Sliders
Ingredients
- 16 ounces ground beef
- 2 cups onion – finely chopped (~2.5 medium onions)
- 1/2 cups water
- 1 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
- 12 buns slider buns – split
- 6 slices American cheese – halved
- 12 chips dill pickle chips
- yellow mustard – for serving
Instructions
1. Line a sheet with parchment. Place the ground beef between two sheets of parchment and roll or press it to about 1/8 inch thick. Peel off the top sheet, cut into 12 squares about 2.5 inches, and poke 5 small holes in each square with a straw or chopstick. Refrigerate the patties to firm while you heat the pan.
2. Set a large griddle or two wide skillets over medium heat. Add the onion and the water, and cook, stirring, until the onion is translucent and most liquid is gently simmering across the surface, 3–4 minutes.
3. Lay all patties, holes up, directly over the onion bed so they’re touching but not overlapping. Sprinkle evenly with the kosher salt and black pepper. Cover and cook until the tops turn from red to gray-brown and juices bubble through the holes, 3–4 minutes (do not flip).
4. Place a piece of American cheese on each patty. Arrange the slider buns with the top halves directly over the cheese to steam, and set the bottom halves cut-side down along the edges of the pan to warm, 30–60 seconds until soft and steamy.
5. Using a spatula, lift each warmed bottom bun with a little onion, top with a patty and one dill pickle chip, add yellow mustard, and cap with the steamed top bun. Serve immediately while hot and juicy.
Sliders are thin, ultra-juicy mini hamburgers built for two-bite satisfaction. Their hallmark is a savory blanket of soft, sweet onions that steam the patties and buns, yielding a tender texture with melty American cheese and a bright snap from dill pickles. The size makes them irresistible for parties, late-night snacks, or a casual meal where a few different toppings can be sampled without committing to a full-size burger.
They trace their roots to early 20th-century American lunch counters, most famously popularized by Midwestern griddle houses that cooked beef over a bed of onions. The term “slider” became associated with these small, onion-steamed burgers, which were served on soft buns with simple condiments like mustard and pickles. Over time, the idea expanded into all sorts of mini sandwiches, but the onion-steam technique remains the defining spirit of the original hamburger slider.