Some say the burger is the perfect food group.
So what’s it gonna be?
A hamburger? A cheeseburger?
Of course, you can add all sorts of other things, such as lettuce or tomato, or a smear of mustard or mayo.
Call it a "California" Burger.
It can be on a regular bun, or an onion roll, or even open-face, like a patty-melt.
You can have onions raw or grilled or fried or sauteed.
You can have ketchup or … not.
You can even put pickles on it.
But I think the essential difference lies in the addition or subtraction of cheese.
Whatever sort of cheese.
POLL CLOSED
Which sort of burger do you most often choose?
- Cheeseburger (with or without other stuff) (77%, 950 Votes)
- Hamburger (with or without other stuff) (23%, 279 Votes)
Total Voters: 1,229
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I already went on the ‘pickle poll’…but here goes:
I like a hamburger with pickles and ketchup….tomato if they have it.
I don’t mind what kind of bun I have it on…as long as it’s not mushy.
Listen Wimpy, I hope you are watching your cholesterol…never mind the hamburgers, eat your spinach! OR try a veggie burger, they can be delicious! We need you to live a looooooong time!
Ultimate Veggie Burger RecipeThese make great do-ahead meals, and you can store shaped, ready-to-cook patties in the refrigerator for a week’s worth of work lunches. Sprouted garbanzos are becoming more readily available, but if you can’t find them, canned or cooked garbanzos (chickpeas) will work great. Sprouting boosts their already fantastic nutritional value even more…
2 1/2 cups sprouted garbanzo beans (chickpeas) OR canned garbanzos, drained and rinsed
4 large eggs( use egg beaters substitute: 0% cholesterol
1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 onion, chopped
Grated zest of one large lemon
1 cup micro sprouts, chopped (try brocolli, onion, or alfalfa sprouts – optional)
1 cup toasted (whole-grain) bread crumbs
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (or clarified butter)
If you are using sprouted garbanzos, steam them until just tender, about 10 minutes. Most of you will be using canned beans, so jump right in and combine the garbanzos, eggs, and salt in a food processor. Puree until the mixture is the consistency of a very thick, slightly chunky hummus. Pour into a mixing bowl and stir in the cilantro, onion, zest, and sprouts. Add the breadcrumbs, stir, and let sit for a couple of minutes so the crumbs can absorb some of the moisture. At this point, you should have a moist mixture that you can easily form into twelve 1 1/2-inch-thick patties. I err on the moist side here, because it makes for a nicely textured burger. You can always add more bread crumbs a bit at a time to firm up the dough if need be. Conversely, a bit of water or more egg can be used to moisten the batter.
Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium low, add 4 patties, cover, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the bottoms begin to brown. Turn up the heat if there is no browning after 10 minutes. Flip the patties and cook the second side for 7 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the skillet and cool on a wire rack while you cook the remaining patties. Carefully cut each patty in half, insert your favorite fillings, and enjoy immediately.
Meat and dairy have all the right enemies, so naturally they go together. And you don’t live longer by not eating them. It just seems longer becaues you aren’t having any fun.
Every construction worker knows that the best burgers in the world are found in the dingiest gin mill you can find on your lunchbreak. Railroad tracks next to the building are ALWAYS a sign of a superior hamburber experience.
Has anyone here ever had Dyer’s burger fried in grease from 1912?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URM04TnbIr4
Long live the “He-man Barrelburger”, whose inventor, Lou Ballast, also invented the Cheeseburger. At one time, he lived in my parish.
I can haz?
Some one had to do it.
Fr. Z, how funny. Last night in my dream you were reviewing fast food restaurants for your blog and had your webcam set up to record the reviews. A fast seafood/crab place served you ground “crab” meat that resembled rice crispy treat squares, and you gave your honest assessment of the quality to the manager. Following an uncomfortable silence, he got up and walked away. [It’s as if you know me…. o{]:¬) ]
No cheese. Gotta draw the line somewhere on the colesterol. I kinda like a slice or two of green chili along with the “works”, particuplarly if a low-carb (no bun) burger is available.
This thread reminds me to swing by Le Tub. Has anyone ever had a great hamburger outside the USA?
Among my favorite gastronomic guilty pleasures are White Castles, those mini-burgers we call slyders here in the midwest. I like mine with jalapeno cheese, mustard, onions, pickle. Always accompanied by onion rings and red pop.
A great and important poll question. Apparently cheeseburgers are burgers in the extraordinary form.
(Can anyone tell me why McDonald’s does not offer bacon on its burgers?)
Baron, is this what you’re talking about?: http://icanhascheezburger.com/
Sorry, Father, but NOTHING beats a Philly Cheesesteak (wit). [Well… about half way there, perhaps. Did you notice the actual topic? Perhaps sometime I can have a poll about Pat’s or Geno’s…. with or without… etc.]
Knew of a place called “Steerburger” in California. 1/2 lb of meat AFTER cooking. I always felt I was taking my life into my own hands when I went there, both from the cholesterol and the clientele.
Gave up cheese as my new year’s resolution.
I’m still in a pickle about this.
“Some say the burger is the perfect food group.”
Fr. Z:
Eating a hamburger can be a healthy option if you know how to do it. I had been instructed in the Zone Diet when I lived in Mexico by the experts of the diet. The most unhealthy part of a hamburger is the bun, it is pure sugar. It is important to have a good portion of protein: 4 to 5 ounces of hamburger meat is good. Protein stimulates the hormone glucagon, which keeps insulin in check. In the Zone Diet they recommend eating only half a bun, or you can eat double meat. It has the same effect. The important thing is to keep the carbs in check. I like to eat my hamburger with two slices of Ezequiel bread, which is a sprouted whole grain bread. Two slices of of Ezequiel bread have only 28 grams of carbs and more importantly it is very low on the glycemic level, that is, the sugar will enter your body very slowly.
[Oh brother…. I dunno… Sour Grapes Award maybe? Just pick a burger preference and vote! ]
Never let it be known that anything from MacDonald’s ever passed these lips.
I do remember though waaaaaaaaaaaay back in the early 70s, that one could dine on a Burger King Whopper when it really did take two hands to hold it. It had real meat and it was equal to the amount of bun. That, with a side of fries and a diet Dr. Pepper came to $1.09 with tax.
Last time I tried a fast food hamburger, I handed it back in and got my money back. Soybean burgers and sawdust buns are not for me. Besides, vegetarianism is a sin.
I liked that Dyer’s video though. Is that the place where the cook’s armpit doubles as a burger press?
Well now, an important question at last!
Since the BSE scare way back when I have taken to eating the Fillet o Fish at McD’s and have got so I prefer it to the others. Exception is the mushroom double Swiss at Burger King, except that our branch doesn’t offer this culinary delight. Fie!!!
Most of the time when I eat burgers at all, it is during the summer and they are of my own making, thrown on the BBQ. I pack of ground round (being in the UK we have horrible Kilograms now and I don’t understand metric, so 1 pack will do) divided into four, shaped into thick patties. These are cooked and eaten with cheese, lettuce and tomato with mayo and ketchup as liked.
Eaten outside as part of a BBQ and with white wine and fruit juice spritzers, or European lager (cold).
Brrrr, it’s cold here, thinking about the Summer is making me nostalgic.
“Cheeseburgers are burgers in the Extroadinary Form” – LOL!!! good one!!!!
Oh yeah. Philly cheesesteak at Eve’s can’t be beat.
I voted for regular, because if I can put other things on it, I usually go for regular. If I cannot, almost always cheese.
When I was a kid, I had a speech impediment that prevented my saying the “er” sound properly. I didn’t grow out of this until middle school – definitely old enough to realize it was there, even if I couldn’t do anything about it. Thus, I was very self-conscious of saying words with the “er” sound, and so I stopped eating hamburgers for a number of years, when given a choice. If it was “Do you want a hamburger?” I could say “yes,” but if it was “do you want a hot dog or a hamburger?” (usually the choices), I always chose hotdogs, because they have no Rs. If, however, the option was “Do you want a hot dog, a hamburger, or a cheeseburger?” I could often say “cheese,” and get my point across without sounding too weird or betraying my speech impediment. Thus, I often ate cheeseburgers, but felt trapped into it, so now I like to have a regular hamburger and appreciate the fact that I can ask for it like a big girl.
In the pickle thread I suggested that people who put bread and butter pickles in tuna should just put dirt on bread… I see rob has taken my suggestion to heart. Chickpea burgers… the lunch menu of the beast.
Not that chickpeas don’t have their place but that place is next to the bacon bits and under the cheese in a salad.
Kobe beef cheeseburger – here endeth the lesson.
BEHOLD THE POWER OF CHEESE! :)
Cheeseburger. Always have been. Always will be.
Falafel (fried chickpea meal) are good. I just don’t really see them as a burger substitute. They’re their own thing.
If I have to…don’t really care for hamburgers that much.
But when I do, I like it loaded WITHOUT cheese.
Bacon cheeseburger on a toasted potato roll with lettuce, raw onion, mustard and Heinz ketchup. Also, french fries and a frosty mug of root beer or a chocolate milkshake with whipped cream.
@tertullian Never had a good burger outside of the US, but the best hot dog I have EVER had was at Bæjarins beztu pylsur in Iceland.
I voted for hamburger. I would vote for cheeseburger, but nobody uses good cheese. At home I like a slice of sharp cheddar or provolone on my burger. At restaurants, it seems they all use that awful American “cheese” food substitute*, the imitation Swiss, or worst of all “pepper jack”. Urk
*I spent many years working in restaurants, and remember very clearly that at the salad bar in one establishment we used “Pretend Brand Pre-Grated Imitation American Cheese Food Product.” I loved how they had to put the word “food” into the name, just to make sure you knew. Beware restaurant cheeses.
I vote for Bacon Cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato, DILL pickle with barbecue sauce and ranch dressing. (I got hooked on them when I ate at the airports every month.)
Homemade beats any other kind as well.
Whereas the Cheeseburger is most tasty; and
Whereas the Cheeseburger was not only invented in Denver, Colorado, but in the very neighborhood in which my grandparents lived; and
Whereas the Cheeseburger is politically incorrect,
Therefore be it resolved that the Cheeseburger is the most excellent of casual meals.
With grilled onions, a little mustard, maybe some bacon. Horseradish Cheddar, Provlolne, Gouda, Gruyere all make for great Cheeseburgers.
Down South, a hamburger’s traditional garnishes are mustard, pickle, and onion.
Personally I’m a “mustard only” man.
Cheese only gets in the way of the flavor of the meat.
TNCath: Last week I had a hankering for a hamburger with raw onion, dill pickle, and sharp mustard. A departure for me, but oh my!
BACON!!!!!!! A bacon cheeseburger with ketchup and mustard on a good ole hamburger bun (with or without sesame seeds)anyday of the week. But not on Friday–that’s cheese pizza day.
Use a finger to create a cavity in each handful of burger meat. Into this, pour some good quality Worcestershire sauce. Carefully, squeeze meat together over the cavity and gently roll out and flatten into a patty. Use Lowry\’s Seasoning salt to taste.
On the bun, butter and garlic powder.
When cooking, the Worcestershire sauce vaporizes though the meat.
No garnish necessary IMNSHO and NO (novus ordo) cheese. :-)
I voted “hamburger” because that is what I choose most often – lunch break at work when I do order a hamburger. I prefer the cheeseburger although it is not worth the extra cost or cholesterol on a regular basis.
At home, it is a different story. Cheeseburger all the way.
And Aelric is right, Worcestershire sauce makes an ordinary burger an extraordinary burger.
I should have added, toast the bun.
Cheeseburger all the way. Bacon, grilled onions, American cheese, a leaf of lettuce, a little bit of mayo and ketchup. Mmmmmmmm.
I noticed the topic, and I know my post was slightly off-topic, but let’s face it, good hamburger is what? Ground SIRLOIN! And that is what a real Philly Cheesesteak is! Hamburgers and Cheeseburgers are good, but nothing beats a Philly Cheesesteak!
Fr – here’s a wonderful Tortilla Soup for your followers – cheap and tasty !
Tortilla Soup
————-
1 tsp olive oil
1 chopped onion
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup frozen corn (no canned, please)
1 jalapeno, finely chopped, seeded or not
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp Worchestershire
1/2 tsp chili powder
2 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth
1 (14.5 oz) can diced peeled tomatoes
crushed tortilla chips
cilantro, handful, chopped
1 diced red onion
Heat oil in stock pot over med-high heat. Add onion and garlic, saute 2 min. Stir in next ingredients up to and including tomatoes. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30-60 min. At least 15 min before serving, add diced red onion and cilantro. Ladle soup into bowls and add crushed tortilla chips and sour cream as desired. Delicious and inexpensive. Serves 6
Why not start a recipe section so we can swap soup recipes ?
I actually only like ketchup on a hamburger, but just about everything else on my cheeseburger. No onions though. Yuck.
medium rare, sharp cheddar, chopped white onions, mustard and JALEPENOS!
Aelric- try substituting Pickapeppa for Worcestershire.
I like mine with lettuce and tomatoes,
Heinz 57 and french friend potatoes,
a big kosher pickle and a cold draft beer,
good God Almighty, which way do I steer?!
WWJO? Being a good Jew, Our Lord would have ordered His juicy burger with “no cheese”. Same for me.
Fr. Z: “Last week I had a hankering for a hamburger with raw onion, dill pickle, and sharp mustard. A departure for me, but oh my!”
Sorry, Father, I accidentally hit the Submit Comment button before commenting! You need to come try some of the great hamburgers of the South!
LOL
Ah Father you are a gourmand after my own heart.
Here is my recipe to share, and btw I think that would be really cool, we could call it something catchy like Fishy Fridays, and Savory Saturday. Each post could have a theme…like sweets or pickles or burgers hee hee hee someone stop me, I’m getting giddy with all this light hearted stuff.
BBQ meatloaf burgers
1 pound of extremely lean ground beef (otherwise it catches on fire)
1 pound extremely lean sausage like Jimmy Dean, note above warning lol.
1 package of stuffing bread cubes
2 eggs
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 t liquid smoke
1 t salt
1/4 t paprika
1/4 t ground mustard
1/4 t black pepper
1/8 t garlic powder or 1 minced clove of garlic
1 small onion finely diced.
few shots of hot sauce/cayenne pepper.
Mix all this up, form into patties and grill over med low heat, watch carefully to avoid pyrotechnics. Baste well with BBQ sauce and serve on the buns of your choice, with cheese of your choice. I use Monterrey Jack…and bacon.
It’s yummy.
OR if you are too lazy to make it into burgers, make it up in a cake pan, cover with BBQ sauce and bake at 350 for an hour or so. Slice and eat on buns mmmmm…..I know what’s for dinner!
I can’t stand most cheeses. Plus I’m lactose intolerant. However, I love cheeseburgers
and prefer either super mild cheddar or American “cheese” on mine. With lettuce, tomato,
onions, ketchup (Heinz 57), and sometimes sweet relish. NO PICKLES.
What does this mean “I’d pay you Tuesday”? I am mystified.
I’m not a cheeseburger connoisseur (not even a connoisseuse…) but I like them every now and then, homemade or McDonald’s.
Mary: What does this mean “I’d pay you Tuesday”? I am mystified.
I guess that date both of us.
This was a common phrase of a cartoon character of yesteryear.
It was the catch-phrase of the character Wimpy, from the Popeye cartoons.
Cheeseburger for sure – but don’t mess with it, just some lettuce and maybe one super thin tomato. Now, if you take me to MaidRight – a little park and dine chain in southern Wisconsin – then it’s going to be without cheese.
I think the actual phrase is “I’d gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.”
Fr.
I grew up in the town where the creator of Popeye was born.
By the way, have you heard of Penzey’s Spices? I made some burgers a few weeks ago using their “Tsardust Memories’ spice blend to create some Russian Cheeseburgers!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oz884EUAqi4
I always choose a cheeseburger, even though it is not kosher.
Cheeseburger. From Ray’s Hell Burger in Arlington (VA). At work yesterday a guy was talking about a hamburger where both the top and bottom buns were grilled cheese sandwiches. He probably meant this: http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2008/10/the-hamburger-fatty-melt-a-burger-with-two-grilled-cheese-sandwiches-as-its-bun.html I’m game.
Oooh yeah, cheeseburger with cheddar, tomato, fresh lettuce, and, about half of the time, bacon. My mouth is watering as we speak.
Cheeseburger (using cheddar cheese), bacon, onion (sometimes), mayo, ketchup, mustard. Who needs vegetables anyway?
Ever heard of the Double Bypass from the Vortex in Atlanta? It’s a double bacon cheeseburger with a fried egg on it. There’s also a place called Mulligan’s, that has since closed, that sold a burger called The Luther. It was a bacon cheeseburger, but instead of regular buns, they used Krispy Kreme doughnuts. It has since become legend, but it really did exist.
I’m not quite sure I understand the person who claims that the burger is healthier than the bun. Certainly, most buns aren’t too healthy, but not all are (we have whole-wheat buns). All the health experts I’ve ever heard have always said that you definately need far more carbohydrates than protein, as carbs don’t get stored as fat as much, and the average American gets too much protein. I’m not saying the burger can’t be healthy, but a big greasy thing can be.
That settled, I prefer a hamburger with mushrooms and onions; add some sliced potatoes and there’s few things that can beat it IMHO.
Easy problem to solve:
Angus burger patty grilled outside with cheese. Toast an onion bun while the burger cooks.
Onion
Dill chips
Tomato
Shredded Lettuce (optional)
Mustard
Seasoned Fries
Sam Adams–Ole Fizziwig Ale, Winter Lager, Cream Stout, etc.
Cholesterol? Ya gotta die of somethin’
I had a nice shaved steak and cheese today, but I was torn between that and a burger with bacon and cheese. Either one will raise the cholesterol!
You know.. aside from the enlightenment brought but this highly scientific poll, there are some really good burger ideas in this comments.
I see someone mentioned mushrooms on a burger. Shrooms with melted Swiss is good for a change. And big wedges of garlic dills on the side.
Lamburgers too are tasty but I don’t think it would take pickles.
No No No Never Heinz products. Theresa Heinz and husband…what was his first name, the Kerry guy? are both Abortionists. No Heinz products on Catholic hamburgers.
I’ve always been fond of the BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger with onion rings on it. But no lettuce, tomato, pickle, etc. for me! Just burger, cheese, bacon, BBQ sauce, and onion rings. It’s not healthy, but few foods surpass it in sheer deliciousness.
Res theologicae certe ternariae esse existimantur: culinariae tamen raro binariae sunt. Caseus viventibus ex animalibus semper fabricatur. Defuncta vitanda sunt. Istis ergo de tuis praescriptis culinariis mihi iudicandum non est. ;-)
Addendum: I now have a strong desire to run to Denny’s, but I have work to finish for class tomorrow. So just get a burger tomorrow, right? But it’s Friday! ARRGH!
Ahhh, I remember the “Popeye the Sailor Man” cartoons, Olive Oyl, Brutus, and of course…Whimpy! Whimpy loved hamburgers…”If you would give me a hamburger today, I’ll gladly pay you on Tuesday…”
My fav: Burger with raw onion, mustard, a spot of ketchup.
Eheu! Convertenda e sermone Ecclesiae in vernaculum suppeditare oblitus sum! Haec habetis:
[Oops! I forgot to give the translation from the Church’s language into the vernacular. Here it is:]
Theology is thought to be ternary; cuisine is rarely binary. Cheese is made from living animals. Dead one are to be avoided. So I can hardly judge the recipes you present.
OK, I can’t resist chiming in. The best burger I ever had was at Hal’s Fabulous Vegas Bar and Grill in Greenwood, Indiana. Ground sirloin, griled onions, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, and SHREDDED POT ROAST on a grilled bun. I know it is super cholesterol-laden, but it is SO good! (And they play Sinatra and Dino music in the background!)
In fact, my husband and I are going there for Valentine’s Day dinner, so I am going to watch my calories for the next two weeks!
This is how Aussies do it (although lacking beetroor, (and apparrently) fried egg):
http://www.beerandburger.info/wp-content/uploads/2006/10/oxford_beef_burger.jpg
I must here also confess a weakness for White Castles.
Roland de Chanson,
Interesting that of the animals we eat, cattle, chickens, and turkeys are herbivores. Seafood and pigs are omnivores.
Burgers! We don’t need no stinkin burgers!
Deme el taco, hombre.
Que le vaya bien, padre.
Roland,
I don’t see how eating something that’s still alive is better than eating something properly killed anyway.
Raw Milk is alive, in that it contains bacteria and enzymes. Pasteurized milk such as is legal to buy (here in the US) is KILLED or dead. So really, it’s the same thing, just a matter of prejudice of size of the animal.
The cheese (which has bacteria reintroduced to the pas. milk) is made “dead” too when you cook/heat it. So really you’re still eating dead animals, it’s just that the bacteria are smaller than say…a cow.
Bread, eggs, vinegar, mayonnaise, and almost everything we eat has bacteria in it and anytime heat or severe cold is applied, then you have dead animals in your food.
OOOOO! Thanks for the recipes one and all! I am trusting that your poll was about hommade burgers. At a fast food restaurant i usually leave off the cheese–considering it just extra fat. But at home it must have a slice nicely melted on the griddle and you can use such variety from pepper jack to a nice sharp cheddar… You of course must include some nice veggies to make the hamburger the perfect food. A large slice of sweet onion is essential or sauteed if the nice fresh sweet ones are out of season.
Next you must use quality mustard! Ketchup, And Sechler\’s Hungarian pepper relish(it is sweet and mild and delish!) is to die for on a burger!!! It is made in Ohio my family goes down and makes a pickle run a couple times a year. The next run i am ordering a case of this relish! you have to try it!
Here is Sechler\’s web site: http://www.gourmetpickles.com/pages/prices.html
My best hamburger recipe: I add finely chopped fresh mint, shallots, and deseeded jalapeno pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder to the raw meat. My husband raves about this and even my kids love them!
With apologies to any Kosher sensitivities, a ground sirloin patty, topped with melted Brie, a slice of beefsteak tomato and sauteed mushrooms on a toasted onion bagel is fabulous.
chopped onions in a hamburger. ugghhh. might as well add some fine gravel while you’re at it.
RBrown: White Castle is great! I forgot about them!
When you put more than seasoning in a burger, it ceases to be a burger and becomes a meatloaf.
Only the toppings should legitimately determine the various styles of hamburgers. Think about it.
‘Sides…there ain’t no ham in hamburger to begin with so this whole thing is bogus. :)
RBrown, I would say chickens and turkeys are omniivores, since they eat insects and worms as well as grains and grass. given the chance, that is.
Sad I missed the poll, but I would not have been able to vote in any case — I like burgers both ways! One of the tastiest treats of recent memory was an otherwise unadorned burger on a bun wearing a large dollop of homemade cherry jam.
(Yeh, it might sound weird at first, but you eat cranberry sauce with turkey and mint jelly with lamb, don’t you?)