If you want to score a touchdown with the food at your Super Bowl party, include assorted sliders on the menu.
Unlike a giant burger that won’t leave room for much else, after eating a slider, your guests will have space for another one or two them, or for some of the other tasty snacks that you’ve prepared.
Why? Because sliders are mini burgers. The first ones were made in the 1920s by the American White Castle restaurant chain, by sandwiching small, square beef patties inside small buns. White Castle still serves them, but over the past number of years they’ve also become popular in all sorts of other restaurants, not to mention people’s homes.
Sliders these days have also become much more than simply a small beef patty stuffed into a small bun. Chefs and home cooks alike now make all sorts of interesting versions of them, with the only constant being their mini stature.
Today’s three recipes showcase how diverse sliders can be.
One of them is a salmon slider that should appeal to Seattle Seahawks fans. A lot of salmon is sold (and thrown) at that city’s Pike Place Market and in this recipe, small pieces of it are , baked and stuffed in small buns with easily prepared guacamole.
My East Coast lobster slider recipe is a mini version of a lobster roll, where a cut lobster mixture is sandwiched in a tender bun. Lobster rolls are popular in places such as Massachusetts, where the New England Patriots play, but any fan of this seafood will enjoy them.
My last recipe, bison sliders, is designed for carnivores. To make them richly flavoured, ground bison is shaped into small patties and cooked.
When they are done, barbecue sauce, tangy cheddar cheese and smoky bits of bacon go on top of the patty. When the cheese is melted, the patty gets sandwiched in the bun with mayonnaise, pickles and lettuce, creating a delicious mini-version of a classic burger.
Slider (mini hamburger) buns are sold at some supermarkets and bakeries. To save time searching for them, call around to places where you shop to ensure they stock them.
East Coast Lobster Sliders
Decadent mini versions of the popular East Coast sandwich known as a lobster roll. Serve with potato chips, pickles and cold beer.
Preparation: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Makes: 12 sliders
5 (3- to 3 1/2-oz) East Coast lobster tails, thawed if frozen, and patted dry
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 small celery rib, finely diced
2 small green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup mayonnaise, or to taste
• pinch Old Bay Seasoning (see Note)
• dash lemon juice
12 slider (mini hamburger) buns
• soft butter, to taste
12 small lettuce leafs
12 slider (mini hamburger) buns
Preheat the oven to 425 F. Line a sided baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut each lobster tail lengthwise in half. Set each half tail cut side up on the baking sheet. Lightly brush the lobster meat with the oil. Roast lobster 10 minutes, or until just cooked through and just slightly firm to the touch. Cool lobster tails to room temperature.
Pull the meat out of each lobster tail, cut into small cubes and set in a bowl. Add the celery, green onion, mayonnaise, Old Bay Seasoning and lemon juice and mix to combine. (Lobster mixture can be made a few hours in advance. Cover and refrigerate until needed.)
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Set buns on a baking sheet, cover with foil, set in oven and warm eight to 10 minutes. Spread each bun with butter, and then top each bottom bun with a lettuce leaf. Top each bottom bun with some of the lobster mixture. Set on top buns and serve.
Note: Old Bay Seasoning is a tinned and popular Easy Coast herb and spice blend. You’ll find it for sale in the spice and herb aisle or seafood department of some supermarkets. If you can’t find it, add a splash of hot sauce, such as Tabasco, to the lobster mixture.
Bison Sliders With Bacon and Cheese
Flavourful ground bison gives a bold taste to these mini burgers topped with smoky bacon and tangy cheddar.
Preparation: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 22 minutes
Makes: 12 sliders
1 1/4 lb. ground bison
1 garlic clove, minced
1 large egg, beaten
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp oregano
• barbecue sauce to taste
12 small, thin slices cheddar cheese (see Note)
4 strips applewood or other extra smoky-tasting bacon, each cut widthwise into six pieces and cooked until crispy
12 slider buns, warmed
• mayonnaise to taste
12 small lettuce leaves
12 small, thin pickle slices
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the first nine ingredients in a bowl. Moisten your hands lightly with cold water, and then shape the meat into 12 small, 1.5-cm thick patties and set on the baking sheet. (Patties can be made many hours before needed. Cover and refrigerate until ready to cook.)
When ready to cook, preheat your oven to 425 F. Roast the patties 10 minutes, and then flip each one over and roast eight to 10 minutes more, or until cooked through.
Top each burger with a little barbecue sauce, a slice of cheese and two slices of bacon.
Roast patties one to two minutes to melt the cheese.
Spread each bottom bun with mayonnaise and top with a lettuce leaf. Set a patty on each bottom bun, top with a pickle, set on the top buns and serve.
Note: The slices of cheese should be about the same width as the bison patties.
Salmon Sliders with Quick Guacamole
In these mini burgers chili-spiced salmon is sandwiched with tasty guacamole. You will likely have some guacamole left over, but that won’t be a hardship if you have tortilla chips around to dunk into it.
Preparation: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Makes: 12 sliders
For the guacamole
1 medium ripe avocado
1 Tbsp lime juice
3 Tbsp sour cream
1⁄3 cup storebought tomato salsa
Quarter the avocado lengthwise discard the pit. Remove and discard the peel. Place the avocado flesh in a bowl with lime juice. Using a fork, mash the avocado into small chunks. Stir in the sour cream and salsa. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until salmon is cooked. Guacamole can made an hour in advance.
For the salmon
3/4 to 1 lb. salmon fillet (about 2- to 2.5-cm)
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp chill powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• butter, to taste
12 slider buns, warmed
• soft butter, to taste
12 small lettuce leaves
Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut salmon into 12 squares, each about the same width as the buns. Set the salmon, flesh side up, on the baking sheet. Brush each piece with olive oil and sprinkle with chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Roast 10 minutes, or until just cooked through.
Spread each bun with a little butter. Set a lettuce leaf on each bottom bun, and then top with a spoonful of the guacamole. Set a piece of salmon on each bottom bun. Set on the top buns and serve. h