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Deliciously Organic: Grilled Hamburgers with Sour Cream and Herbs

Deliciously Organic

A blog devoted entirely to simple, wholesome, organic cooking.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Grilled Hamburgers with Sour Cream and Herbs


I was born in Dallas, Texas and raised in a 70s ranch-style home in the suburbs. The back of the house featured a spacious L-shaped deck - my favorite childhood spot. The deck was stained cherry red, with a pretty lattice work above for shade, and a built-in bench and swing. My brothers and I spent hours upon hours playing on the deck in the summertime - skipping rope, swinging and reading books, and propping the hose on the lattice work just right to create a cool water spray we considered as fun as any water park in town.  We also gathered wooden spoons from the kitchen and used them outside as microphones for "singing competitions." I confess, I always gave one brother a perfect 10, but downgraded the other's score. Don't ask me why I did it. They still give me grief for it. 

In Dallas, the weather was favorable for grilling year-round. My parents hosted parties on the beautiful deck and my dad would grill up hamburgers, ribs, chicken, and his famous fajitas. The food was always wonderful, but the grilling added family stress because of the legendary flare-ups. I'm not sure if that particular gas grill was poorly constructed or not, but we all knew what to do the second my dad yelled, "Get me some water!" My brothers and I immediately stopped everything else, made a bee-line for the kitchen, grabbed the first generally water-tight container we saw, filled it, and run as fast as our legs could carry us to the deck. My dad quickly doused the flame (and unfortunately the meat). I never thought the flare-up drill was strange. Well, I did question why the grill produced huge, glorious flames every-so-often, but I thought that was the price you paid for grilling. 

When my husband and I were newlyweds, Pete was happily preparing to cook a meal on our new grill when I asked if I should get him a pail of water. He looked at me quizzically and asked why. "Well, for the flare-ups of course!" I explained the entire "flare-up and douse" process and we laughed until our bellies hurt. I'd never seen the humor in the water-dousing drill before.


I haven't seen a single grill flare-up since I left that modest Texas house with the restful back deck. My dad grills almost every time I visit without producing a single shooting flame or urgent cry for "Water!" He has produced some amazing dinners on his new grill, though. He found a recipe for hamburgers that makes me smile just thinking about it. The beef is mixed with sour cream and fresh herbs, topped with grilled red onions, and served on a toasted whole wheat bun. I had forgotten about this creation and found it the other day in my family recipe book and decided to give it a whirl. Oh my. These burgers are good. The sour cream gives the meat a cool flavor and the herbs add a springtime touch. It makes me contemplate adding a hose to our patio roof and busting out the wooden spoons.


Grilled Hamburgers with Sour Cream and Herbs
Serves 4

1 pound ground beef (grass-fed preferred)
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced
1 teaspoon parsley
1/4 freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 red onion, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
2 teaspoons coconut oil

4 whole wheat hamburger buns
Condiments of your choice

Gently massage ground beef, sour cream, thyme, rosemary, parsley, black pepper, and salt until just incorporated.  Divide meat into four portions.  Flatten each portion to 3/4-inch thick.  Gently press center of patty down to create a slight depression, about 1/2-inch diameter.  Cover and chill patties 1 hour and up to 8 hours. 

Coat red onion slices with coconut oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Remove patties from refrigerator and grill to desired doneness. While the patties are grilling, also grill the onion slices until lightly charred. 

Serve hamburger on whole wheat bun and topped with red onions and any condiments of your choice. 

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6 Comments:

Blogger Georgia | The Comfort of Cooking said...

I love your addition of fresh herbs and sour cream to the ground beef. I've never heard of any burger recipe like that, but I can't wait to try it!

May 17, 2010 at 7:51 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

wow! my mouth is watering. i don't typically crave a burger at 9am but right now i am.

May 17, 2010 at 8:53 AM  
Anonymous marla {family fresh cooking} said...

Carrie, I love your story, hilarious. I used to be so scared to use the grill. Grilling was something to be left for the guys.....I was freaked that the grill was gonna ignite like your dad's did. These days I get out there and grill without fear or a water hose.
The burgers sound wonderful with the sour cream :) xo

May 17, 2010 at 11:59 AM  
Blogger innBrooklyn said...

You are making my mouth water! I just had my first burgers of the summer this weekend (grass fed beef and ramps, with a rhubharb chutney). Next time I'll add sour cream for sure! yum!

May 17, 2010 at 2:44 PM  
Blogger Carli said...

You made me laugh out loud when you talked about asking your husband if he needed a bucket of water. That is hilarious! Thanks for the laugh- I needed it today. (And thanks for the great recipe...I've been craving burgers...this one's on the roster)!

May 20, 2010 at 2:51 PM  
Blogger indosungod said...

That was a LOL moment. Childhood memories! Can't have it any other way. No flares and you would not be talking about it.

I don't eat hamburgers but they do look so good.

May 22, 2010 at 5:47 AM  

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