Sunday, August 31, 2008

Honolulu Bob Burgers

I received a little free product-goodie in the mail recently from a company in Illinois- Country Bob's.

Here's a little snippet from their company's site:

How does anything really good get its start? Where do great products come from? Usually they are the result of much time being exerted and a tremendous amount of love being invested. At that point you can say, "That's mine! I made that." That's the way Country Bob Edson created his All Purpose Sauce.

In 1968 Country Bob perfected the sauce of his dreams. After years of giving the sauce to friends and family he began to sell it in 1977. The reaction was overwhelming just as it is today. Almost everyone who tries Country Bob's All Purpose Sauce becomes a lifelong user. And why not, it is the perfect complement to practically any meal set on your table.

I don't usually buy these sorts of condiments/marinades, but I'm a sucker for a good story about a homegrown business, so I decided to give it a shot. I had been wanting to try some slow-roasted ribs, but a quick-taste of the sauce told me that it might be a tad too sweet to use entirely as the main flavor for ribs. So I chose Hawaaian Bob Burgers instead for my test run.

The pineapple was the draw for me. There isn't anything better than fresh & juicy pineapple in the summertime. I had never had it on a burger before, so here was the chance...

I carved up zillions of pineapples while working catering in college...

I needed these to be in "rings" for my burgers. Lacking a "pineapple corer," I carved out the core with a long, skinny sharp knife.

Just like the stuff you find in the can, eh?

These were simple, simple burgers to make. Nothing special was done to the beef patties... just a little added salt and pepper. After the first flip, the patties were topped with a little bit of Bob's Sauce and then a slice of that fresh pineapple. Cheddar was melted on top and they were good to go.


I have to say that we were a bit apprehensive about melting cheddar cheese on top of pineapple. No worries... it was a great combo.

I drizzled a bunch more of Bob's Sauce on mine. The verdict: we were really impressed with the flavor... especially with such a simplistic recipe. The sauce added a welcome flavor to the burger. Kind of like a sweet worcestershire sauce. No additional condiments were needed. I have additional sauce to use up, so I'll be checking out their site to see how else it might be utilized... I'm thinkin' a Baked Beans recipe might be good with this stuff because of its sweet nature.

Happy Labor Day weekend... I hope you're all grilling up some great recipes. If you don't have any Country Bob's Sauce lying around, these burgers would be equally good with bbq sauce or perhaps Heinz 57.

I have lots of great grilling recipes HERE.

34 comments:

  1. All these burgers popping up in the blogosphere are making me hungry! I have a soft spot for pineapple, myself :) And just as soft a spot for a good barbecue sauce! I think I may need to hunt for that when I set foot in the States again!

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  2. Your burger photo is fabulous!

    I looked at the cheddar on the pineapple and went, hmm, I'm not so sure, but on further thought and with your endorsement, I am thinking that really is a great combo. And I think I'll give Bob's a try!

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  3. oh yummo..I got the cookbook from Southern plate's giveaway..but I havent seen Counrty Bobs sauce yet. These burgers look super!
    Thanks for your comment on my Eclairs..they were Delish

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  4. wow looks great, i havent tried patties with pineapple before but it looks like a great combo:-)
    X M

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  5. Great looking burger! I'm a sucker for a good stoey too!

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  6. I will definitely try this sauce, so thanks for the review. I'm mostly impressed with your beautiful pineapple carving. Do I have to carve hundreds to learn how to do it as well as you do? I've got a pineapple on my counter right now, so I'm going to try and see how I do.

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  7. Hi there. Thank you for the blogby. I love your place here and will definitely visit more often. Country Bob sent me some sauce too but I have not tried it yet. These burgers look beautiful!!!!!!!

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  8. I would never have though of pairing pineapple with a burger, but these look good.

    I too am impressed with your pineaplle carving, mine never look like that.

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  9. Those burgers look great! I love the pineapple. Country Bob sent me some sauce too. I made meatloaf, but I haven'y posted about it because I can't remember what I put in it! :O

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  10. OMG send Bob over, this looks like an amazing Burger! I love a messy, drippy burg.

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  11. Pineapple does NOT belong on a hamburger. If I served that to my boyfriend he would kick me out of the trailer house.

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  12. All I can say is yumm. That burger loos fabulous!!

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  13. We have a restaurant chain in the Philippines that offers this type of burger with pineapple...it's aptly called Aloha Burger! Yum!

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  14. sounds amazing. I know this might sound weird (but not shocking coming from me), but I saw a burger in a magazine that looked similar to this but had the addition of a fried egg on top. It looked unbelievably good. I'm going to have to try this burger-pineapple combo

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  15. ohhh looks yummy! beautiful pics of the pineapple!

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  16. hmmm..i've never tried pineapple ring in my burger before, so definitely something to try :)

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  17. I swore after yesterday's heavy lunch that I will not eat a thing today....it is 9 am and I am ready to break that promise with this burger in mind.....I love pineapple on a burger!!!!!!

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  18. excellent sauce usage! the combination of sweet and crunchy pineapple and savory, soft burger sounds amazing. amazing, i say. :)

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  19. Mmm, pineapple!! :0D

    Happy Labor Day, Recipe Girl!!!

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  20. I'm always up for a good sauce, so glad to hear the good results. The burger looks delicious

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  21. Sounds good to me. Might have to make a run to Walmart today and have burgers tonight! What about grilling the pineapple, too?

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  22. Katrina... I actually forgot to mention that. Grilling the pineapple first would be a terrific idea!

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  23. I don't know what I think about cheddar and pineapple, but a good sauce can probably pull a lot of unlikely combos together. I'll have to keep my eye out for the stuff.

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  24. WOW what a fantastic looking burger!! I've never tried pineapple before on burgers but sure will now!!

    Rosie x

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  25. You're soo right, it's tough to beat a pineapple in the summer. The sweetness with the BBQ sauce, oh man I'm in heaven :)

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  26. Those burgers look super tasty! I really like the pineapple in them.

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  27. I reviewed Country Bobs a few months ago and really liked their product too. More importantly, I really liked their company philosophy. They seem like they have great values!
    Those burgers look tasty!

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  28. I found out about these burgers at a place called the Pour House in Boston.

    Easily one of my favorite burger varieties.

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  29. I love sauces like this from home-grown companies. I will pass if it looks all commercial and professional. But if it looks like Uncle Ed is making them in his backyard or basement, sign me up!

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  30. Oh man, that last photo is amazing! Makes my mouth water even at 5:30 AM!

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  31. My husband won't hardly eat a hamburger now without Country Bob's on it!! This version sounds amazing!

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  32. I used this recipe this weekend and it was a huge hit!

    I used Teriaki sauce instead of BBQ sauce though.

    Great recipe!

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