Curacao Cholula Chili-Lime Sliders with Mango-Pineapple Teriyaki Glaze, Ginger-Papaya Mayo, and Pomegranate Balsamic Onions

Pairs well with:

Sauvignon Blanc

With hints of passion fruit, melon, and citrus, this wine beckons you to kick back and find a perfect porch swing.

The Curacao Islands and Cholula Chili Lime hot sauce inspired me to create this delicious sliders. Curacao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan Coast. Curaco derives from the Portuguese word for the state of becoming cured, and when you take a bite into these island inspired sliders you will be cured from hunger! You will find yourself immersed withsweet, spicy, tangy, exotic flavors-a combination that will create an Island Paradise in your mouth. Cholula Chili Lime hot sauce gives you all what you love about hot sauce but with a unique delicious, tangy hint of lime. Cholula Chili Lime hot sauce brings sensational island flavorful fire-a taste to be reckoned with!

Ingredients:

Ginger-Papaya Mayo:
3/4 cup mayonnaise with olive oil
1/2 cup diced peeled and seeded papaya
1 teaspoon grated orange peel
1 teaspoon roasted ground ginger (prefer McCormick)
2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lime juice
Patties:
2 pounds fresh ground beef chuck
2 tablespoons Island Teriyaki sauce
2 tablespoons Sweet and Spicy Pepper Sauce (prefer Tabasco Brand)
2 tablespoons Sutter Home Sauvignon Blanc
1 tablespoon Cholula Chili Lime Hot Sauce
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
4 large garlic cloves, finely minced
1 teaspoon Jamaican Allspice (prefer McCormick)
2 teaspoons Asian-style Spiced Sea Salt (prefer McCormick)
1/3 cup minced ripe papaya
1 teaspoon roasted ground ginger (prefer McCormick)
1/2 teaspoon roasted ground cumin (prefer McCormick)
Mango- Pineapple Teriyaki Glaze:
2/3 cup Teriyaki Baste and Glaze with Honey and Pineapple (prefer Kikkoman)
1 tablespoon Cholula Chili Lime Hot Sauce
2 tablespoons mango nectar
Pomegranate Balsamic Onions:
12 (1/3-inch-thick) sweet onion slices
2 tablespoons pure olive oil
1 teaspoon Asian-style Spiced Sea Salt (prefer McCormick)
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar, Pomegranate Infused (prefer Pompeian)

Other ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, for brushing on grill rack
12 Hawaiian sweet dinner rolls or mini burger buns (prefer Kings Hawaiian)
1 cup mixed baby salad greens (prefer Dole baby garden blend salad greens)

Instructions:

To make the mayo, combine all of the ingredients in food processor and process until smooth. Place mayo mixture in a small bowl; cover and refrigerate until assembling the burgers.
To make patties, combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Handling the meat as little as possible to avoid compacting it, mix well. Divide the mixture into 12 equal portions and, using your hands, shape into patties about 3 1/2-inches wide. Cover and refrigerate until ready to grill.
To make the glaze: Combine all ingredients in a small bowl; cover and set aside.
To make the onions: Preheat a gas grill on medium-high. Arrange onion slices on a nonstick baking sheet. With a basting brush; brush the onions with olive oil. Sprinkle with Asian sea salt and black pepper over the onion slices. Transfer onion slices (still intact) to grill rack; close cover. Cook until grill marks appear, about 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer onion slices to medium bowl. Toss with pomegranate balsamic vinegar.
Heat a gas grill to medium-high. When the grill is ready, brush the grill rack with the vegetable oil. Place the patties on the rack, cover, and cook, turning once, until done to preference, 3 to 5 minutes on each side. During the last few minutes of cooking, baste the patties equally with mango-pineapple teriyaki glaze and place the buns, cut side down, on the outer edges of the rack to toast lightly.
To assemble the sliders, spread the cut sides of the buns with equal portions of the mayo. On each bun bottom, top with equal amounts of baby salad greens, a beef patty and onion slice. Add the bun tops and serve. Makes 12 sliders to serve 6, prep time: 2 hours, grilling time: 14 minutes