A Better Burger

      A Better Burger

             By Giorgio Celmo

Hamburgers simply weren’t intended to be health food, so I came up with a recipe that I consider to be the ultimate cheese burger. I did this because good burgers are built from a more fat is better premise.

Not only doesn't lean ground beef hold together well on the grill, but it also tends to dry out and have less flavor than higher-fat varieties. Which is to say, that when building a better burger ,it’s best to simply accept that fat is good and leave dieting for tomorrow.

To construct a supremely flavorful burger, you'll want to stick with ground beef or chuck that is about 80-85 per cent lean. Of course, all that fat means there will be some shrinkage during cooking so don't be intimidated by the size of the raw patty.

Bacon is such a great accompaniment to burgers that it’s a must. But slapping a few slices of bacon on a burger didn’t do justice for me, I wanted more.

A better technique is to cook the bacon in a skillet or oven for less mess, then chop it up and add it to the raw beef. This method infuses the burger with a more uniform bacon flavor. Prepare the bacon ahead of time.

Being in the restaurant business; I was always tinkering with recipes. I found that putting things in the burger enhanced its flavor and increased the moisture content. I tried onions and found for myself that frying onions separately, just gave the burger more flavor.  

Another thing to consider don’t man handle the meat. The more squeezing and pressing the meat just makes the meat tougher. Incorporate the bacon and cheese into the meat using a light touch; use your hands or a large spoon, no mashing.  To form the patty; place a ball of meat into the palm of your hand, flatten to an equal thickness using your thumb to smooth the edges

You can use a food processor to dice the bacon, or some chopping with a knife will do just fine.

What you put on this better burger is up to you. But given all the fat involved, your heart probably would appreciate some lettuce and a few pickles and tomato slices.

Bacon Cheeseburger

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. Bacon

1 Small yellow onion, fry separate into rings or slice for raw

1 lb Ground beef or ground chuck 80-85 per cent lean)

 1/2 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp Freshly ground black pepper

1 cup Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add bacon and cook until crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Drain excess oil fry onions if you choose in this pan

Coat grill with oil or cooking spray. Preheat to medium-high.

Grill burgers for 4 to 5 minutes per side. Do not press burgers during cooking process.

Makes 4 burgers