First things first: All you need to pull off the comfort-food staple that is an egg-topped burger is a great cut of beef and a bun that’s not too sweet. Then grill or fry your burger and top it off with a fried egg and a funky cheese.

“I think the gooeyness of Gruyère is a solid match for a runny yolk,” says Ken Addington, executive chef at Brooklyn’s Five Leaves restaurant. But for a truly authentic dish, try Addington’s Five Leaves Burger, an Aussie-style version (after all, the Australians launched the egg-on-burger craze in the first place).

“The Aussies call it a burger with ‘the lot,’ which includes beet, pineapple, a fried egg, and sweet chili sauce,” says Addington, who likes his egg sunny-side up—the runnier the yolk, the better.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups seasoned rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1 tsp whole coriander seed
  • 1 tsp whole black peppercorns
  • 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • ½ tsp dry mustard
  • 2 heaping tsp fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into four ½-inch-thick rings
  • 1 tbsp hot sauce (we like DEA Harissa)
  • 4 tbsp mayonnaise
  • 1 lime (zest and juice)
  • 2 pounds ground beef chuck, preferably grass-fed, not too lean
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 4 tbsp (½ stick) unsalted butter
  • 4 ciabatta buns
  • 4 large eggs
  • 4 slices pickled beets

Directions

  1. In a medium saucepan, combine vinegar, honey coriander, peppercorns, olive oil, mustard, and ginger. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes.
  2. In a bowl, pour mixture over the pineapple slices, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight. Combine harissa, mayonnaise, and lime zest and juice in a bowl; set aside.
  3. Prepare medium-high grill or ridged grill pan. Remove pineapple from marinade and grill for 2 minutes per side.
  4. Season beef with salt and pepper and form into 4 burgers. Grill the burgers (cover only if using a gas grill), turning once. Cook about six minutes for medium rare.
  5. Melt 2 tbsp of butter. Lightly brush cut side of buns with it, and grill for 1 or 2 minutes. Spread harissa mayo on the grilled buns.
  6. In a non-stick pan, melt remaining 2 tbsp butter over medium-low heat. Break each egg into a small bowl and add them to the pan. Cook until whites are firm.
  7. Place burgers on buns and top each with a beet slice, pineapple slice, and sunny-side up egg.
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