Since there is a Steak Porn thread, there should be a Burger Porn one as well!
At Janella’s annual July 4th backyard BBQ in Philly:
KENJI-STYLE: Double ultra-smashed cheeseburger, with homemade brioche bun, homemade American-style melty cheese made with Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, homemade spicy dill pickles/carrots/peppers, and my “secret chipotle sauce” (everyone has to have their own secret sauce, right?), cooked outside on a Baking Steel griddle over gas.
Beef was as the June Burger “Rich Blend” from Flannery Beef (20% Prime chuck, 50% Prime short rib, 30% Rib Cap fat blend), marinaded for 3-day with Redboat Fish Sauce under vacuum.
Flannery custom burger blend 25% Prime Hanger 25% Prime Shirt Ribs 25% Dry Aged Steak Ends 25% Prime Brisket Fat blend and pepper jack cheese on Brioche bun with Black Pig Bacon, heirloom tomato, onion, lettuce, avocado and pickle. Smattering of mayo and ketchup.
As per Kenji’s ultra-smash burger recipe, I did 2 x 2 oz patties. But I think this Flannery blend must have been 25% fat, so a lot of the weight rendered out on my super hot Baking Steel. I think next time I might increase it to 2 x 3 oz.
I had a Craigie on Main burger yesterday (one of the most famous burgers in America), and I have to say mine was probably bettah! Spicy dill carrots and peppers really worked for some reason (I ran out of dill pickles, and didn’t want to run into the kitchen for more, so I tossed some carrots on it and voila!).
Actually, the best part was the melty cheese I made. Melted like American cheese, but tasted like Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, thanks to some molecular gastronomy. That was a lot of fun to make. Here’s the general recipe that can probably be adapted to any cheese:
Forgot to take a photo, but had a Flannery blend tonight and doused it in truffle zest, havarti, sauteed mushrooms, a light smear of mayo, on a potato bun. Was tremendous with my '04 Larcis Ducasse…perfectly cooked, with no brown edges other than the true exterior. I’ve let my steaks get to room temperature before cooking but not my burgers, until now, and it makes a beautiful patty. I’ll always get them at room temperature now before throwing on the grill!!!
This isn’t my photo but it’s the best burger I’ve had recently. It is the Vietnamese burger at Lumberyard Brewing in Flagstaff, AZ. Think banh mi meets burger. Delicious.
Although all these burgers look (and I’m sure taste) REALLY good, there is perhaps a 15% difference in quality between the burger at your local dive bar, and the most august, high end, hoity-toity burger out there. In other words, the baseline is already really high, and can’t be improved upon all that much.
At least locally, there is a trend where every restaurant, even reasonably high end ones, have to have a burger on the menu, and there’s an arms race to see how much fancy cheese, kobe blended beef, and brioche buns they can stack together. They’re all very good! I’m not giving you $14 for any of them.