Oklahoma Onion Burger Sliders
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Oklahoma Onion Burger Sliders with steamed buns are the perfect-sized burgers for serving at parties. Like a White Castle or Krystal Burger took a walk through an Oklahoma kitchen! So good!
I have seen the several hundred, maybe even thousands, of White Castle and Krystal Burger copycat recipes on the interwebs.
Yes, I have tried a few. No, they did not make me happy. This recipe is not supposed to be a copycat of either of those restaurants.
I don’t believe you can accurately copy those recipes without their preformed patties, who knows what unhealthy additives, nor their large griddles.
I think there might even be some magic in the little boxes they stuff the baby burgers into.
Instead, this is just a method for cooking sliders at home that we seem to like pretty well. We use the Oklahoma onion burger method for onions rather than dicing them up small.
The secret to getting the onions cooked perfectly without burning the burger is to salt them liberally before making the burgers.
These are very similar to Oklahoma Onion Burgers, only smaller with steamed buns. That is how an Oklahoma Onion Burger Slider is born!
Now before you get all worried about high blood pressure and salt consumption, the salt will just draw out moisture from the onions.
Most of the salt will be at the bottom of the bowl.
Squeeze the onions to remove the water.
But if you like, go ahead and rinse the onions off before adding them to your burgers.
Just be sure to squeeze them to remove excess water.
You also need a pretty sturdy spatula for this.
Trust me, I have broken more than a few before I finally broke down and went to the local restaurant supply house and bought a heavy duty one.
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Alternately, you can roll the meat thin between pieces of wax paper.
But, I’m lazy and that’s just too much work for a burger.
If I am making a lot of these little onion burgers, I make them on my griddle and use a 9 X 13 cake pan to cover them during the steaming step.
Remember to use tongs or a potholder when lifting the pan off the burgers, that pan will be HOT.
Add a dab of mustard and a dill pickle if desired.
Serve the steamed onion burgers in a separate covered pan to keep them warm.
Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.
Leftovers can be wrapped in a paper towel and reheated in a microwave for 15 to 30 seconds.
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Oklahoma Onion Burger Sliders
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 large onion sliced thinly
- 2 teaspoons Salt
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef 73/27 or 80/20 mix
- 12 Hamburger Slider Buns
- Cheese slices optional
- Pickle Slices optional
- Mustard optional
Instructions
- Place onion slices in a small bowl and cover with salt.
- Mix the onions and salt well, separating the onions into rings, and set aside for at an hour.
- For quicker assembly, separate buns and place them together with the middle of the bottom bun facing down, and the middle of the top half touching the brown bottom of the bun.
- Form meat into equal size balls and place on a plate near your griddle.
- Squeeze onions to remove any remaining liquid. Dump salty liquid from the bowl. Rinse the onions if desired, just make sure to squeeze them once more to remove excess water. I do not rinse.
- Set electric griddle to high and allow griddle to get very hot. If using a skillet, use medium-high heat and preheat the skillet.
- Once skillet is screaming hot, add 4 to 6 burger balls spaced about 4 inches apart. Top meat with onions.
- Let meat and onions sit for about a minute on the hot surface.
- Smash the burgers as flat as possible with a spatula. This is where a sturdy spatula comes in handy. You want the burger thin so they cook rather quickly.
- Once the burgers look like they are mostly cooked through, flip them over.
- Cover each burger with one bun, inside of the bottom half touching the burger, inside of top half touching the bottom of the bottom half.
- Cover with an inverted cake pan or large lid.
- Cook burgers for another 2 minutes.
- Carefully remove the cake pan or lid. Use kitchen tongs if necessary, this covering will be very hot.
- Slide spatula under the burger and onions.
- Carefully remove the top half of the bun and place it under the spatula and slide the burger with the bottom half of the bun onto the top bun.
- Place on a plate and quickly cover with mustard and pickles. Add cheese now if using.
- Eat while hot.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and may vary based on exact ingredients used. For accuracy, consult a registered dietitian or nutritionist.
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Elizabeth (Beth) Mueller
Elizabeth (Beth) Mueller is a food journalist, CEO of Pear Tree Kitchen, and co-creator of Food Blogger Help. She also has a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and a registered nurse licensed in the State of Oklahoma. When she has free time between writing, blogging, and cooking, she can be found volunteering as an RN with the Oklahoma Medical Reserve Corps.
