Sliders & Super Tuscan - 9/12/09

Uly and I felt like some red meat, but we just had steak recently, so we got the idea to do sliders again. It may seem more casual than a ribeye, but we actually put a lot more work into cooking burgers than we do steak.

First of all, we grind the meat at home, which makes a world of difference. Last year, we got the meat grinder attachment for our Kitchenaid, which is seriously one of the best kitchen appliance investments we've ever made. The taste of freshly ground meat for a burger is like no other, especially if we cook the burgers on the same day. We use 1/2 chuck which is fattier and contribute to the juiciness of the burger, and 1/2 sirloin which has a meatier, beefier flavor. Uly then adds pepper, onions, and worcestershire sauce for seasoning...no salt since it can draw the moisture out of the meat.

For the slider buns, the best ones I've tried are the La Boulange brioche rolls from Whole Foods. However, this time we were too lazy to go across the bay (soooo wish there was a Whole Foods closer by) so we tried the challah rolls from Trader Joe's. They're ok, better than the King's Hawaiian rolls we used the first time, but not as good as the brioche. I think next time I'll just make the trip since it really does make that much of a difference.

For the fries, we like to make matchstick fries instead of regular sized ones. For regular fries, we would have to fry them twice, first to cook the inside, then to crisp the outside, which is frankly just too much trouble. Not only are they easier and quicker to cook, but I prefer my fries really crispy anyway (like Pik-Nik!).

As far as wine goes, we finally tried our first "Super Tuscan"! I've always wanted to try one, and we actually bought a 2005 Guidalberto (second wine of the "Sassicaia" producers) recently at Costco. However when we went to World Market to just "look around", we found a 2003 bottle of "Pietradonice" by Casanova di Neri, a famous producer of Brunello di Montalcino...it was around 50% off the retail price, so we got 2! Since it was such a good deal, we thought we should open this one and see if we want to buy some more later. It was really good, definitely like nothing I've tasted before. It had the body and power of a California cabernet, but the aroma (or "feet smell" as Uly would put it) of a French bordeaux. I liked it a lot, and I think I definitely wanna try another Super Tuscan in the future.

One of the odd things I've noticed, is that for me, I actually prefer old-world rather than new world reds with burgers. One would think that such an American food as hamburgers would go well with American wines, but I actually enjoy them best with Bordeaux (or even this Super-Tuscan). Maybe I just like feet smell with my burgers. :)