Foodtastic Mom logo

Bourbon Burgers

Jump to Recipe

Deliciously seasoned and grilled beef burgers topped with bourbon caramelized onions and melted Provolone cheese.

Bourbon Burgers

If you are at all familiar with my recipes and blog you know I am a bourbon fan. I live just a few miles north of the Kentucky boarder and so I’ve really learned to appreciate bourbon over the years. It’s my cocktail of choice (I like a Kentucky Mule – bourbon and ginger beer) and I enjoy cooking with it too.

Want to save this recipe?

Enter your email & I'll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!

Save Recipe

Bourbon Burgers

So when I found this recipe for Bourbon Burgers several years ago I knew my husband and I would both enjoy it. It apparently ruined me for all other burgers for quite a while because burger recipes are woefully lacking on my blog. But I plan to start trying to remedy that this summer.

Bourbon Burgers

These burgers are simple in their toppings. The star being the onions, caramelized in butter, sugar and bourbon. Add a little fresh lettuce and melted provolone cheese and they are good to go. So gorgeous to look at too. Am I making you hungry?
Bourbon Burgers

Tips for making Bourbon Burgers:

  • Find the best burger buns that you can. I usually scour the bakery section of my grocery store and found these amazing looking pretzel buns that are pictured
  • For grilled burgers a higher fat content in your ground beef is preferable so that your burgers stay juicy. I recommend beef that is 80 percent lean and 20 percent fat for grilling
  • As in cooking with wine, cook with a bourbon that you also enjoy drinking. Don’t use the super high-end stuff but don’t the super-cheap stuff either. I like Jim Beam white label and Bulleit bourbon for cooking
Grilled bourbon burger on a plate with a pretzel bun and an ear of corn on the cob
Print Pin
5 from 12 votes

Bourbon Burgers

Deliciously seasoned and grilled beef burgers topped with bourbon caramelized onions and melted Provolone cheese.
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Keyword Bourbon Burgers
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 6
Calories 417kcal
Author Jill McOwen

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds ground beef 80/20 - fat ratio
  • 3 tbsp bourbon
  • 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 1/4 tsp ground oregano
  • 1 1/4 tsp table salt
  • 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • 6 slices smoked Provolone cheese
  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 1/4 cup bourbon
  • 2 sweet onions thinly sliced
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper

Instructions

  • In a large skillet, melt the 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. 
  • Add the 1/4 cup bourbon, onions, sugar, salt and pepper.
  • Cook, stirring occasionally until the onions are soft and lightly browned, at least 20 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, add the ground beef to a large bowl with the 3 tablespoons bourbon, Worcestershire sauce, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper. Lightly mix with your hands and form into six patties.
  • Heat grill and scrape the grates clean. Cook the burgers, searing on the higher heat side and flipping to finish cooking on the lower heat side. Cook the burgers until the internal temperature is 145 degrees F for medium rare or 160 degrees F for medium. 
  • Add a slice of the Provolone cheese to the top of each burger in the last minute of cooking to melt.
  • Serve the burgers topped with the caramelized onions and fresh leaf lettuce.
  • Add your own favorite condiments, like mustard or mayonnaise.

Nutrition

Calories: 417kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 122mg | Sodium: 1240mg | Potassium: 761mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 355IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 195mg | Iron: 5mg

Deliciously seasoned and grilled beef burgers topped with bourbon caramelized onions and melted Provolone cheese.

Pinterest

Don’t miss my other bourbon recipes:

 

 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  11. Traci says

    Whoah! You had me at bourbon…and then you combined it with my weakness food. I srsly need to make this recipe. I’ll be bookmarking and sharing for sure! Thanks for the recipe 🙂

    Reply

  16. Ann says

    5 stars
    This is going on my summer grilling list! The Kentucky Mule you mentioned really piqued my interest too. I’ll have to try that on my husband. Bourbon is his liquor of choice too and I bet it would be great with these burgers 🙂

    Reply

    • foodtasticmom says

      The bourbon is just there to provide bourbon flavor. You can make these without it and they’d still be delicious. You could add a couple of tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce to the meat before forming the burgers and grilling.

      Reply

  18. Hannah says

    5 stars
    These burgers look sooo good and the images are really inviting, makes me wanna make them in the middle of the night! 😀 I love the bourbon touch, it makes them tender and moist. 🙂

    Reply

  20. Debbye says

    5 stars
    I’ve never even considered putting bourbon in a burger. I don’t eat meat but my husband would love these. Passing on the recipe to him asap.

    Reply

  21. Katherine says

    5 stars
    We made these for a Derby Day Sunday Supper in 2016 – they are amazing and we never make regular burgers anymore! I was just looking up the recipe for a friend and noticed that the recipe isn’t exactly like the one I printed in 2016. Your original recipe calls for 1/2 cup of bourbon reduced by half to add to the ground meat instead of 3T of bourbon and white cheddar cheese instead of provolone, along with a few other minor changes in spice measurements. I tend to be a cook that doesn’t read every line of the recipe instructions, so I do appreciate that the original recipe had separate ingredient lists for the burgers and the onions. Bottom line – make the burgers, they’re delicious! (but I think I’ll stick to my 2016 copy of the recipe – why mess with perfection?)

    Reply

    • foodtasticmom says

      In re-photographing the recipe I decided to make some changes. Since the bourbon is cooked while the meat is cooking I decided to streamline that step and I think the spices I probably changed up to make the recipe a little more my own. But I’m so happy you enjoy these – whichever version is your favorite 🙂 It’s all about personal preference and I usually assume that as people are making any of my recipes that some changes are made along the way in their own kitchens. Thanks so much for the comment!

      Reply

  22. Jeannine Meador says

    5 stars
    I have recently discovered the joys of adding bourbon to various foods…such as bourbon bacon butter…to die for. Now I can’t wait to try these burgers…dinner tonight for sure. Thanks for sharing so much with all of us.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  2. […] About that easy and ultra-satisfying dinner, though… The grilled Kentucky Bourbon burgers were the epitome of savory and boasted plenty of spice and a touch of sweet from the bourbon. Enjoy the burger with or without a bun (my choice – my husband opted for a fresh brioche bun) or gooey, melted provolone cheese. Don’t forget the side salad or BBQ chips that offered notes of smoke, sweet, and spice, too. If you can’t find ready-made Kentucky Bourbon burgers, try the recipe here. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating