Smoked Cantaloupe Burger

Burger:

• 1 California Cantaloupe melon (preferably underripe but not necessary)
• 4 Hamburger buns (We love sesame potato buns)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp of your favorite burger sauce (we found sauces like ranch, thousand island or bbq sauce work best!)
• 3 to 4 slices of bread & butter pickles for each burger
• 2 pieces of bib or Boston lettuce for each burger
• 1 white or Spanish onion, peeled & sliced into ¼ inch rounds

Brine:

• 2 ½ cups of water, cold
• 3 tbsp of soy sauce (can substitute gluten-free tamari)
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce (can substitute a mushroom vegan one)
• ½ tbsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• 2 tbsp sriracha or similar chili sauce
• ½ tbsp of garlic powder
• 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary, destemmed

Specialty equipment: BBQ Smoker

1. Trim all outer skin of your melon and then cut into 4 equal pieces, slicing from end to end. Then scoop and discard all inside seeds and pulp along with the trimmed away skin.
2. In a medium bowl use a whisk to mix together all brine ingredients very well until smooth.
3. Place the 4 melon pieces in either a medium glass baking dish or a large ziplock bag and pour your brine mixture evenly over melon. Whichever container you choose to use you want the melon to be submerged in the brine. Refrigerate container and allow to marinate for 4 to 8 hours.
4. Remove melon piece from brine and place each curved side down in a preheated bbq smoker at 200f degrees. Smoke cantaloupe for 4 hours or until they’ve turned a nice light golden brown.
5. Once smoked your cantaloupe burgers if needed can be saved for up to 3 days covered and refrigerated.
6. Next, preheat oven to 400f degrees. Then place your olive oil in a large heavy skillet or pan and heat to medium high then place each piece of smoked melon curved side down carefully in the pan. Make sure you’re using a pan large enough so that the pieces of melon have a tiny bit of space from one another, as to not overcrowd the pan.
7. To finish burgers, saute burgers for 3 to 5 minutes on both sides until they begin to brown then place the whole pan in your preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until they have significantly darkened. Remove from oven and carefully place burgers on a rack to rest for a few minutes.
8. To serve burgers, place your pieces of lettuce and a few slices of onion on each bottom bun then your melon patty on top followed by your pickles, burger sauce and the top bun.
9. Serve while still warm and enjoy!