The Ultimate Moose Burger!

The Ultimate Moose Burger

I'm not sure how many of you regularly consume Moose meat, but I for one love it! Growing up in rural Newfoundland, there has always been moose in the freezer, and even now that I've moved to the city, I still have a regular supply from family.

My most recent supply came with a couple of pounds of ground Moose, something that excited me beyond belief. You see, even though I typically have Moose on hand, it's rare for it to be ground - usually it's in the form of roasts, stewing meat or steaks... but burgers?? Yumm! Now that's a treat!

Recently, a chef from my area made the cover of Readers Digest for having one of the top burgers in Canada (pictured above). She did this with her recipe for the Ultimate Moose Burger. The recipe was listed online so naturally I gave it try and let me tell ya, my life will never be the same! It's actually the best burger I've ever eaten and it was homemade!!



Surprisingly (not), my burger didn't come out looking quite as pretty butttt, omg was it ever good! Below is the original recipe from the site, with some notes on where we went astray while cooking.

My hubby's burg.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup finely chopped caramelized onion (cooked and cooled) 
• 4 tsp melted bacon fat (from cooked bacon strips - use these to top your burg)   
• 1 lb (500 g) ground moose meat 
  
• 1 clove garlic, minced  
• 1/2 large egg, beaten
• 1/2 tsp fresh savoury (I'm not a savoury fan so we omitted this step and it was still spot on)
  
• 4 slices aged cheddar (we used kraft singles - it's all we had on hand)

Instructions:

1. In large bowl, combine onion, garlic, egg, bacon fat and savoury; add moose meat, mixing just until combined. Form into 4 patties, each 2 cm thick; transfer to tray, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. Note: we were pressed for time so we didn't allow the patties to rest.
2. Heat large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat; add oil. Sear patties, turning once, until digital thermometer inserted into centre reads 160°F (71°C), about 10 minutes. Top each with cheese and broil or cover until melted, about 1 minute. 

Caramelizing the onion

Frying the Bacon

Everybody into the pool

The Moose Burgs topped with cheese and bacon and ready to serve.

Moose burgers are one of my absolute favourite things to eat, I even remember going to town festivals as a kid, knowing there would be a booth selling them, and knowing I would need to get there early if I was going to get one. Now I can make them at home and arguably twice as good.

We ate our burgers topped with honey mustard and regular ketchup (though her partridgeberry ketchup sounds delish) on a whole wheat bun. Couldn't ask for any better! I highly recommend this recipe to anyone and everyone!