Upgrade Your Homemade Burger With This Flavorful Compound Butter

Whether you want to show off at the next barbecue or you simply want to boost the flavor profile in your meal, there are plenty of ways you can amp up your burger. Sure, you can enhance your burger patties with a bit of tomato paste, or use Bobby Flay's potato chip trick for added crunch, but to find out how to really bring the flavor, Food Republic spoke to Chris Snider, the owner of Texas Tito's, Inc. His suggestion? Put a little pickle butter into your perfectly packed patty.

"Pickle butter gives a bright[,] salty-sour accent that contrasts great with a fatty, meaty patty," he said. Pickles are a natural pair for a burger, and adding a pat of butter is the best way to never eat dry burgers again. It's tart; it's luscious; it gives your burger that oozy, juicy quality we all crave — whether you've got a beef, chicken, or veggie patty as your base.

While Ina Garten folds cold butter into the patty itself, Snider had a different suggestion. "Putting pickle butter on a hot patty creates a glaze effect that envelops the meat as it melts and enhances the flavor of the entire burger," he explained. Instead of letting the butter melt into the meat as it cooks, allowing it to glaze a hot burger, you'll get pickle butter in every delicious bite. We're salivating already.

It's relatively simple to make a compound butter — start with a good base recipe and make the amendments necessary. For a tart yet salty bite, add your pickle of choice and a spoonful of brine to your mixture. Of course, Chris Snider had some specific advice. "Try using soft butter at room temperature, finely chopped pickles, a little brine, and a pinch of garlic powder," he suggested.

Too pickle-y? No problem! Snider said that you could add in just a touch of Dijon mustard to your mix. "It will add a slight spiciness and soften the acidity of the pickles," he said. Still not satisfied? The expert also recommended adding in some fresh dill for a bright flavor you can't beat.

Of course, you don't have to use dill pickles — use whatever strikes your fancy, from sweet bread and butter to spicy jalapeño pickles. Once you have your blend perfected, Snider said to "mix everything well and cool it in the form of a roll that will be easy to cut and add to burgers." Parchment paper makes rolling the butter into a log easy, but you can also use plastic wrap. Simply plop your mixture onto the paper (or wrap) and gently roll it into a log shape by hand. Twist the ends tightly to ensure it holds its shape, and then refrigerate everything — or freeze it to ensure it really stays in nice medallions once sliced.