Preheat your grill to medium high heat about 450-500 degrees.

Sauté bacon until lightly crisp. Remove bacon and place on paper towel. Add onion to pan and sauté until light brown. Remove onion and place on paper towel with bacon. Chop bacon into small pieces after it has cooled.

In a medium bowl, add meat, seasonings, barbecue sauce, onion and bacon. Mix well with clean hands.

Divide the meat into 5 even pieces. Grab each piece and roll into a ball then press down into a patty. Keep in mind that the meat will shrink a lot during cooking. As shown in picture, use your thumb to indent the middle of each burger to reduce shrinkage.

Cook burgers 2-3 minutes on the grill then flip. Cook for another 2-3 minutes then top each burger with cheese. Remove from grill and let rest in covered dish for 5 minutes.

Place on buns, add toppings and any additional dressings/sauces.

*The burger in this recipe is a great base for your slider. A wide variety of combinations of add-ons makes this recipe appealing to lots of different palates.

**Whiskey Caramelized Onions: Heat 1 tablespoon of each the oil and butter in a medium cast iron pan (or other heavy-bottomed pan) over medium-hight heat. Add the onions and a pinch of salt and stir to coat. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring every few minutes, until the onions are softened and golden brown, at least 20 minutes.