The Classic Dressing That Effortlessly Adds A World Of Flavor To Burgers

We know by now that there are a plethora of ways to dress your burger up, beyond just adding ketchup and mustard. We love slathering ours with romesco sauce, barbecue sauce (particularly on veggie burgers), and flavored mayos (like delicious ones with lemon or chipotle) — but there's no reason you even have to stick to sauces. Caesar dressing makes for a delicious addition to your patties and requires hardly any extra effort to incorporate.

If the idea of using a salad dressing on your burger sounds a little wild, ranch is a common patty topper, and In-N-Out's spread is rumored to be very similar to Thousand Island dressing. Plus, Caesar dressing is chock-full of ingredients that pair well with burgers, as most recipes are made of eggs, oil, and lemon juice (a common formula to make mayo), along with lemon zest, anchovies, garlic, salt, and pepper. The resulting combination is a delicious balance of savory, umami, and tangy flavors. So just like ranch or Thousand Island, adding Caesar dressing to your meal will enhance the mouthwatering richness of your meat, but it will also balance it out with bright acidity.

The best part of using Caesar dressing on your burger (aside from all the aforementioned flavor benefits)? All you have to do is pour it straight onto your patty — although we'd recommend letting it come to room temperature on the counter first. If you want to make your burger feel like as much of a Caesar salad as possible, pile it high with toppings like sliced hard-boiled eggs, romaine, shaved parmesan, avocado, and chopped chives. You can also grill your buns to make them feel a little more like croutons. However, the dressing will also go well with a variety of other toppings, such as sliced tomatoes, practically any type of cheese, grilled or pickled onions, sour or sweet pickles, or anything spicy, like jalapeños.

But using your dressing as a spread isn't the only way to incorporate Caesar flavor. You can make chicken, turkey, or beef patties with the dressing included, especially since the egg can help act as a binder. Use 2 tablespoons of the bottled stuff per pound of meat, and pack your mixture full of ingredients like lemon juice, garlic, and parmesan. Your burgers will come out with plenty of the flavor you want, but feel free to still dab a little dressing on top as well.