Pork Burgers with Avocado Dressing

You had me at the avocado dressing.

The folks at Cookthink won me over quick and easy. I am a sucker for a different, yet tasty burger. Especially one that lets me smear it with avocado goodness. What can I say, I'm a slut for them. (Avocados AND burgers, really.)

I don't normally like my food salty, but it did indeed go really well with the creamy dressing - just like they said it would! We skipped the tomatoes, but I think their cool juiciness would have been a nice touch. Served with roasted red potatoes, this was a delightful dinner.

My only suggestion would be to up this whole thing by half and I'll tell you why - these burgers shrink. Not one of the four burgers was very big in the end, and one was even very sadly small (but hideously cute!). So make more - or just plan on them being large sliders instead.

Pork Burgers with Avocado Dressing
c/o Cookthink
http://www.cookthink.com/recipe/4086/Pork_Burgers_With_Avocado_Dressing

The richness of the avocado dressing is cut by the salty and slightly spicy pork burgers. Add more chipotle sauce if you want a spicier burger. We don't mention it here but sliced carrots make also make a great garnish.
avocado dressing

1 ripe avocado
1/2 lime, juiced
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

pork burgers
1 pound lean ground pork
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons chipotle sauce
1 teaspoon soy sauce
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 teaspoons olive oil

garnishes
2 medium spring onions, thinly sliced
4 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced
4 slices Monterey Jack cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 375F and put the rack in the middle position. Peel and pit the avocado and put it in a food processor or bowl. Add the lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Purée or mash until smooth. Refrigerate until you’re ready to use.

2. Form the burgers: Put the pork in a large bowl and sprinkle it with the salt and pepper. Add the chipotle sauce, soy sauce and cilantro. Using your hands, mix the pork just enough to incorporate the ingredients. Divide the pork into 4 equally sized burgers, each about 1 inch thick. Season them on both sides with a sprinkling of salt and pepper.

3. Heat the olive oil in an oven-safe (preferably nonstick) skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot and shimmering, add the burgers. Leave them alone for 2-4 minutes to sear. When the bottoms are very brown, flip them and brown the other side another 2-4 minutes.

4. Prep the onions and tomatoes while the burgers are cooking.

5. When the burgers have browned on the second side, put them in the oven to roast. Cook the burgers until they reach 155F in the thickest part, 10-15 minutes. Check the temperature early and often, since they turn dry if you let them go too long. (They’ll be just firm but not hard to the touch when they’re done.)

6. Pull the pan out of the oven with an oven mitt. Put the burgers on a plate and loosely cover them with foil to rest 5 minutes. Serve on toasted multi-grain buns with avocado spread, slices of Monterey Jack cheese, spring onions and tomatoes.