By Case D. Fischer

Labor Day is coming up and I guess in some parts of the country it’s the last time people may be firing up their grills. Not so for us here in Texas. We have plenty of hot weather ahead of us and we can grill here all year around, but Labor Day is still considered a grilling holiday so I thought it would be fun to show you how to make a hamburger with a new twist by using Bali BBQ Sauce from our Dr. Foo’s Kitchen line of products.

If you have never heard of the Dr. Foo’s Kitchen line, let me tell you a little about it. First of all, there is a real Dr. Foo. Her name is Dr. Foo Swasdee – she is not only a chef, but she also has a PhD in Food Science from Texas A&M University. She is a longtime friend and business associate of Mark, me and Jenny Wieser. She is originally from Thailand and owned a Thai restaurant in Austin called Satay for over 30 years. A few years ago, we put our heads together with Dr. Foo to bring some of her famous Thai sauces to the market and came up with Dr. Foo’s Kitchen.  The line consists of five sauces – all based on Dr. Foo’s recipes. Bali BBQ Sauce is a best seller.

I have mentioned before that our job at Fischer & Wieser doesn’t end when we develop and produce the products and put them in jars. It also falls to us to show people how to use them, which is also a really fun part of what we do. And it’s even more fun when we can show you how to use a product in an unexpected way, which is what I hope to do today.

The Bali BBQ Burger is sweet, and savory, with a hint of Asian sesame flavor, as well as some traditional BBQ goodness. I have included a sesame Asian slaw mix to top the burger and add more savory flavor. I have also added oyster sauce to the burger patty mixture because I feel it compliments the Bali BBQ glaze and gives the burgers a richer flavor. This is, of course, optional.

End it all with a toasted bun and I think you will be very pleased with the results!

Ingredients:

For Sesame Slaw
1 ½ cups cole slaw mix (shredded iceberg lettuce, shredded carrots, shredded cabbage)
1 ½ tbsp sesame oil (+1 tbsp for cooking slaw mix)
1 ½ tbsp rice vinegar
¼ cup soy sauce
1 tsp cornstarch
½ tsp ground ginger
1 tsp black pepper
½ tsp chili flakes
½ tsp garlic salt
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp sesame seeds

For Burgers
Dr. Foo’s Kitchen Bali BBQ Sauce
Burger Buns
1 lb ground beef
2 tsp oyster sauce
1 tsp black pepper
½ tsp salt

Directions:

For Sesame Slaw
1. In a small bowl, combine sesame oil, rice vinegar, soy sauce, cornstarch, ginger, black pepper, chili flakes, garlic salt, and honey. Mix well.

2. Set a medium nonstick pan over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp sesame oil. Add cole slaw mix and stir until slaw mixture starts to soften. Add sweet sesame sauce and reduce heat to low. Mix slaw thoroughly with the sauce until fully coated. Turn off oven, set slaw mix aside.

For Burgers

1. Preheat the grill to medium-high. Brush grill with oil.*

2. In a large bowl combine meat black pepper, salt, oyster sauce. Shape mixture into 3 ½-inch thick patties.

3. Grill patties, (if using stove top cook patties through on each side) covered until cooked to temperature of your choosing.

4. Brush patties with Dr. Foo’s Bali BBQ Sauce and grill (or cook on stovetop) for 20 seconds more on each side.

5. Grill buns (or roast in oven) until lightly toasted. Layer the buns with patties and sesame slaw mixture.

6. Serve with French fries and Dr. Foo’s Bali BBQ Sauce as a dipping sauce!

*If using other cooking methods on stove top, set pan over medium stove top heat.