Why they’re so good!
Hot on the heels of my pulled beef recipe, a really simple and delicious pulled beef burger is just one amazing way to use it. These burgers are loaded with a generous helping of that rich and succulent shredded beef and classics like cheese, pickles and cabbage. But it’s the spicy chilli mayo that takes them to a whole other level!
Once the beef has been made (slow cooked for 8-10 hours) it can be chilled for eating in a few days time or frozen for up to 3 months, so your next family burger night can be so quick and easy.
Add your favourite toppings or stick to the ones suggested but just don’t skip the chilli mayonnaise. If you want to try a different mayo on your shredded beef burgers, try my jalapeno mayo.
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Ingredients you’ll need
Jump to the recipe for full ingredients and instructions.
- Pulled beef: The shredded beef for the burgers is this recipe and can be made ahead of time (so you could make it on a weekend for dinner during the week or freeze it for later). Cooked in a slow cooker for 8-10 hours, it’s mouthwateringly tender and is accompanied by a rich flavourful gravy. Using chuck roast, topside or any other roasting cut of beef, some onion, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and tomato passata it’s got great flavour. The liquids that are created as it cooks get turned into the gravy to coat the beef once shredded so nothing goes to waste.
- Burger buns: I love potato buns but whatever your favourite burger buns, go with those.
- Red cabbage: Crunchy, raw cabbage is great on burgers adding texture and flavour. I use the red cabbage simply to add a burst of colour but green cabbage will work fine too. You can swap it for lettuce too.
- Cheddar cheese slices: Use any cheddar cheese slices here. You could use Swiss cheese slices or Edam slices. As long as you love the flavour, it’ll work here.
- Pickles: Sliced gherkins or bread and butter pickles like I’ve used here add perfect crunch plus sweetness and tang.
- Mayonnaise: Choose your favourite mayo as the base for the chilli mayo. You’ll love how easy it is to make.
- Sour cream: Sour cream adds creaminess to the mayo without adding extra sweetness.
- Sriracha: Sriracha is a Thai hot sauce made from chillies, vinegar, sugar, salt and garlic. It’s got great flavour and has a nice spicy kick. Other hot sauce brands will work quite well here too and even something like sambal oelek.
- Lime juice: This adds some zing and freshness to the mayo. You can swap it for apple cider vinegar.
- Cajun seasoning: A teaspoon of cajun seasoning adds great depth of flavour plus a little more heat.
How to make pulled beef burgers
With beef piled up, the mayo cascading down and gooey cheese, these pulled beef burgers have everything you need. Let’s make them!
Jump to the recipe for full ingredients and instructions.
1. Cook the beef
Follow the steps in my pulled beef recipe to cook the beef and coat in the wonderful gravy. Once that’s ready to go, you can store it for later or use it immediately.
2. Make the chilli mayonnaise
The chilli mayonnaise takes these shredded beef burgers to another level. It adds creaminess and a kick of heat that really blends beautifully with the richness of the beef and it’s so easy to make. Just mix the ingredients in a bowl. That’s it.
3. Melt the cheese
Load up the burger bun bases with a generous helping of beef and a slice of cheese. Cook under the overhead grill/broiler to melt the cheese.
4. Assemble the burgers
It’s a good idea to have everyone ready and waiting at the table so you can eat them while they’re nice and hot. Add the cabbage or any salad topping you’re using, pickles and then give each one a good dollop of that chilli mayo. Devour at will.
Pulled beef burger toppings
I opted here to keep the toppings fairly simple and classic so the beef and mayonnaise could really shine. Some finely shredded red cabbage adds amazing colour and crunchy texture. Use your favourite cheese slices to get that gooey, cheesiness. Bread and butter pickles are a classic – sweet and tangy they add a little crunch too.
But feel free to add your favourite toppings instead. Maybe you’d love some coleslaw (I have a great apple coleslaw that would be great here). Add sliced tomatoes or lettuce.
As for condiments, if you don’t like mayo on your burgers, go for a classic ketchup instead – it still tastes great with the pulled beef and you can even add a dash of sriracha or cayenne pepper to get that spicy kick. A little mustard is always great on a burger too and this tomato chilli jam is a real treat with this beef.
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Ingredients
- 2-3 cups pulled beef recipe
- 4 burger buns
- ¼ medium red cabbage, thinly sliced
- 4 slices cheddar cheese
- Bread and butter pickles or other pickles
- Any other salad burger fillings you like
FOR THE CHILLI MAYONNAISE
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 ½ tablespoons sriracha, or to taste (notes 1)
- 1 tablespoon lime juice (notes 1)
- 1 teaspoon cajun seasoning, or to taste
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Equipment
Instructions
- Start by cooking the pulled beef. This takes 8-10 hours in a slow cooker and can be done up to 3 days ahead. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. If using the beef from the fridge, heat it in a pan first.
- Mix the ingredients for the chilli mayo in a small bowl. The flavour and spiciness will develop the longer this sits.
- Preheat the broiler / overhead grill to high and place a rack about 5-6 inches below it.
- Have all the toppings ready to go so you can serve the burgers nice and hot. Better yet, have everyone ready at the table and let them top their own as soon as they come out of the oven.
- Place the bases of 4 burger buns onto a baking tray and top with a generous amount of pulled beef. Top each one with a slice of cheese. Cook under the broiler / overhead grill for 3 minutes or until the cheese is melted and gooey.
- Top each one with red cabbage and pickles, then a good dollop of chilli mayo on top. Add the tops of the burgers and devour immediately.
- Please take a moment to leave a comment & rating. It's appreciated and so helpful.
Notes
- Tablespoons: I use a standard Australian 20ml tablespoon (equal to 4 teaspoons). Check yours before measuring.
- Pulled beef: One batch of pulled beef will be more than you need but leftovers can be frozen in batches ready for the next burger night. It’s also great in tacos, quesadillas, on pizza… the list goes on.
- Sriracha: This is a hot chilli sauce. You could substitute with sambal oelek, another hot sauce like Franks or even a chilli jam!
- Lime juice: You can swap this for lemon juice or even apple cider vinegar. If using the latter, start with half then work up to the amount that tastes right to you.
- Burger toppings: You can of course choose your own favourite burger toppings. Coleslaw is great and you can even go so far as to dress your coleslaw with the chilli mayo. Lettuce, spinach, rocket (arugula), tomato, onion. Crispy onion rings. Sliced pickled onions. Beetroot.
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