MAKES: ABOUT 2 CUPS; PREP TIME: 20 MIN; COOK TIME: 45 MIN; TOTAL TIME: 1 HR 5 MIN
While this recipe is my favorite version of this type of sauce, found on so many fast-food burgers,
at the end of the day it’s really the names that set all these burger sauces apart. They’re all just variations of one mother sauce, and as much as I don’t want to admit it, that sauce is Thousand Island dressing. No matter what your favorite burger place names their special sauce, they’re all just elevated versions of that same shitty salad dressing. Thousand Island dressing is like Viagra. Viagra was a huge failure for its intended purpose of helping with heart disease but a gigantic success in another way. Thousand Island’s original purpose of dressing salads is a disaster, but it just happens to be great on burgers.
METHOD:
To caramelize the onion, throw it into a medium pan over medium heat with the butter, a big pinch of salt and pepper, and a dash of Worcestershire sauce. Cook, stirring continuously, until browned, about 45 minutes. Remove the onions and refrigerate for 15 minutes to cool.
In a medium bowl, stir together the caramelized onion, the mayonnaise, ketchup, pickle, chives, the remaining 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, the lemon juice, paprika, and the remaining 2 teaspoons salt and 2 teaspoons pepper. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.