Why Au Jus Mix Belongs In Your Burger Patties

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Seasoning your ground beef is incredibly important for great burgers — in fact, it's absolutely necessary. Just some plain salt and pepper will go a long way in drawing out the meat's flavor, but other seasonings can really up your game. You could pick up some store-bought burger seasonings (our top pick comes from Fire & Smoke Society) or spice up your ground beef with taco seasoning. Alternatively, you could pick up a pack of au jus mix for an extra tasty grilling sesh.

Au jus mix is just a combination of seasonings used to make a dipping sauce, most often for French dip sandwiches (like those seen in our slow cooker French dip recipe). The exact ingredients vary depending on the recipe, but the mix generally features onion powder, garlic powder, beef bouillon powder, cornstarch, pepper, and parsley.

Instead of making au jus sauce for your burgers, just use the mix as seasoning. Not only does this keep prep simple, but it adds more flavor than just salt and pepper. The onion and garlic powder will add a savory touch, taking your burgers from flat to complex. The blend will also provide the warmth and taste of a classic Mississippi pot roast, which is also seasoned with au jus mix.

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If you want to try this hack for yourself, plenty of brands sell premade blends. The seasoning pros at McCormick make an au jus gravy mix, as do Lawry's, Knorr, and Kinder's. For the purpose of burger-making, you don't even need to follow the envelope's instructions since you're not making a sauce. Simply use it to season your patties like you'd use salt and pepper. You can also make an easy beef au jus recipe from home — in fact, you likely already have most of the ingredients in your kitchen.

You could also make the actual sauce to dip your burgers in for extra flavor. This will mimic a regular French dip sandwich, just with ground beef instead of deli meat. If you're looking for more ways to customize your burgers, try serving them with special toppings like grilled pineapple and teriyaki sauce for a brighter, sweeter bite. You could even skip the red meat all together and make sesame-seared ahi tuna burgers for a taste of the sea. Bun swaps also make for great burgers — try using a pretzel bun for a copycat Wendy's cheeseburger, or if you're feeling really creative, make buns from tater tots, like in our gravy-slathered poutine burger recipe.