Congratulations to Kristine Snyder of Kihei, Hawaii, for winning this year's "Build a Better Burger" contest presented by Sutter Home. Out of ten finalists, Snyder took the top prize of $50,000 (and won the People's Choice Beef Burger) for her Hawaii Da Kine Burgers—appropriately named since "da kine" means "the best" in Hawaiian pidgin. The patties contain beef, Portuguese sausage, papaya, and onion, and are topped with sweet-chili glaze, ginger-goat cheese spread, and hot watercress salad.
"It's not a fancy cheeseburger, but in its own way, it is absolutely perfect and unimprovable." The Herald Dispatch in Huntington, West Virginia shares the cheeseburger recipe from local favorite Jim's Steak & Spaghetti House.
Gourmet shares 12 of their best burger recipes accompanied by beautiful hunger-inducing burger photos. There's something for everyone—even a bulgur burger for vegetarians.
You need some burger recipes for summer grilling season? We've dug up some of our favorite burger recipes—from the classic burger to a Tex-Mex version to one that features blue cheese as its signature flavor. Whatever your taste, one of these four burgs should do you right. Happy grilling, meatheads!
The Classic Burger: Little more than a combination of chuck and sirloin seasoned generously with salt and pepper. Maybe topped with cheese, if you're going crazy
The Nobby Burger: A recipe for one of my favorite burgers in Portland, Oregon—the one from the Nob Hill Bar & Grill
The Tex-Mex Burger: For you folks who didn't get enough of Cinco de Mayo
Nick Solares, the guy who publishes Beef Aficionado, is on the same wavelength as I am: "Of all of the infinite varieties of hamburger I think that sliders are my favorite. There is just something about the little bombers that perfectly captures the happy confluence of beef, bun and cheese. The slider is reduction of the burger to its ideal form...."
I couldn't have said it better myself. Those words open a blog post in which Nick goes about trying to duplicate the sliders from White Manna in Hackensack, New Jersey, arguably one of the finest producers of these tiny, oniony hamburgers. Nick's recipe and technique can be found here.
This weekend's New York Times Magazine has a piece on James Beard, the "father of American gastronomy." It's a nice story that highlights why Beard was so influential and why he still matters after all these years. But best of all to my eyes was the burger recipe included with the article. I've never seen one that includes heavy cream in the beef mix, and I'm wondering what it will do. Hmm.
Posted by Matt Jacobs, January 21, 2008 at 3:00 PM
I am a rabid—as in foaming at the mouth—fan of Cook's Illustrated. While it can be pedantic at times, the magazine's quest for perfection reliably yields delicious, easy-to-reproduce recipes.
In a fit of curiosity, I signed up to test out recipes that may or may not appear in the magazine. You're given a recipe and asked to submit your thoughts on the results by a particular date. Typically, the time frame passes before I have a chance to try it out, so I toss the recipe. But when a recipe for the Ultimate Beef Burger came along—a West Coast–style burger no less—I held onto it after the window had closed and thought I'd share the results with you all instead. If you're like me, your quest for the perfect burger continues into your kitchen.
One of the beautiful things about burgerworld is that, despite the legion of fast-food and fast-casual chains out there, regional burger styles have managed to keep a foothold. I've talked before about the cheese-stuffed Jucy Lucy–style burgers in the Twin Cities and the butterburgers of Wisconsin, but today, I'd like to highlight pimento cheese burgers, a specialty in Columbia, South Carolina.
Prior to reading John T. Edge's book Hamburger & Fries, I'd only heard of pimento cheese being served, in the South, on stalks of celery or eaten as the filling of a sandwich. But Mr. Edge ferreted out these delicious-sounding burgers in the Palmetto State.
Here's a recipe, adapted from Mr. Edge's book, that you might want to try this weekend.
Follow along, step-by-step, in mind-numbing detail. If that's your bag. After the jump.
The takeaway: Since I've not had a true Jucy Lucy from Matt's Bar, I can't say for sure, but making this burger at home is almost more trouble than it's worth. I mean, does it matter if the cheese is on the inside as opposed to above and below the patty? (I think a slice on the top and bottom is awesome.) Furthermore, I always end up overcooking this thing in the interest of getting a good molten core. This is the second time I've made a round of Juicy Looseys, and I always end up cooking them beyond medium-rare. The Flickr pix of the Matt's Bar Jucy Lucys look much better than mine, so perhaps this is a burger best left to the pros.
Also: I've found that my initial adaptation of John T. Edge's recipe worked better for me. In his book, the recipe uses an intact slice of American cheese. In my version, which is based on George "Hamburger America" Motz's observations during a visit to Matt's Bar, I fold the cheese in half twice to make a compact little stack that's easier to sandwich between the dual patties.
So I've been making such a big deal about this Jucy Lucy burger at Matt's Bar in Minneapolis lately, eh?
I can't help it. The thing just sounds so good—a molten core of oozing cheese sandwiched between two patties. Well, since I'm not going to be on a plane bound for the Twin Cities anytime soon, I figure I'll try to make one. For the occasion, I've adapted a recipe from John T. Edge's book Hamburger & Fries. Lemme share it with you.
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 8, 2006 at 2:09 AM
From PRNewswire:
The winner of the 2006 White Castle Crave Time Cook Off has been crowned. Missy O'Malia of Columbus, Ohio, won the 15th annual White Castle recipe contest with her creative concoction, Enchiladas de White Castle Burgers y Queso.
Enchiladas de White Castle Burgers y Queso beat out nearly 350 entries received from across the country for this year's competition. The recipes were judged on the best use of ten White Castle hamburgers, originality, and taste. Missy will receive a Crave Case of 30 hamburgers every week for the next year for her creative use of the product.
Happy Cinco de Mayo, Hamburguesa Hombres and Hombrettes! Here's a recipe for a South of the Border–inspired burger, as adapted from the Better Homes & Gardens Grilling Cookbook. [Note: What makes this Cinc-nifico is the "Mexican Ketchup." Other than that, it's just the AHT Basic Grilled Burger Recipe. We didn't test the ketchup, so take it with a grain of sal, muchachos. — The Management]
CINCO DE MAYO HAMBURGUESAS Makes 4
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds 80 percent lean ground chuck
1 teaspoon table salt (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (or to taste)
4 buns*
8 slices American cheese
"Mexican Ketchup" (recipe follows)
Instructions 1. Prepare the grill: Light about 6 pounds charcoal. Preferably hardwood charcoal ignited in a starter chimney. Let coals burn until they're completely covered with a thin coating of light-gray ash, about 30 minutes. Spread coals evenly over grill bottom, place rack on grill, and heat until medium-hot (hand can be held 5 inches above grill surface for no more than 3 or 4 seconds).
2. While coals are firing, break up meat with hands in a medium bowl. Sprinkle salt and pepper over meat, and mix lightly with hands to distribute seasonings. Divide beef into 4 six-ounce portions. Gently toss one portion back and forth between hands to form loose ball. Lightly flatten into patty 3/4-inch thick and about 4 1/2-inches in diameter. Gently press center of patty down until about 1/2-inch thick, creating a slight depression in each patty; repeat with remaining portions of meat.
3. Grill patties, uncovered, without pressing down on them, until well-seared on first side, about 2 1/2 minutes. Flip burgers with a metal spatula (not tongs or a fork), and continue grilling—about 2 minutes for rare, 2 1/2 minutes for medium-rare, or 3 minutes for medium. If making cheeseburgers, add 2 cheese slices to each patty about a minute after flipping. Also about a minute before removing burgers, place buns on grill, face open, to toast.
4. Place burgers on bun bottom, divide "Mexican Ketchup" evenly among burgers, and apply top bun.
5. Mmm. MUY DELICIOSO!
MEXICAN KETCHUP Ingredients
1 cup chopped green onions
1/4 to 1/2 cup chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1 fresh jalapeño chile pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon snipped fresh oregano
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 cup ketchup (preferably Heinz)
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions 1. Place all ingredients except ketchup, vinegar, and olive oil in the bowl of a food processor, and process until combined.
2. Add ketchup, vinegar, and olive oil. Process until smooth.
There you have it. Why American cheese on a Mexican-inspired burger? Can't we all get along? It's the best cheese for burgers, dammit! Oh, and what's that indentation for in Step 2 of the burger recipe? I learned this trick from coworkers. The burger usually gets crisper and thinner at the ends due to fat loss during cooking. Making the ends thicker, therefore, leads to a more evenly shaped and evenly cooked patty.
"Recipe" is in quotes in the title because, really, it's more a hint than a full-blown recipe with amounts and, oh, I don't know, ALL the ingredients. But Harry Hawk, a partner at Schnäck, was kind enough to give me the following suggestions for AHT readers who want to create the restaurant's signature burger sauce at home.* Who can blame him? You think the Colonel's gonna give you his 11 herbs and spices? No. He's gonna give you seven or eight tops. So, many thanks to Harry.
SCHNÄCK SAUCE The basic elements of Schnäck Sauce are as follows; you should really experiment to make your own. Use a food processor or blender to mix/blend some of the following ...
High-quality mayo Seeded Dijion mustard (we use imported French) Chipotle Sweet relish Tomato product (use what you like) Other spices and seasonings ...
Again, thanks Harry.
* At least one AHT reader, Matt B., asked us if we knew how to make this stuff. Hope that helps, Matt. If you have a burning burger question you'd like answered, hit us up: grilltheeditors@ahamburgertoday.com
After the Super Bowl, we claimed we'd make a Roethlis-Burger if the Steelers won. Well, they won and we decided to follow through on our end of the bargain. Since we're so late, we decided to video the whole thing. It's not the exact recipe as the original from Peppi's, but we came as close as we could without seeing one in person.
The video is right here and the recipe is after the jump. Enjoy.
Update (3/22/06 3pm): AHT reader Aoife wonders in the comments why we were pressing down on the burger when that's something you typically don't do. That reminded us that we originally planned to show you this story and video about Peppi's Roethlis-burger, where the chef/owner is also seen chopping up and pressing on the burger. We talked about it at some point in the video, but it ended up on the cutting room floor. As this is the first AHT video, we have some learning to do. Hopefully they'll get better as time goes on.
Posted by Matt Jacobs, January 25, 2006 at 11:33 AM
One of my resolutions this year was to cook more. One of my Chanukah gifts was this hamburger cookbook by Rebecca Bent. Putting two and two together means a bunch more burger recipes for you cats.
The book has a ton of nutty and interesting recipes like a chili burger (the chili is in the burger) and a chocolate-encrusted cranberry burger, but I thought I'd start out simple and make Geoffrey Zakarian's Town Burger. Zackarian is the chef at Town in the Chambers Hotel, hence the name of the burger.
Typically, I'll just follow a recipe exactly since my knowledge in the kitchen is still relatively weak. But this time, Geoffrey's expectations for quality are a little overboard. Since I didn't feel like running around town for Wolferman's english muffins, I bring you the Poor Man's Town Burger.
After the jump you'll get the actual recipe, my modifications and some photos. If you want the Town burger without all the work, I suggest you visit the restaurant during brunch, which is the only time they serve the burger.
A few months back, Adam commanded that each of us read Hamburger & Fries: An American Story. Thank God he did, for I would never have tasted the sumptuous yet simple onion burger if he had not. The onion burger was (arguably) invented in Ardmore, Oklahoma at the Hamburger Inn by Ross Davis. Marty Hall of Sid's in El Reno, OK explains how it all began:
"He got it started," says Hall. "It was back in the twenties, back during the Depression. Onions were cheap then and hamburger meat was expensive. Same as it is now. But we were a lot poorer then. So Ross came up with this idea of adding onions to the burgers and smashing them into the meat with the back of his spatula. He called them Depression burgers and he'd smash a half-onion's worth of shreds into a five-cent burger..."
This is one of the few times I'm thankful for the Depression. The onion and the american cheese make it taste like a McDonald's burger, but in all of the good ways and none of the bad. I don't know about you, but that onion/cheese smell is what draws me back to Micky-D's every time. Enough talk. Here's the recipe for a great alternartive burger:
1 lb. ground chuck (fat is good)
2 onions, shaved (as thin as possible)
1 tsp salt
6 slices american cheese
6 buns
mustard
After the jump, we show you how to put it all together.
As you may have noticed, A Hamburger Today looooves White Castle. Unfortunately, none of us lives close enough to a Castle to enjoy a sackful of Slyders on a regular basis. Heck, Hamburglar Hadley, based in Los Angeles, is 1,800 miles from the nearest "eating house." Seeing as how many of our readers live outside the chain's limited area of coverage, we thought we'd experiment with a copycat recipe that can be made at home. I like to call these homemade sliders "Wite Kastle Klones."
After Googling "White Castle" copycat recipe and perusing the results, I decided to go with this one, despite the fact that it calls for 3 oz. of strained-beef baby food. (Yuck!)
The first step was assembling the ingredients (right), the hardest part of which was choosing an appropriate pickle chip—some were too thick for such a tiny burger, but I finally found an acceptable product. The weirdest ingredient in this recipe is strained-beef baby food; I followed the recipe as-is but will probably omit this component in future versions. I can't imagine it makes that much of a difference, and it just seems nasty. While you'd think finding buns for the sliders would be difficult, I knew from my trip to The Burger Joint that Martin's Potato Rolls would work perfectly. If you can't find these, try cutting hot-dog buns in thirds.
Alright, let's cut to the chase. Making hamburgers is pretty straightforward, and these just have a few added twists, namely mixing the beef with beef stock and the, ahem, baby food. Do this in a large bowl. It makes a sort of mushy mixture, but that's OK; it helps when you spread the beef out in a thin slab (above and right; click images to enlarge). I used a 10-by-14-inch rimmed baking sheet, which seemed to be the perfect size. Line the sheet with plastic wrap before transferring the beef mixture to it; this will help prevent sticking and aid in the spreading process. Use a spatula initially to flatten the meat (above left); then cover it with an additional sheet of plastic wrap, and use a rolling pin (above center) or your hands to spread the beef across the entire sheet (above right). Remove the top layer of plastic wrap, and use the spatula to make squares (right).
For most Americans, this weekend signifies the beginning of bbq season. For nutjobs like myself, bbq season never ends. To help celebrate, we'd like to help you learn to grill up the perfect burger. To do that, we've enlisted the help of Epicurious' burger school. Grillmasters Steven Raichlen, host of Barbecue University on PBS, and Chris Schlesinger, coauthor of The Thrill of the Grill and How To Cook Meat, are ready to walk us through the process.
Above all, you should avoid store-bought meat and get the freshly ground stuff from a local butcher. Our friends at Epicurious explain that it will cut back on any excess bacteria, allowing you to safely cook your burgers medium-rare, but I also think your local butcher will likely have better quality meat, which should always be your top concern. Here are a just a few of the points the burger experts have for us:
Any tips on forming the patties?
"Cold meat and cold, wet hands," says Raichlen. "Chill your hands under cold running water, then work as gently and quickly as possible so as not to bruise or heat the meat." Handling the meat delicately prevents the burgers from getting too dense and firm, and keeping it cold prevents the fat from melting, which would also make the burgers tougher. Both Schlesinger and Raichlen favor thick patties — at least one inch thick — so they can develop a seared crust on the outside while still staying pink on the inside.
What's the best way to cook burgers?
Start with a clean, oiled, hot grill. "First sear them over high heat to develop a crust, then move them to a cooler part of the grill to cook," says Schlesinger. "And be sure not to press down on them while cooking — this will only squeeze out the juices and dry them out." Neither he nor Raichlen recommends barbecue or steak sauces, which just cover up the flavor of a perfect burger. "I take a less-is-more approach," says Raichlen.
Here's to some good grilling! Also, if anyone out there has a fabulous recipe or an essential grilling technique, be sure to leave a comment or send us an email.
Is it pure coincidence or is it fate that May, the month in which AHT will make its official debut, happens to be National Hamburger Month?
It's probably a mixture of both, but there's no sense wasting time in pondering that, what with Memorial Day around the corner. Yes, the unofficial start of summer—and the grilling season— is upon us, so it was fitting that AHT senior editor Matty found this thread on Ask MetaFilter: Why are my hamburgers falling apart on the grill?
As is the case on Ask MetaFilter, an offshoot of the popular community blog MetaFilter, responses were abundant and helpful. The consensus seemed to be that the original poster was using too-lean beef. Respondents recommended going with 80 percent lean and established an upper limit of 85 percent lean. As "uncleozzy" said:
Agreed about the fat -- 85% lean is the absolute maximum you'll want for making hamburgers (I usually use 80%). Too little fat and your burgers will be dry, flavorless, and fall apart. You definitely do *not* need egg or breadcrumbs to make hamburgers. Those are for making meatloaf.
We wholeheartedly agree: Fat = juicy. And fillers distract from the taste of the beef.
On one of the handful of pleasant days we've had this spring, this reporter fired up the grill for the first time (see above photo). I used 80 percent lean beef, grilling my burgers to medium. Here is the recipe I follow:
As you may have noticed, A Hamburger Today looooves White Castle. Unfortunately, none of us lives close enough to a Castle to enjoy a sackful of Slyders on a regular basis. Heck, Hamburglar Hadley, based in 
For most Americans, this weekend signifies the beginning of bbq season. For nutjobs like myself, bbq season never ends. To help celebrate, we'd like to help you learn to grill up the perfect burger. To do that, we've enlisted the help of Epicurious' 
Is it pure coincidence or is it fate that May, the month in which AHT will make its official debut, happens to be 
