The Art of Making Sliders: A Tailgating Favorite

Sliders are a staple at any tailgating party, and for good reason. They're easy to make, delicious, and can be customized to suit any taste. But what makes a slider truly special? In this article, we'll explore the secrets behind making perfect sliders.

The Most Important Ingredient: Onions

The most important ingredient in a slider is actually onions. Yes, you read that right - onions! The chef splits the onion, keeping the root end intact and the stem end facing towards them. This ensures that the onion stays whole while still releasing its natural sweetness when cooked. To prepare the onion, they use a huge amount of the blade, cutting only partially through it to create a messy but effective method.

Adding Spice

Next, the chef adds two teaspoons of kosher salt, mixing it up and letting it sit for 10 minutes. This allows the flavors to meld together and intensify. The spice mixture also includes garlic powder, half a teaspoon, and half a teaspoon of black pepper, quarter teaspoon of kosher salt, and another teaspoon of kosher salt. The chef then shakes it up and sets it aside.

Preparing the Meat

The next step is to prepare the meat. The chef uses about a pound of ground meat, which they keep chilled in a very cold wine bottle. This helps to prevent the fat from melting and making the burgers too mushy. They place a sheet of parchment on top of the meat to keep it clean and easy to work with.

Assembling the Slider

Now it's time to assemble the slider. The chef places a rectangle of onion mixture onto the griddle, spreading it out slightly and using their griddle spatula to shape it into a rectangular shape. They don't add any fat to the pan, which allows the onions to caramelize without excess oil.

The Bun

The bun is a crucial component of the slider. The chef selects a simple yet essential cheese - American freaking cheese - to complement the flavors of the burger. They place the bun on top of the onion mixture and sprinkle it with a little bit of mustard, allowing it to soak into the meat without overpowering it.

Steaming the Bun

To ensure that the bun stays crispy while still being slightly steamed, the chef uses foil to cover the pan. This allows the steam to escape, preventing the bun from becoming soggy or falling apart. They cook for three to five minutes, depending on their preference.

Finishing Touches

Once the slider is cooked, the chef adds a final touch of flavor with a little bit of mustard and some extra pickle slices. This allows the flavors to meld together and intensifies the overall taste experience. The sliders are now ready to be served, wrapped in paper wrappers that let out just enough steam to keep everything fresh.

Tips and Tricks

One thing to note is that there's no right or wrong way to make a slider. People have different ways of doing things, and what works for one person may not work for another. The chef doesn't pretend to be an expert or offer any advice on how to improve their method. They simply share their experience and allow the reader to try it out for themselves.

The Result

The result is a delicious, juicy slider that's sure to impress anyone who tries it. With its crispy bun, flavorful meat, and sweet caramelized onions, this burger is a true tailgating favorite. Whether you're cooking for a crowd or just want to enjoy a quick snack, sliders are the perfect choice. So go ahead, give them a try, and experience the magic of making the perfect slider.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enmy favorite thing to make for tailgating is sliders sliders are not charred okay a slider is technically steamed most important ingredient in a slider is actually onions i split the onion keeping the root end intact right the stem end will always be towards you notice again i am not cutting all the way through i'm still using a huge amount of the blade right messy that's okay you get down to the end throw it away we don't care about that end i'm going to add two teaspoons of kosher salt mix that up and let it sit for 10 minutes all right the next thing that i need garlic powder half a teaspoon and half a teaspoon of black pepper quarter teaspoon oh kosher salt put a lid on that shake it up set aside pickles i'm just chopping this up basically into relish at this point i want to put my griddle over medium low heat okay then i have a half sheet pan i have a piece of parchment i have about a pound of ground meat if you want to use another piece of parchment on top of this it's fine but i wanted you to be able to see i have a very cold wine bottle i want a sheet of meat notice it's chilled it's going to help the fat and the meat so i don't get it too mushy all right so i'm not gonna fill the pan but i am gonna have a rectangle which is perfectly fine this is mustard don't be confused this is the mixture the spice mixture these burgers are going to be well done there's simply no way around it sliders are there's no such thing as a medium rare slider because of that i always use meat that's fairly fatty this is chuck beef chuck frozen wet paper towels that's gonna keep the fat nice and firm we know that it's been 10 minutes i'm going to get this into a strainer i want to save as much of the juice it's kind of leaked out of these because of the salt i'm going to put about half of the onions right on the griddle i'm going to spread them out a little bit i'm going to use my griddle spatula to kind of keep them in a rectangular shape i did not add any fat to this pan just didn't do it don't care too don't eat it all right i've got my bun standing by i have uh some cheese standing by there's only one cheese allowed on a slider american freaking cheese just to get that loose i didn't get nearly enough onion down so be better than me now i don't pretend for a minute that i'm actually going to get all of these onions off of this griddle and that's perfectly fine then the crowd juice a little bit of the onion juice cheese bun tops slightly askew so that they get steamed as well foil heat back to low now notice i don't have this like hermetically sealed if i seal this up the buns are going to get so wet that they fall apart steam for three to five minutes we're going to be serving these in wrappers i love paper wrappers they're insulative but they let steam out you pick up the whole thing oh heat off by the way all heat should be off at this point so again the sequins bun goes down a little pickle if you want more mustard if you feel like it scoop get as much of that oniony goodness as you can over i'm going to go ahead line them up squirt everything with a little extra mustard because i like mustard and give everything a little bit of pickle so that i'm ready to go you could even use the back of your bread knife to kind of push that off and wrap them up however you want people have different ways of doing that there's no right or wrong enjoy it's messy it's gooey does that work for everybodymy favorite thing to make for tailgating is sliders sliders are not charred okay a slider is technically steamed most important ingredient in a slider is actually onions i split the onion keeping the root end intact right the stem end will always be towards you notice again i am not cutting all the way through i'm still using a huge amount of the blade right messy that's okay you get down to the end throw it away we don't care about that end i'm going to add two teaspoons of kosher salt mix that up and let it sit for 10 minutes all right the next thing that i need garlic powder half a teaspoon and half a teaspoon of black pepper quarter teaspoon oh kosher salt put a lid on that shake it up set aside pickles i'm just chopping this up basically into relish at this point i want to put my griddle over medium low heat okay then i have a half sheet pan i have a piece of parchment i have about a pound of ground meat if you want to use another piece of parchment on top of this it's fine but i wanted you to be able to see i have a very cold wine bottle i want a sheet of meat notice it's chilled it's going to help the fat and the meat so i don't get it too mushy all right so i'm not gonna fill the pan but i am gonna have a rectangle which is perfectly fine this is mustard don't be confused this is the mixture the spice mixture these burgers are going to be well done there's simply no way around it sliders are there's no such thing as a medium rare slider because of that i always use meat that's fairly fatty this is chuck beef chuck frozen wet paper towels that's gonna keep the fat nice and firm we know that it's been 10 minutes i'm going to get this into a strainer i want to save as much of the juice it's kind of leaked out of these because of the salt i'm going to put about half of the onions right on the griddle i'm going to spread them out a little bit i'm going to use my griddle spatula to kind of keep them in a rectangular shape i did not add any fat to this pan just didn't do it don't care too don't eat it all right i've got my bun standing by i have uh some cheese standing by there's only one cheese allowed on a slider american freaking cheese just to get that loose i didn't get nearly enough onion down so be better than me now i don't pretend for a minute that i'm actually going to get all of these onions off of this griddle and that's perfectly fine then the crowd juice a little bit of the onion juice cheese bun tops slightly askew so that they get steamed as well foil heat back to low now notice i don't have this like hermetically sealed if i seal this up the buns are going to get so wet that they fall apart steam for three to five minutes we're going to be serving these in wrappers i love paper wrappers they're insulative but they let steam out you pick up the whole thing oh heat off by the way all heat should be off at this point so again the sequins bun goes down a little pickle if you want more mustard if you feel like it scoop get as much of that oniony goodness as you can over i'm going to go ahead line them up squirt everything with a little extra mustard because i like mustard and give everything a little bit of pickle so that i'm ready to go you could even use the back of your bread knife to kind of push that off and wrap them up however you want people have different ways of doing that there's no right or wrong enjoy it's messy it's gooey does that work for everybody\n"