Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders take a traditionally open-faced sandwich and turn it into an appetizer with turkey, tomatoes, homemade cheese sauce, and bacon. Try my Italian Sliders and Cuban Sliders for a couple of other flavorful appetizers.
Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders
A Kentucky Hot Brown is an open-faced sandwich made with turkey, bacon, and sometimes tomatoes, with a creamy Mornay (cheese) sauce that you have to eat with a fork. But, these sliders make this sandwich into a finger food that is as delicious as they are fun to eat.
Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders Recipe
There are three parts to these sliders–the cheese sauce, butter topping, and sliders.
Sliders
- King’s Hawaiian Rolls–If you are feeling motivated, make your own Hawaiian rolls for this recipe.
- Turkey breast–This is a great way to eat up leftover turkey. You could also use thick-cut deli turkey or make your own roasted turkey.
- Tomatoes
- Bacon–You can cook the bacon ahead of time for this recipe. I will let you know how to bake bacon to save on the mess and clean-up time!
How to Bake Bacon
This recipe calls for cooked and crumbled bacon. Set the oven temperature to 415°F and while it is preheating, lay the individual slices of bacon on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. (Yes, right on the pan! No rack needed.) They are perfectly crispy in 18-20 minutes. No flipping and easy cleanup! Then, when cool enough to touch, crumble the strips of bacon into little pieces. You can store cooked bacon for 4-5 days in the refrigerator.
How to Make the Cheese Sauce
I used white cheddar cheese (as opposed to Gruyere cheese used in a traditional Mornay sauce) for this creamy white cheese sauce. To make the sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan, whisk in flour and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until golden brown. Slowly add in milk, whisking constantly. Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and cook until thickened.
After the sauce has thickened, remove it from heat. Add the shredded white cheddar cheese and grated parmesan. Whisk it together until the cheese has melted. Set this aside as you prepare the butter topping and sliders.
How to Make Butter Topping
To make the butter topping, simply mix together the melted butter, garlic salt, parsley, and salt. Be ready to spread that all over the tops of the Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders after you put them together!
How to Make Sliders
It’s easy to put this appetizer or meal together. And, the garlic butter topping really adds flavor to the little sandwiches. To make the sliders, layer the bottoms of the rolls in a greased baking dish. Then, top the buns with turkey, tomato slices, cheese sauce, and crumbled bacon. Top it all with the tops of the rolls and magic ingredient–seasoned butter topping!
Cover the sliders with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes at 350°F, or until you notice the cheese is hot and bubbly. Take off the foil after the 15 minutes and let bake, uncovered, for another 5 minutes or so. The rolls should be golden brown. Get ready for everybody to grab one (or two or three)!
More Slider Recipes
Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders
Ingredients
Cheese Sauce
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup white cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
Butter Topping
- 1/4 cup butter, melted
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh parsley, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Sliders
- 1 package (12-count) King's Hawaiian Rolls
- 1 pound turkey breast, leftover or thickly sliced deli turkey
- 2 medium tomatoes, sliced
- 8-10 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
Instructions
Cheese Sauce
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Whisk in flour and cook until smooth and golden brown (1-2 minutes).
- Slowly add in milk, whisking constantly.
- Add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Continue cooking until thickened (3-5 minutes).
- Remove from heat and add the cheeses. Whisk until melted. Set aside.
Butter Topping
- In a small bowl, mix together the melted butter, garlic salt, parsley, and salt. Set aside.
Sliders
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Split the rolls in half, placing the bottom halves in the prepared baking dish.
- Top the buns with turkey, tomato slices, cheese sauce, and crumbled bacon.
- Place the tops of the buns on top and brush with the melted butter mixture.
- Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is hot and bubbly.
- Remove foil and bake an additional 5 minutes, or until the tops of the sliders turn golden brown.
- Remove from the oven, slice, and serve.
Did you make this recipe?
You can tag me at @iamhomesteader.
I want to make these ahead for my derby party. Will the sauce hold up if I make pans of sliders ahead and refrigerate to heat up the next day for the party? Just want to be sure the sauce doesn’t curdle/split/separate if made ahead and heated back up later!
Hi Heather – I haven’t made it that way so can’t speak about whether it will work or not. You could always make the sauce when you are making the sliders and then heat & assemble when you are ready the next day. 🙂
Y