After visiting Wagner Orchards this past weekend and watching a family of Berkshire pigs soaking up the sun and rolling in the dirt, a thought came to us.

“We’d really love some bacon.”

Did you say Berkshire pork bacon?
Did you say Berkshire pork bacon?

Horrible? Absolutely. It was a drool inducing thought nonetheless. So with that in mind, we contacted Nicholas Nedin of Beacon Ale House to share with us some of the secrets of making a good burger. In particular, the restaurants Beacon Burger.

Gruyere cheese on a burger? Wise choice my friend.
Gruyere cheese on a burger? Wise choice my friend.

“I had a food blog called Braised Blue and this was originally the braised blue burger,” Nicholas said. “I love Gruyere on a burger and obviously bacon makes everything better, but, it comes down to finding balance within that burger. A balance between richness and acidity is what we were looking for.”

Nicholas says that to cut through the richness of a really high quality bacon, you need a barbeque sauce that will have a little more acidity than sweetness.

The Beacon Burger.
The Beacon Burger.

He also has another tip for those making burgers at home on the grill.

“While we do it on a flattop, when doing on a grill you’re going to want to keep an eye on the burger a little better,” he says. “A flattop holds the  fat from the meat in, but, when you’re on a grill the fat falls through and the burger dries out quicker.”

Beacon Burger

Ingredients

  • 6 oz Grass Fed Beef patty (can be found at The Butcher Of Kingsville)
  • Caramelized Onions
  • Roasted Garlic Aioli
  • 2 Strips Double Smoked Berkshire Bacon
  • Stout BBQ Sauce
  • Arugala
  • Blak’s Bakery Kaiser Bun

Directions

  1. Season the burger patty with kosher salt and black pepper.
  2. At Beacon Ale House they use a stainless steel flattop to cook their burgers, but, a good cast iron pan or nonstick will work as well. Cook until there is no more pink in the burger. You can cook the Berkshire bacon in the same pan or on the same surface because why wouldn’t you want to cook your burger in some pork fat.
  3. Toast the bun and apply aioli to the bottom bun, add your arugla .
  4. Place the burger patty on the lettuce, then add your bacon, caramelized onion and a generous amount of our house made Stout BBQ sauce (or your own favourite BBQ sauce)