Whiskey Beef Sliders with Caramelized Onions, Bacon & Homemade Buns

These beef sliders will have your guests begging for more!  Ground brisket and chuck makes these juicy beef patties super flavorful.  Make these as sliders or make them as regular sized burgers.  Either way, they are sure to impress.  

I’m honestly surprised that these little beef sliders didn’t get gobbled up before we were able to take some photos of them for you!  They taste amazing!  We didn’t have a concrete plan of how we were going to make them when we started, we just knew we wanted to create some outstanding sliders for you all to make at your upcoming Super Bowl party and I think we, ehem, *scored* with this one.  Ahhhhh… I know that was lame, but I couldn’t help myself lol.

These baby beef sliders are created with a flavorful mix of ground chuck and brisket and then topped with sweet caramelized onions, a strip of crispy bacon, and tangy whisky sauce all sandwiched in a soft homemade mini bun.  Pretty simple as far as toppings go, but they work together like magic.

I find that when you order beef sliders at a restaurant, they are not that great most of the time.  The bun is dry, the patties are dry and there’s never enough sauce, and the sauce they do have isn’t great.  Most of the time… There are some exceptions for sure.  Have you ever experienced these kinds of sliders I’m talking about?    Well, if you make them yourself, you have full control and its not difficult to make these beef sliders that will impress the crap out of your party people.

Got a Super Bowl Party coming up?  game.  It’s definitely time to start planning your menu.

We have a great list of our favorite appetizers and cocktails for game day that you can find here.   For even more help check out our appetizer and cocktail pages!

4 from 5 votes

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Whiskey Beef Sliders with Caramlized Onions, Bacon & Homemade Buns

These beef sliders will have your guests begging for more!  Ground brisket and chuck makes these juicy beef patties super flavorful.  Make these as sliders or make them as regular sized burgers.  Either way, they are sure to impress. 

Course Appetizer, Main

Cuisine American

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 8 people

Calories 681 kcal

Author Cooks with Cocktails

Ingredients

FOR THE BUNS

• 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water (not hot)
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 31/2 cups flour you might need 1/2 a cup more
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp oregano

FOR THE SAUCE

• 1/4 cup whiskey (we used Crown Royal Canadian Rye)
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp mustard
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp honey or maple syrup
• 1 tsp worchestershire
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise

FOR THE TOPPINGS

• 1 large onion , sliced thin
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 6 strips of bacon

FOR THE BURGERS

• 300 g lean ground chuck (this is regular ground beef)
• 300 g ground brisket
• 1 tbsp salt
• 2 tsp pepper

Instructions

MAKE THE BUNS

1. Combine the yeast, water, oil, and sugar in a large bowl. Gently mix and allow to sit for 5 minutes.

2. Next stir in the salt, egg, and enough flour to form a soft dough. Start with three cups and add a half a cup at a time after until your dough comes together in a ball.
3. Turn out onto a floured work surface and gentle knead in additional flour until your dough is no longer sticky, but nice and smooth. You can do all of this in a mixer as well.
4. Rub oil on the insides of a bowl and place the dough inside. Cover with plastic wrap and place in warm spot. Let dough sit until it doubles in size (about an hour).

5. When your ready to start making the buns, pre heat oven to 375.  Punch the dough down and then start making the buns. Take about 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup of dough and roll it into a small ball. Place dough on parchment lined baking sheets, cover and them let rise again for half an hour.

6. Put them in the oven and cook for 10 min.

7. Melt the butter and add the basil and oregano to the melted butter. Brush tops of the bun with the melted butter mixture and cook for another 2-4 minutes till nice and brown.  Remove from the oven and let the buns cool on racks.

MAKE THE SAUCE

1. Add the whiskey, ketchup, mustard, soy sauce, honey, and worchestershire to a small pot and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 mins and then remove from heat. Let it cool slightly before adding the mayo. Mix well and set aside.
   

MAKE THE TOPPINGS

1. Heat a skillet on medium heat. When its hot, add the strips of bacon and cook until they are as well done as you like them. Remove from the pan and let them sit on a paper towel lined plate to absorb some of the oil. Cut into thirds and set aside.
2. Scoop most of the bacon fat out of the pan, turn the heat down to low and add the sliced onions. Sprinkle with a little salt. Cook until the onions are soft and starting to brown and caramelize. Set aside.
   

MAKE THE BURGERS

1. Mix the ground meats together well. Then form small balls with the meat, about the size of a golf ball. Press each ball into round patties and season them liberally with salt and pepper.
2. Heat a cast iron or heavy large skillet on medium heat. Add 1 tsp of olive oil and then add the burgers. Cook for about 3 mins on each side. You want the burgers to be slightly pink in the center when you take them off the heat since they will continue to cook a little bit still and you don't want them to overcook.
   

ASSEMBLE THE SLIDERS

1. Slather the whiskey sauce on both sides of each bun. Place a burger on each bottom half of bun, top that with about 1 tbsp of caramelized onions, one piece of bacon and place the top half of the bun.  Serve!

Nutrition Facts

Whiskey Beef Sliders with Caramlized Onions, Bacon & Homemade Buns

Amount Per Serving (3 sliders)

Calories 681 Calories from Fat 333

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 37g 57%

Saturated Fat 11g 55%

Cholesterol 102mg 34%

Sodium 1936mg 81%

Potassium 416mg 12%

Total Carbohydrates 56g 19%

Dietary Fiber 2g 8%

Sugars 11g

Protein 24g 48%

Vitamin A 5%

Vitamin C 1.6%

Calcium 3.9%

Iron 26.1%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.