If you are in the mood for a thick, juicy grilled pork burger but want something a bit different, give these flavor-packed Asian-style burgers a try. Top them off with crunchy slaw and homemade yum yum sauce for a savory, sweet and tangy bite.–Ray Sheehan
Grilled Pork Burger FAQs
The very best way to ensure your burger is cooked to the correct temperature (with pork, the temperature should be 160°F [71°C]) is with a meat thermometer. Just don’t insert your temperature probe vertically into the burger – stick it into the side where it’s less likely to go too far into the patty or even all the way through, which would give you an inaccurate reading.
You absolutely can, but remember to never let ground meat sit around at room temperature very long so that bacteria can start doing its thing. Feel free to make your patties ahead of time, but then wrap them up or store them in an airtight container until a few minutes before you’re ready to toss them onto the grill or the Big Green Egg.
The burgers should be made at least 30 minutes prior to serving – but if you do them an hour or two before you’re ready to cook, then wrap and store them; the ginger, scallion, and garlic will have a little more time to permeate the meat, making your finished product even more delicious!
You’ve essentially got a complete meal crammed between two buns here, but we certainly wouldn’t say no to a side of sweet potato wedges or a big ol’ slice of watermelon.
Grilled Pork Burgers
Ingredients
For the crunchy slaw
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
- 8 ounces bagged coleslaw mix or shredded cabbage
- 1 tablespoon thinly sliced scallion
For the homemade yum yum sauce
- 1 1/4 cups mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons store-bought or homemade tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon (1/2 oz) unsalted butter, melted
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons water
For the grilled pork burgers
- 1 1/2 pounds ground pork
- 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
- 1 tablespoon thinly sliced scallion
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 1/4 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 to 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 hamburger buns, split and toasted
Instructions
Make the crunchy slaw
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine the vinegar, soy sauce, olive oil, and lime juice. Add the coleslaw and scallion and mix well. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the homemade yum yum sauce
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, tomato paste, vinegar, paprika, garlic powder, sugar, and melted butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Adjust to your desired consistency with water, adding 1 tablespoon at a time. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the grilled pork burgers
- In a large bowl, combine the pork, ginger, scallions, garlic, sesame oil, salt, and pepper, mix well. Divvy the pork mixture into four equal portions, shaping each into a 1-inch (2.5-cm) thick patty. Refrigerate patties for at least 30 minutes, or until you’re ready to cook.
- If using a Big Green Egg, set it up for 400°F (200°C) direct grilling. Fill your firebox with natural lump charcoal, and with the top and bottom vents wide open, light the fire and close the EGG. After about 10 minutes, close the bottom draft screen. When the temperature nears your 400°F (200°C) target temperature, partially close the bottom vent door and the top of the daisy wheel, leaving both vents 40 percent open. Make minor adjustments as necessary.If using a gas or charcoal grill, prepare it for direct grilling at 400°F (200°C).
- Place the patties directly on the grill and cook for 5 to 6 minutes. Flip the burgers and continue to cook until they reach an internal temperature of 160°F (71°C), 5 to 7 minutes more.
- Transfer the cooked burgers to a plate and tent them with foil to rest.
- To build each burger, layer the bottom half of each bun with the sauce, a burger patty, and crunchy slaw. Top with the other half of the bun. Devour.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
In our house, these grilled pork burgers will be known forevermore as “dumpling burgers.” The mixture of pork, ginger, garlic, scallions, and sesame oil reminded us of the filling of our favorite soup dumplings (xiao long bao). Tasty dumpling filling in a huge, grilled patty? Yes, please.
While delicious on toasted brioche buns with the (perhaps too) subtle slaw and habit-forming yum yum sauce (which we used as a dip for tater tots, too), these burger patties would also be great with rice noodles, lettuce, and fresh herbs à la the Vietnamese classic bun cha. I think that’s how we’ll serve them next time!
This grilled pork burgers recipe produced a perfectly balanced burger that will make repeat appearances at my table this summer. The yum yum sauce links each element together. With its creamy texture and sharp smokey taste, it is the bedrock of this recipe. Yum-yum sauce will become a permanent fixture in my fridge.
All the components can be prepared early in the day and set aside until dinner, which is a real plus. The recipe is easy to make and cooks at any level will enjoy the results. The sweet-tart-smoky nature of these burgers is a real game changer, most definitely a Testers Choice. My husband loved the burgers and suggested that we switch to pork burgers in the future.
This burger recipe appears to be fairly forgiving and the cook time can be adjusted to the thickness of the burger without impacting the finished product. The yum yum sauce is a condiment of endless possibilities. I am anxious to use it with other dishes. I think it would go well with crab cakes.
If you’re tired of the same old burger on the grill or your Big Green Egg, give these grilled pork burgers a try, they will not disappoint. They are easy, DELICIOUS and a perfect burger to have on a weekend day, or any other day for that matter.
There are 3 components (4 if you include the bun) to this burger and they are perfectly married in taste and crunch. The main star is of course the meat. Pork, fresh ginger, garlic, and sesame oil are common ingredients found in Asian food and therefore these are truly Asian-style pork burgers.
The homemade yum yum sauce was definitely a great choice to replace any common burger condiment, it really enhanced the flavor of the burger. Lastly, was the slaw that topped this wonderful burger.
Think delicious pork wonton filling in burger form, that’s what this tastes like. This will be a weeknight favorite for so many reasons: quick to put together, a great big juicy but lean burger, and wonderful condiments!
This would be perfect summer picnic food too. I thought 1.5 pounds of ground pork for only 4 burgers was a lot but these were the perfect size. The pork is so lean that there was no shrinkage of the cooked patty. I wondered if the slaw was too plain but it also was just right with the yum yum sauce. We loved all components of this recipe as written, but we especially liked the yum yum sauce with the addition of a teaspoon of sriracha. We made these burgers on our Big Green Egg.
This is a delicious alternative to a beef burger. This grilled pork burger was juicy and messy in a good way! The coleslaw adds a nice crunch and the yum yum sauce is a perfect accompaniment. All of the flavors combine for a really nice burger. We used brioche buns; lightly toasted with the pork burger is perfect. You will have leftover yum yum sauce so make a second batch of burgers or use for another purpose. It would great as a veggie dip, with shrimp, as a potsticker dip. There are so many things you can do with it. We enjoyed the burgers with a nice California Pinot Noir and it was perfect.
There’s nothing like a simple but well-executed hamburger. But once in a while it’s nice to have a change and this burger delivers. The pork provides both a textural and flavor change, and along with the flavorings, is essentially a big version of dumpling filling, a good thing for dumpling fans. The coleslaw along with the light dressing balances great against the pork. The sauce ties everything together, making this quite a unique burger. While the recipe calls for lots of ingredients, this is fast to put together and worth all the effort.
Yum—these grilled pork burgers taste like a giant Chinese pork and scallion dumpling with a small fraction of the work. The sauce is perfect as is, though whisking in a spoonful of gochujang can give it a little heat. The slaw is not flavorful enough on its own, but on both sides of the patty and with the sauce, it serves the burger well. Broiling thinner one inch patties on parchment, four inches from the heat for 10 minutes, firmed them up and kept them juicy for those of us without a grill.
These grilled ground pork burgers are a tasty change from ordinary burgers. Even though there are several components to this recipe, it is not at all time-consuming. The wonderfully seasoned burger is nicely complemented by the homemade yum yum sauce. The slaw, while crunchy and delicious, overpowered the burger a bit and made it a little difficult to eat. The next time I think I will use the yum yum sauce on the burger and serve the crunchy slaw on the side. This recipe made four good-sized burgers. Because there were only two of us eating, we had two left over. My husband and I agreed that they were just as good – if not better- leftover!
This pork burger is “da bomb” with a blast of flavor, crunchy slaw, and spicy homemade yum yum sauce. I made a few tweaks based on what I had, and the burgers were delicious. I only had a pound of ground pork and I used the full amounts of all the ingredients for the pork and the burgers were perfectly seasoned; if using a pound and a half as the recipe calls for I would increase the ingredients accordingly.
I made my own slaw with radicchio, fennel, red onion, and grated carrot. The ingredients came to just under two pounds so I doubled the dressing ingredients. The leftover slaw was great the next day all by itself. I used smoked paprika for the yum yum sauce; water was not necessary for a good consistency, nor was the melted butter, and I would not bother with it next time.
I grilled the burgers on a gas grill for 6 minutes a side and salted the patties before I put them on the grill. They made a perfect tasty crunchy savory supper, nothing else was needed. An 8 ounce burger for each of us; we spent the day working outside on the farm and building an appetite.
Great recipe. I breed full-blooded Duroc and Hampshire. Sometimes, I end up with a few tons of ground pork. This recipe will come in handy.
Duroc is the Iberian pork, correct?
The breed was developed in the United States and formed the basis for many mixed-breed commercial hogs. Duroc pigs are reddish-brown and golden yellow, large-framed, medium length, and muscular, with partially-drooping ears. They tend to be one of the least aggressive of all swine breeds raised for meat.
Thanks for that, Johm.
The Iberian pig is a traditional breed of the domestic pig (Sus scrofa domesticus) that is native to the Iberian Peninsula. The Iberian pig, whose origins can probably be traced back to the Neolithic, when animal domestication started, is currently found in herds clustered in Spain and the central and southern part of Portugal.
Thanks, Johm!
You’re very welcome.
These look delicious so I just printed the recipe and one of the markets I shop has Berkshire/Kurobuta pork so I will be getting some shoulder to grind in my new upgraded K/A metal food grinder attachment. Looking forward to trying this and will report back. Thanks for the recipe.
You’re welcome, lowandslow. Please do let us know how it turns out.
The burgers were delicious so we saved the recipe and put it in the do-again file.Thanks for the re post, will be making again this week.So many burgers so little time!
Thanks, lowandslow. These are a favorite of mine, too. I’m so glad you’ve found a keeper!
Oh my gosh these sound so yummy I would have never thought of a pork burger! I’ll have to try making them this coming weekend when the family gets together and see how they all like them!
Do let us know how they turn out, Kathryn!