Seriously Upgrade Your Homemade Burgers With A Simple Pickle Spread

A fantastic way to seriously upgrade an already stellar burger is to opt for elevated condiments. We have a list of 37 homemade burger recipes you can use as the base, and for a little added pizzazz, we recommend trying out a pickle spread. Essentially, a pickle spread is a form of compound butter, which you can make by using mix-ins to modify the flavor and possibly the consistency. While many compound butters incorporate just one extra ingredient, like some freshly-chopped herbs or roasted garlic, the pickle butter calls for pickle juice, chopped pickles, dill, garlic powder, Old Bay seasoning and a dash of hot sauce to finish it off.

The butter adds both flavor and moisture into the mix. The pickle juice delivers a hit of tang and acidity that helps cut some of the richness of the butter, beef, and other toppings like cheese. The additional seasonings bring in even more depth of flavor, while the chopped pickles add serious texture. As a bonus, the spread will also help disperse all that pickle flavor more evenly across your full burger than just tossing on a few pickle slices (although you could certainly double up and add both the spread and pickle slices to finish it off).

Since pickle spread is a very simple recipe, you can truly customize it. All you need to do is tweak one or more of the components until you achieve a flavor profile that perfectly complements your dream burger. One of the easiest elements to change is the type of pickle you use. For a spread that is really dill-forward, pair dill pickles with fresh minced garlic and dill for the seasoning. If you want something simpler, try bread and butter pickles and basic seasoning like garlic powder and onion powder. Love a little heat on your burger? The dash of hot sauce will add some spice, but you could also sprinkle in a bit of cayenne or chili powder to amp up the heat. Finally, chop the pickles either very finely or in a bit more of a rustic dice, depending on the texture you want in your spread.

You can serve the spread warm if you want to use it as a dipping sauce for your burger, almost like you'd dunk a French dip sandwich in au jus. However, if you want to have your spread atop the meat, consider cooling the condiment, cutting it, and placing slices of it on the burger while it is still hot. The spread will melt in the sandwich, drenching it with flavor. To take it a step further, add some of the pickle spread to your toasted burger buns as well.