This Sunday, the San Francisco 49'ers face off against the Kansas City Chiefs to see who will take home the win at the 54th Super Bowl. Your game day party will feature good friends, cold beer, and some heated discussion on who’s the better team to win. But there’s one thing we can all agree on: good food! This week we’re bringing you two different sliders that are guaranteed to be a hit no matter which team you’re going for.

Here’s what you’ll need:

San Francisco Sliders:

• 2 lbs 80/20 Ground beef
• 12 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 12 small slices Monterey Jack cheese
• 12 oz guacamole
• 6 oz pico de gallo
• 12 white slider buns

Kansas City Sliders:

• 2 lbs 80/20 ground beef
• 12 small slices cheddar cheese
• Jalapeño-cheddar sausage
• 1 white onion, diced
• Pickle slices
• 12 Sweet Hawaiian slider buns
• Barbecue sauce

The San Francisco Sliders:

San Francisco sits right by the sea and is known for its fresh seafood dishes. California is also known for its Mexican food like burritos filled with carne asada and guacamole. So, for theses sliders I wanted to highlight the fresh yet bold flavors of San Francisco. 

To season these ground beef patties, I used one of my favorite all-purpose rubs: Chupacabra by 2 Gringos. You can use any all-purpose rub on these sliders or even just salt and pepper. For the cheese, I went with Monterey Jack: it melts really well and goes great with the other flavors in this slider. Next, I went with a scoop of fresh guacamole and pico de gallo. You could make these homemade, but I find that when having a party, it helps to use things that will save you some time and stress. Most grocery stores in Texas carry fresh, pre-made guacamole and pico de gallo, but if you can’t find any in your area, I recommend making it yourself. 

Seafood and burgers don’t normally go together, but shrimp and steak are a classic surf and turf combination. So, to highlight the fresh seafood San Francisco is know for, we added 1 large grilled shrimp also seasoned with Chupacabra. Here on the Gulf Coast, large gulf shrimp are easily available, but if needed you could always use two small shrimp instead. Finally, for the buns I went with a regular white slider bun, toasted with a little butter.

The Kansas City Sliders:

Kansas City is home to some killer BBQ, so we wanted to emphasize that KC-style in these sliders. We brought the sweet, the heat, and the sour to top these beef sliders. 

To season these patties, I used Holy Gospel BBQ Rub by Meat Church since this is a BBQ style slider, but you can use any BBQ rub you want for this recipe or simply season with salt and pepper. For the heat, we went with some jalapeño-cheddar sausage. You could always use regular smoked sausage if you’re not big on heat, but the jalapeño-cheddar sausage gives you just enough heat without being too spicy. And since no burger is complete without cheese, we topped theses sliders with a slice of cheddar cheese to pair with the jalapeño-cheddar sausage.

Pickles and onion are classic when it comes to BBQ and burgers, so we added grilled onions and pickle slices for a little extra sweet, sour, and crunch. To house these juicy sliders, we went with a sweet Hawaiian slider bun. I toasted these buns with a little butter and smothered each side with sweet, tangy barbecue sauce. You can use any barbecue sauce you want for this recipe. All that matters is you do use some; it is a Kansas City slider after all!

The Process:

Portion the slider patties using a scale and measure 2.5 ounce balls. You may need more or less depending on the size of your bun. Next, shape the balls into patties that are slightly bigger than your bun because they will shrink during the cooking process. Season the patties with their designated seasoning

Peel and devein the shrimp. Season and put them on a skewer if you choose to grill these. If using a wooden skewer, make sure to soak it before using to prevent it from burning. Grill the diced onions in a pan until tender. You’ll want to make sure all the components are ready because the sliders cook fast.

To cook the sliders, I used my charcoal grill at about 400°F. I put the sausage, slider patties, and shrimp on at the same time, but put the sausage where the coals weren’t as hot for about 10 minutes. For the sliders, you want to get a good sear and char on each side and then move them away from the direct heat to finish cooking. I like to take these to an internal temperature of 160°F. These won’t take long to cook (about 15 minutes) so make sure to watch them closely. When they’re almost done, you can add the cheese and give it some time to melt. The shrimp will cook the fastest. You want to cook these until they get that light pink color and curl into the shape of a “C”.

This is optional, but I like to toast the buns in a pan with some butter. You can even go the extra step and brush the tops with melted butter to give them that glossy look. Once all the meat is cooked, you can assemble the sliders.

For the San Francisco sliders, place the patty on the bun and top with a scoop of guacamole, a spoon full of pico de gallo, and place a shrimp on top. For the Kansas City sliders, start by putting some BBQ sauce on both sides of the buns. Place the patty on the bottom bun and top with 1-2 slices of sausage. Place the pickles and onions on the top bun and put both sides together. These sliders will be a fan favorite at your Super Bowl party!