Stuffed Barbecue Burgers

Filled my tag Tuesday morning. The six-point bull, the same one from September, came to the spring at six-forty in full light and I had a clean angle at fifty yards and I took it. One shot. He was down before I reached him. I said what I always say, the quiet thank-you to the animal that I've said every elk season since I figured out what it meant, and then I got to work.

Jake Brennan again for the pack-out — I'd told him the week before that I thought Tuesday might be the day and he was available. We packed it in two trips, same four miles each way, the trail steep and the loads heavy and the aspen gold above us the whole time. We didn't talk much on the trail. By the truck we had our sandwiches and stood in the cold parking lot and Jake said: Good shot. I said: Good bull. That was sufficient.

The liver that night. Every year. Butter, onions, salt, cast iron. Ate it standing at the stove before the shop was fully warm. This is not a meal I make for other people. It's a meal I make for myself in the hour after the mountain, when the body needs something dense and real and the day has been large enough that sitting down feels wrong. You eat it standing. You taste it the way you can only taste things when you've earned them by work.

The elk hangs in the cold shop for a week. I check the temperature twice a day. This year I bought a wireless thermometer that sends readings to my phone, which Tom Whelan found hilarious when I mentioned it. He said: In my day we just knew by the feel of it. I said I didn't have fifty years of knowing by the feel yet. He said: Fair enough.

The liver that night was mine alone — a ritual that doesn’t need company or explanation. But later in the week, once the elk was hanging and Jake came back out with his brother and Tom Whelan stopped by to see the bull, I wanted something I could actually put in front of people: something built the same way that day was built, with intention and without fuss. These stuffed barbecue burgers are that meal. You press the filling in by hand, you cook them over heat you can feel, and you don’t overthink it — same as everything else that mattered this week.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 30 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

2 lbs ground beef (80/20)
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup finely diced white onion
2 tablespoons barbecue sauce, plus more for brushing
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 brioche or sturdy burger buns, toasted
Toppings as desired: lettuce, tomato, pickles, extra barbecue sauce

Instructions

Mix the beef. In a large bowl, combine ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Mix just until combined — do not overwork the meat.
Form the patties. Divide the mixture into 8 equal portions and press each into a thin round patty roughly 4 inches across.
Add the filling. On 4 of the patties, place an even layer of shredded cheddar and diced onion, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge. Add 1/2 tablespoon of barbecue sauce over the filling on each.
Seal the burgers. Top each filled patty with one of the remaining patties. Press the edges firmly together all the way around to seal the filling inside. Reshape into an even round if needed.
Grill or pan-cook. Heat a cast iron skillet or grill over medium-high heat. Cook patties 5–6 minutes per side, brushing the top with barbecue sauce after the first flip, until cooked through and internal temperature reaches 160°F.
Rest and serve. Let patties rest 2–3 minutes before placing on toasted buns. Add your preferred toppings and serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Stuffed Barbecue Burgers — The Meal You Make When the Mountain Work Is Done