Picadillo Burger with Grilled Serrano Chili Salsa and Red Alioli

Pairs well with:

White Merlot

Imagine sipping a lighter Merlot. This fresh, pale-pink wine is a nice change from traditional red or white wines.

Ingredients:

Ingredients for Grilled Serrano Chili Salsa
2 Serrano Chilies
1 large red onion, cut into three round slices
3 ripe vine tomatoes, into halves
1 Hass avocado, medium dice
2 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. fresh ground pepper

Ingredients for Sofrito
½ bunch of fresh cilantro leaves
¼ of a small yellow onion, coarsely chopped
¼ of a large green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
¼ of a large red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
6 large garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
½ tsp. dried oregano
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2oz. chorizo, small dice
6 Spanish salad olives, finely chopped
3 tbsp. ketchup
1 tsp. Sazón Goya, (coriander and annatto flavor)
1 small bay leaf
1/3 c. Sutter Home white merlot
1/3 c. beef broth (low sodium)

Ingredients for Patties
1 lb. ground chuck
1 lb. ground tri-tip
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. fresh ground pepper
Sofrito mixture
Extra virgin olive oil for basting the patties

Ingredients for Red Alioli
2 cloves garlic, minced and mashed
1 c. mayonnaise
½ c. ketchup
¼ tsp. kosher salt

Condiments
6 slices of Swiss cheese
6 Romaine lettuce leaves
1 c. shoestring potato sticks
6 French burger buns

Instructions:

1. For the Chili salsa, drizzle the chilies, onions, and the tomatoes with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and season with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Place them on a charcoal grill at high temperature and grill them until they get those nice grilling marks. Remove from the grill. Peel and seed the chilies. Chop the chilies, onions and tomatoes into bite size pieces and put them into a mixing bowl. Add the avocado, cilantro, lime juice and remaining olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

2. For the sofrito, chop the cilantro together with the onion, peppers, garlic, and oregano in a food processor. Pulse for 30 seconds and drizzle just one tablespoon of olive oil between pulses. Remove the mixture and set aside.

3. In a small sauce pan pre-heat the remaining olive oil at medium temperature on the grill. Sautee the chorizo for five minutes. Add the sofrito mixture and sauté for five minutes. Mix in ketchup, sazon Goya, olives and bay leaf. Add the wine and let it reduce half way. Add broth and let it reduce until the mixture becomes a soft paste. Remove from the heat and let it cool completely.

4. For the alioli, mix the garlic, mayonnaise, ketchup and salt with a hand blender until smooth.

5. For the patties, simply mix the sofrito mixture with the ground meats, salt, and pepper in a large bowl and mix well. Divide the beef mixture into 6 equal parts and form 6 patties with your hands. Lightly coat each patty with a little of olive oil.

6. Grill each patty on a charcoal grill at a medium high temperature, until cooked through, usually from 5 to 7 minutes on each side. Toast the buns in the grill while the patties are cooking. Top each burger with a slice of Swiss cheese one minute before removing from the grill.

7. Spread each bun with the alioli sauce. Start assembling the burgers by placing a lettuce leaf on the bottom of each bun. Add the chili salsa, then the beef patty and top it with a small bunch of potato sticks. Finish with the top bun and bun-appettite!