-inch deep slits on top side of mushroom caps, spaced ½ inch apart, in crosshatch pattern. Secure onion rounds with toothpicks or skewers. (I skipped this step). Brush onion rounds with 1 tablespoon oil.
Combine garlic, thyme, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons of the remaining oil in bowl and set aside.
Prepare grill for mediumhigh heat (400 degrees).
Clean and oil cooking grate. Grill onion and mushrooms, gill side down, until onion and mushrooms are lightly charred and beginning to soften, 8-12 minutes, flipping onion as needed, and flipping mushrooms halfway and brushing with oil-garlic mixture.
Sprinkle mushrooms with feta and allow to remain on grill for a minute or so (it won’t melt but it will heat up and soften). Transfer mushrooms and onions to a plate, and separate onions into rings.
Toss the microgreens with the remaining teaspoon of oil and the balsamic vinegar.
Place greens and mushroom caps on bun bottoms. Top with tomato, onion and bun tops and serve.
Makes 4 burgers.
Recipe adapted from “The Outdoor Cook” by America’s Test Kitchen