IPA Cheese Burger + IPA Battered Onion Rings
The only thing better than drinking IPAs is cooking with them 🤭 My favorite IPAs are the Great Lakes Brewing Company Midwest Hazy IPA and Midwest IPA. They’re hop-forward but still so easy to drink, so the flavor is a perfect mash-up for people like me, who appreciate the balance. I prefer an IPA when cooking with beer because the hops shine throughout the dish, and the beer flavor does not get lost, which happens sometimes when cooking with it.
With Spring, Summer, and most importantly, grill season approaching, this is the PERFECT recipe to have on hand. The first time I made it, I got requests to make it every day for three days after. It’s that good. It’s easier than you think and the best part – you can crack yourself open a brew while you’re making it 😉
IPA Cheese Burger
Ingredients
Burger
- 1 lb. ground beef this will make 2-4 burgers depending on how big you want them
- 1 t garlic powder
- ½ t ground mustard
- ½ t salt
- ½ t pepper
- ½ t paprika
- ½ t smoked paprika
- ¼ t chili powder
- 1 t Worcestershire
- 2 T butter
- 1 red onion thinly slices
- ¼ cup Great Lakes Brewing Company Midwest Hazy IPA
- Pretzel buns can sub for buns of your choice
Beer Cheese Sauce
- 3 T butter
- 2 T flour
- ½ t ground mustard
- ½ t garlic powder
- ½ t salt
- ½ t pepper
- ½ t paprika
- ¼ t chili powder
- 1 cup Great Lakes Brewing Company Midwest Hazy IPA
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- 2 cups cheddar cheese
- milk optional to thin it out if needed. You can use any liquid – heavy cream, chicken broth, etc.
Instructions
- Combine the ground beef, garlic powder, ground mustard, salt, pepper, paprika, smoked paprika, chili powder, and Worcestershire in a large bowl.
- Form your burger patties.
- Melt your butter in a saute pan.
- Add your sliced red onion and cook down for about 10 minutes.
- Add the Great Lakes Brewing Company Midwest Hazy IPA and cook down for an additional 5-10 minutes.
- Remove the onions from the pan.
- Toast your pretzel buns in the same pan if desired.
- To make the beer cheese sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan.
- Add the flour, and stir for 2-3 minutes, until a thick paste is formed.
- Add the ground mustard, garlic powder, salt, pepper, paprika, and chili powder to the paste. Combine.
- Add the beer. Combine.
- Add the heavy cream. Combine.
- Add the cheddar cheese and mix until it is completely blended into the sauce.
- Grill your burger patties to your desired temperature.
- To assemble your beer-cheese burgers, start with the bottom pretzel bun, and then add the burger patty, a ladle of beer cheese sauce, a scoop of caramelized onions, and the top bun.
- Serve with a side of the beer cheese sauce for dipping if desired!
IPA Battered Onion Rings
Ingredients
- 2 yellow onions
- 1 cup flour divided into two ½ cups
- ¾ t baking powder
- ¼ t salt
- ¼ t pepper
- ¼ t paprika
- ¾ cup Great Lakes Brewing Company Midwest IPA
- 1 egg
- canola oil
- parsley coarsely chopped
- flakey sea salt
Instructions
- Cut your onions into rings.
- Heat your canola oil in a deep pan.
- Dredge the onion rings in ½ cup flour.
- In a large bowl, combine the other ½ cup of flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, and paprika.
- Add the Great Lakes Brewing Company Midwest IPA and the egg to the flour mixture and combine, making sure you whisk out all of the lumps.
- Dip the onion rings into the batter.
- Fry until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes on each side.
- Place on a cooling rack or plate lined with paper towel.
- Top with the parsley and sea salt immediately.
