For those times when you want to dress up your burgers beyond the ordinary, what do you do?

Your timing could not be any worse, I literally finished eating a burger 3 minutes ago. That said, I think bacon is the most extreme I go with my burgers, and that’s not very extreme at all.

Sauerkraut!
Yum…

I always add a little chopped onion to the meat before I cook it. It makes it taste yummy and keeps lean meat moist. I also love tomato and avocado on top, with a little slice of cheddar cheese melted over it. Sometimes I even add a little raw onion on top. Yummers.

Avocado slices and blue cheese crumbles (just as yummy on a veg burger). YUM.

Chopped onions and jalapenos added to the meat, or hot sauce and a slice of pepperjack after it is done usually does the trick. Of course, my burgers are usually bison, which after you try it, you’ll never touch beef again, well, unless you buy flank steaks of beef and grind them up into burgers.

The favorite in our house is a Mushroom Swiss Burger. (we’ve done this one veggie burgers or regular burgers)

In the meat, mix in some chopped garlic, minced onions and some fresh cracked pepper. The mushroom, saute them. I use butter (yes…feel the arteries hardening!), mushrooms, garlic and some salt and pepper. (sometimes even some red pepper flakes – to spice it up a bit.) A good Swiss Cheese – even Baby Swiss.

Use a good roll, too. We like ours a bit more rustic, more of a crunchy outside. Mayo, if you want – or toast the buns (brush with olive oil or use butter). I’m not a huge mayo fan.

—Like @evelyns_pet_zebra, I love onions and jalapenos in and on mine…and pepperjack cheese is a staple, in this house!)

Instead of a bun, use small tortilla shells…grill the torts to make them a little crispy, melt cheese on them with diced onions, diced tomatos, jalepenos, maybe alittle cilantro, bacon bits….get creative.

I get it fitted for a tuxedo.

@AstroChuck Good one>

@evelyns_pet_zebra Love bison and buffalo! Steps must be taken to keep them moist though.

On my portabello swiss vegetarian burgers, I top with gruyere, caramelized onions, and a very thin layer of miracle whip on a toasted bun.

On my normal soy vegetarian burgers, I top with cheddar cheese, mango guacamole, spinach, and tomato.

I also happen to enjoy plain old ketchup, mustard, onions, lettuce, tomato, and pickles.

We put a bit of Brie and finely diced garlic inside the meat before cooking and then serve them with mayo and crisp lettuce on sourdough.

Sometimes we use garlic aioli instead of mayonnaise and use slices of very ripe, homegrown tomatoes on French bread.

Sometimes I will use Stilton or Huntsman (a combination of Stilton and Double Gloucester) in place of cheddar in an otherwise fairly typical cheeseburger.

And sometimes we marinate portabello mushrooms in olive oil and a bit of salt, grill them as if they were burgers, and serve them with sharp cheddar, lettuce, mayo and Thousand Island dressing.

Worcestershire sauce in the meat. Blue, cheddar or cheese of choice, cherokee purple tomato, red onion, lettuce, avocado, a bun with some firmness to it, mayo, mustard, ketchup, and sometimes mango chutney.

@samanthabarnum- I gave you lurve for everything you mentioned except for the Miracle Whip. Blechh!
Substitute a little Best Foods and now you’re talking.

I am so happy that there are now Aussie-style burgers available in NYC! That means “tasty” (white cheddar) cheese, pineapple rings, beetroot and fried egg! w00t!

I have put a package of the dry ranch dressing mix in with the burger and it gives it a different flavor that I really like.

@daloon – D’ya mean Woorstecestercistershire? Sauce?

The best burgers, I’ve found, are super-ordinary. Good ground beef, a little salt, mayo and pepper on a bun, nothing else.

Dressing it up? Add spanish sausage to lean ground beef, serve with diced onions and cheese on top and something crunchy, like picnic potatoes.

Cuban-inspired awesomeness.

@AstroChuck Eh, it’s a southern thing. My mother loves it, and therefore passed the love onto me. But I can only stand a little at a time. Thanks for the lurve! :D

fried egg over hard
onionstraws/rings
barbeque sauce
bacon
cheddar

@samanthabarnum We eat miracle whip on our burgers too, so it must be a southern thing.

Use English Muffins instead of buns.

@filmfann- I often use onion bagels instead of buns.

@AstroChuck Oh sweet jesus, I want a burger on an onion bagel. You have good taste in food.

@samanthabarnum- Except I only use meatless patties such as Boca and Gardenburgers or portabello mushrooms.

@AstroChuck As do I. Again, I want to eat at your house.

A large grilled portabello, about the diameter of a hamburger pattie, is a good addition or substitute for the hamburger. I also like grilled onions, chopped or sliced.

I know a popular hot dog stand that uses Coca-Cola to carmelize the onions! MMM-mmm!