Pineapple Teriyaki Sliders & Black & Blue Salads
Pineapple Teriyaki Sliders and Black & Blue Salads are on this week’s MTM menu in anticipation of Memorial Day weekend and to celebrate Beef Month! Big thanks to Kylie Trail for coming to see us today and bringing some of her favorite cuts of beef. I already buy ground Kentucky Cattlemen’s Beef at Kroger, but flat iron steak is going to be my new summer go-to cut of beef for its incredible flavor, ease of preparation, and reasonable price. Did you know it’s the second most tender cut of beef, after tenderloin?

Pineapple Teriyaki Sliders
Ingredients
- 12 slider buns, we used Hawaiian slider buns
- butter, softened, for toasting buns
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 cup teriyaki sauce, find the thicker sauce variety vs the thinner marinade
- 6 slices pepper jack cheese, quartered to make 24 small squares
- 1/2 fresh pineapple, thinly sliced
- 6 large leaves of romaine lettuce, cut into pieces to fit the slider buns
Instructions
- Heat a nonstick griddle over medium heat. Lightly spread the buns with butter and toast them. Spread each bun half with mayonnaise.
- Divide the ground beef into 12 two-ounce patties. Flatten each patty out to fit the size of your slider buns. Season each side with salt and pepper. Heat a cast iron or stainless steel skillet over high heat and cook the patties until nicely browned on each side and cooked to your desired doneness. Using a pastry brush, brush each patty with teriyaki sauce, then top with two small squares of cheese and brush with additional sauce. Melt the cheese, then transfer the patties to the prepared slider bun bottoms. Top with pineapple and lettuce and add the bun tops.

Black & Blue Salad
Ingredients
- 2 New York strip steaks, or 1 flat iron steak
- 2 tbsp blackening seasoning
- olive oil, for cooking
- 1 pint of grape tomatoes
- salt and pepper
- 8 cups chopped romaine lettuce or spring mix
- 1/2 red onion, shaved
- 1/2 English or 2 small Persian cucumbers, diced
- 1 large or 2 small avocados, diced
- 1 cup blue cheese, crumbled
- 1 cup French’s fried onions
- olive oil and balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat. Season the steak with the blackening seasoning on both sides. Add oil to the pan and sear the steak for 2 to 3 minutes on each side and continue to cook to your desired doneness. Set aside to rest, but keep the skillet on.
- Toss the tomatoes with a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper. Blister the tomatoes in the cast iron pan until they are caramelized and start to burst open.
- Assemble the salads (this amount should make 4 entree salads) by topping the romaine or spring mix with red onion, cucumber, avocado, and the blistered tomatoes. Slice the steak and divide it among the salads. Top with the blue cheese and fried onions. To dress, simply drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.