PAT The secret to this recipe is the sauce. Kids and grown folks will not be able to eat just one. Using 80-percent-lean ground beef leaves just enough fat so the burger will plump up and be extra juicy. And we can’t leave out Gina’s pig: top these darlings with bacon, Comeback Sauce, pepper Jack, Neely’s coleslaw, and fried onion rings, and you’ll have a burger like no other.

　　

Ingredients

serves 6

　　2 1/2 pounds ground chuck (80 percent lean)

　　1 small shallot, finely chopped

　　2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

　　1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

　　Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

　　6 slices pepper Jack cheese, each 1/4 inch thick

　　6 hamburger buns, split and buttered

　　12 slices apple-wood-smoked bacon, fried to a crisp

　　1 recipe Comeback Sauce (recipe follows)

　　Neely’s coleslaw (recipe follows)

　　Onion rings (recipe follows)

　　2 beefsteak tomatoes, sliced

　　

Step 1

Preheat your grill to medium-high heat, using charcoal, or turn your gas grill to medium-high.

　　

Step 2

Break up the meat with a wooden spoon in a large mixing bowl. Add the chopped shallot, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Mix with your hands until all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. Divide the meat into six equal balls. Flatten them into 3/4-inch-thick patties, and use your thumb to create a shallow indentation in the center of each burger.

　　

Step 3

Grill the burgers for 3 to 4 minutes. Flip, and continue cooking for another 4 minutes to cook them to medium. Top the patties with the cheese, and toast the buns for the last minute of grilling.

　　

Step 4

Build your burgers by topping with the bacon, Comeback Sauce, coleslaw, fried onion rings, and tomatoes. Don’t worry about getting messy!

　　

Note

Step 5

The shallow indentation in the center of the burgers will keep them from puffing up while you grill them.

　　Reprinted with permission from The Neelys' Celebration Cookbook by Pat and Gina Nelly. Copyright © 2011 by Pat and Gina Nelly with Anna Volkwein. Excerpted by permission of Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.Pat and Gina Neely are restaurateurs, best-selling authors, popular speakers, and hosts of the Food Network hit series Down Home with the Neelys. They recently opened their first New York City restaurant, Neely's Barbecue Parlor. They live with their daughters in Memphis, where they enjoy cooking at home with family and friends.Ann Volkwein is a best-selling food and lifestyle author based in New York City and Austin, Texas. Her previous books include: The Arthur Avenue Cookbook, Chinatown New York, Mixt Greens (with Andrew Swallow), and, with Guy Fieri: Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives; More Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives; and Guy Fieri Food.