Place Your Bets on Derby Day Hot Browns

The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports is coming up this Saturday, May 6th! It’s the Kentucky Derby – an annual horse race held in Louisville, Kentucky at historic Churchill Downs. While I’ve never been to the Derby (though it’s on my bucket list), and admittedly know very little about horse racing, I’ve attended my fair share of Derby parties – lots of fun hats, mint julips, and great southern food like pimento cheese, fried chicken, and derby pie! One of the most classic Derby dishes is a Hot Brown. I’d never had one so I did some research to find out more about this Derby Day staple.

The Hot Brown is an open-faced hot turkey sandwich that originated at the Brown Hotel is Louisville, Kentucky in 1926. It was meant to satisfy the late-night hunger pangs of hungry dancers that were bored of the typical ham and eggs that would be served. The Hot Brown is actually a spin on Welsh rarebit which is hot cheese sauce over toasted bread (like an open faced grilled cheese, of sorts). The Hot Brown adds turkey, bacon, and tomato to the party, along with the Mornay sauce.

If you’re not familiar, Mornay sauce is a derivative of Bechamel, one of the five classic Mother Sauces – essentially, it’s Bechamel with cheese added (like when you make macaroni and cheese!) Personally, I think everything tastes better with cheese, so more Mornay please!

I figured that if the sandwich has lasted almost 100 years, it must be good and I wanted to try one! With an eight-week-old baby, I’m not getting out as much these days, so we’ll be watching the Derby at home this year, which means if I want a Hot Brown, I better figure out how to make one myself!

I made Hot Brown sliders for more of a party-centric handheld version of the dish. As usual, I always like to tweak things a bit, so after reading through the Hot Brown recipe of the Brown Hotel, I opted to used roasted turkey thighs, instead of breasts (because I like dark meat), and I added gruyere and parmesan in my Mornay instead of the Pecorino Romano they use in their recipe. For next time, I think I will candy the bacon and use sundried tomatoes for a less traditional twist. And if you wanted to save time, you could definitely use deli turkey – I’ve tried that too, just be sure to ask for it to be sliced thick.

Give these sliders a try for Derby day! I find that it’s always fun to try something new in the kitchen, plus you get the added bonus of practicing your sauce-making skills. Rest assured that kids and adults will enjoy these while watching the horses race by!

Hot Brown Sliders

Scroll down for a printable version of this recipe

Servings: 24 sliders

Prep time: 55 minutes

Inactive time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 55 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours

12 Hawaiian slider buns

2 turkey thighs

1/4 cup butter, room temperature

2 Tablespoons of your favorite spice blend, or chopped fresh herbs (thyme and rosemary work well)

1 onion, sliced

2 Roma tomatoes

6 slices of bacon, cooked and chopped

Mornay sauce (see recipe that follows)

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1/4 cup Gruyere cheese, grated

Parsley or scallions for garnish

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Mix butter and spices/herbs together.

3. Rub the butter mixture on the skin and under the skin of the turkey thighs.

4. Place the thighs in a baking dish, on top of your sliced onions, and roast for 45 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 165 degrees.

5. While the turkey cooks, make the Mornay sauce (recipe follows).

6. Allow the thighs to rest for 10 minutes before slicing into 1/4-inch thick bite size pieces.

7. Set the turkey aside.

8. Slice the slider rolls and place them cut side up baking dish (the bottoms and tops will all be bottoms).

9. Top the bun with turkey.

10. Spoon Mornay sauce over the turkey.

11. Sprinkle with Gruyere.

12. Broil for 5-10 minutes until golden brown.

13. Top with Parmesan cheese, sliced tomato, bacon, and parsley/scallions.

14. Place your bets and enjoy!

Mornay Sauce

1/4 cup butter

1/4  cup all-purpose flour

2 cups milk

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1/4 cup Gruyere cheese, grated

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Pinch of nutmeg

Salt and pepper to taste

2. Add flour and whisk into melted butter (use a flat whisk – come see us if you need one).

3. Cook for one minute to cook out the raw flour taste (you do not want color).

4. Add the milk, whisk for 3-5 minutes until the liquid thickens . It will be nappe (or coat the back of a spoon).

5. Add the cheeses and seasonings (you can skip the cayenne and garlic powder but I like them!). Whisk to incorporate.

6. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.

7. Leave on low heat if using quickly (you can loosen with more milk as needed).

While we don’t have a Derby Day class this year, we do have some excellent classes that you should check out this weekend:

• Hands-On Fiesta on the Grill Friday, May 5 6pm
• Hands-On Chocolate Boot Camp Saturday, May 6 10am (just 1 spot left!) 
• Flavor Dynamics Saturday, May 6 12pm

And if you can’t join us in person, we have some great virtual classes as well:

• Virtual Cocktails: Tequila 101 Friday, May 5 5pm CST
• Virtual Crispy Chicken Tortas Friday, May 5 6:30pm CST

And don’t be caught racing around for the perfect Mother’s Day gift – bring mom to a cooking class! We have space available Mother’s Day weekend for:

• Hands-On Pasta Workshop Friday, May 12 11:30am
• Hands-On Chocolate Boot Camp Saturday, May 13 10am
• Hands-On Know Your Gnocchi Saturday, May 13 11:30am
• Hands-On Family Night – Nashville Hot Chicken Saturday, May 13 6pm

Yield: 24 sliders

Author: Kate Schrager Augustin

Print

With ImageWithout Image

Hot Brown Sliders

Prep time: 55 MinCook time: 55 MinInactive time: 10 MinTotal time: 2 Hour

Ingredients

For the sliders

• 12 Hawaiian slider buns
• 2 turkey thighs
• 1/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 2 Tablespoons of your favorite spice blend, or chopped fresh herbs (thyme and rosemary work well)
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 Roma tomatoes
• 6 slices of bacon, cooked and chopped
• Mornay sauce (see recipe that follows)
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1/4 cup Gruyere cheese, grated
• Parsley or scallions for garnish

For the Mornay Sauce

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1/4 cup Gruyere cheese, grated
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• Pinch of nutmeg
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

For the sliders

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix butter and spices/herbs together.
3. Rub the butter mixture on the skin and under the skin of the turkey thighs.
4. Place the thighs in a baking dish, on top of your sliced onions, and roast for 45 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 165 degrees.
5. While the turkey cooks, make the Mornay sauce (recipe follows).
6. Allow the thighs to rest for 10 minutes before slicing into 1/4-inch thick bite size pieces.
7. Set the turkey aside.
8. Slice the slider rolls and place them cut side up baking dish (the bottoms and tops will all be bottoms).
9. Top the bun with turkey.
10. Spoon Mornay sauce over the turkey.
11. Sprinkle with Gruyere.
12. Broil for 5-10 minutes until golden brown.
13. Top with Parmesan cheese, sliced tomato, bacon, and parsley/scallions.
14. Place your bets and enjoy!

For the Mornay Sauce

1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan (I use a skillet for more surface area) over medium heat.
2. Add flour and whisk into melted butter (use a flat whisk – come see us if you need one).
3. Cook for one minute to cook out the raw flour taste (you do not want color).
4. Add the milk, whisk for 3-5 minutes until the liquid thickens . It will be nappe (or coat the back of a spoon).
5. Add the cheeses and seasonings (you can skip the cayenne and garlic powder but I like them!). Whisk to incorporate.
6. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
7. Leave on low heat if using quickly (you can loosen with more milk as needed).

https://www.thechoppingblock.com/blog/place-your-bets-on-derby-day-hot-browns