Longaniza Sausage Burgers

I haven’t been back in the states in six months and every once in a while I’ll get very specific cravings for American fast food. McDonalds and Burger King are out of the picture, since they’re everywhere in Spain. What I’m talking about is slightly classier fast food. In & Out burgers are on top of the list, with a side of baked fries drenched in ketchup, mayo, and drippings of their secret sauce. Closely followed by authentic Mexican burritos found in little shacks so prevalent in Southern California, big juicy kosher hot dogs from Costco topped with relish and onions, and of course, food truck tacos! I guess the list involves a lot of meat. So let’s make this post nice and quick, in true American style.

I had a craving for a real greasy burger. And what’s a girl to do but satisfy her craving. I didn’t have any ground meat at hand so I used a spiced sausage filled with ground pork called longaniza. One doesn’t traditionally make burgers with sausages but I’m a big fan of longaniza, or any kind of meat that makes its own grease when you drop it in a hot pan. YUM. We’re young, let’s not worry about calories. Soak up the remaining red, delicious meat juices with the hamburger buns. I dare you.

And by the way, if you're not in Spain you probably won't find longaniza sausages. I don't know what the English translation would be, or if there is one. Spain's highly specialized in pork products and there are so many varieties here. Any raw pork sausage should do the trick. Anyway, this recipe is enough to yield two pretty hefty sized burgers.


INGREDIENTS//

+ 12 inches worth of raw spiced sausages
+ 1/2 an onion
+ whole wheat mustard
+ your favorite type of cheese
+ handful of arugula
+ salt & pepper
+ rosemary & oregano
+ hamburger buns


RECIPE//

Chop your sausages in easily bitable chunks and slice your onions into rings. Heat up the pan and leave the fire on medium, then drop in the meat. After about a minute the sausages should be spewing out grease, which is your cue to add the onion slices. Lower the fire a bit. Throw in just a dash of salt (since the sausages already have a strong flavor), pepper, and a pinch of fresh rosemary and oregano if you have any. Longaniza sausages have a ton of spices but adding more can’t hurt anybody. However, fresh rosemary is pretty strong, so don’t go crazy with it or else the burger will taste overwhelmingly like rosemary.

Let everything cook for 6 or 7 minutes, or whenever the meat is fully cooked/onions become soft. An alternative way to make this would be to sweat the onions first with olive oil in the pan, then add a bit of sugar to caramelize it. Either way works.

Toast the buns in the oven for a few minutes. Top off your burger with whole grain mustard, a bed of arugula leaves, and cheese. I used a local artisan cheese called Payoyo to compliment my longaniza burger. My boyfriend picked it up from Grazelema, a tiny mountainside village near his own pueblo. Payoyo cheese is a mix of goat and sheep’s milk, making it very savory with just a hint of sweetness. I like my burgers to have strong flavors, which is why you’ll never see me use lettuce in almost anything. What a boring vegetable.

Anyway, craving satisfied!