If you are a fan of a Reuben sandwich, you'll love this burger version--tender corned beef, melted Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and homemade smoky Russian dressing piled on top of an all-beef smashed burger. Everything goes on seeded rye or marble rye. So good, y'all!
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepperto taste
For the Burgers
1 ⅓cupssauerkraut
½poundcorned beefthinly sliced
8slicesmarble rye or seeded rye bread
Russian dressing
8slicesSwiss cheese
12ozground beef
1/2-1teaspoonhot sauce of your choice
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
To Make the Russian Dressing
Stir or whisk all ingredients including a healthy pinch of salt and pepper together in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour to let the flavors marry. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary--you may want to add a bit more relish if you want it sweeter or a touch more horseradish if you like things spicier. It may need a tiny bit more salt. It's your dressing, so make it to taste.
To Make the Burgers
Put the sauerkraut in a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl to drain for at least 30 minutes.
Warm the corned beef and strained sauerkraut on medium power in the microwave. Start with about 30 seconds. You want the toppings hot but not so hot that the corned beef cooks and turns gray.
In a toaster oven or under the broiler in your oven, toast 1 side of the slices of bread. This will be the side that is on the "inside" of your burger. Spread each toasted side with 1 Tablespoon of Russian dressing.
Place a slice of Swiss cheese on four of the pieces of bread.
Form the ground beef into four oval shaped "meatballs." Make them roughly the same shape as the bread.
Heat a stainless steel pan over medium high heat until very hot. Do not use non-stick. Place a burger "meatball" in the pan, and press it into a flat oval shape with the back of a large spatula. You want the burger very thin--maybe 1/4", but no more than that.
While the burger is cooking, sprinkle it with a bit of salt and pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the burger is mostly cooked through with just a little bit of red on top.
Use a metal spatula to scrape the burger off the pan, being careful not to tear it. Flip the burger and cook for an additional 30 seconds to a minute. Place each cooked burger on top of one of the slices of Swiss cheese. You will probably only be able to cook 1 burger at a time unless you have an enormous pan or two pans going at one time.
Top each burger with 2 oz of the corned beef (roughly 3 thin slices). Drizzle an additional Tablespoon of Russian dressing over the hot corned beef, add another slice of Swiss cheese, and then top with 1/3 cup of sauerkraut.
Crown each Epic Burger with another piece of bread, toasted and Russian dressing-ed side down. You can eat the burger now, or you can place it in the toaster oven and toast it lightly. Either way, you are in for some good eating.
Notes
Note I made 2 2.5 oz patties for the burger in the photo. I made some the day before and only used 1 3 oz patty. Both burgers were great, so it's totally up to you whether you want to double up or not.