Building The Perfect Burger 🍔

[SheilaAnn]

Some of us were talking earlier about what is the best way to build a burger. I did not want to hijack SUWYC for this discussion. I have almost 10 years of corporate training (same company) under my belt and this is how I do it.

From the bottom up:

Bottom bun, toasted

Base sauce (mayo, mustard, etc) note I did not say ketchup 🤣
Veggies (shredded lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, etc)
Burger patty
Cheese of choice
Bacon (if using)
Specialty topping (if it’s a mushroom burger, mushrooms go here; if it’s a teriyaki burger, grilled pineapple goes here)
Specialty sauce (if it’s a teriyaki burger, sauce goes here)
Top bun, toasted

Same train of thought for grilled chicken, too.

WayneT hoovarmin Richard Chrz

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

If using avocado, mash it up so it doesn't shoot out like a slip n slide!

[Sid P]

Thanks, I’ll have to try this. I’ve been dumping everything on the patty for 50+ years, so I’m looking forward to a huge jump in burger quality without any extra work or expense. God I love this place!

[Billy Van]

Agree 100%! Been making burgers like you forever. Getting ready to grill some tonight on the Weber and gonna do it SheilaAnn's way.

[STEbbq]

This is what I try to do. It is important to understand the veggies underneath the burger usually prevent grease from soaking the bun through and causing the burger to fall apart.

[Bkhuna]

That's also dependent on the type of bun. Soft squishy white bread type buns are more apt to get grease laden than something a bit firmer. But a firmer bun my become more difficult to bite through.

The bun topic may need it's own thread.

[STEbbq]

Bkhuna Brioche . Fight me. 🤣

[SheilaAnn]

Ciabatta! Pretzel! Brioche!

[58limited]

Since I am basically a carnivore (green leafy veggies taste very bitter to me; I also don't like pickles) I skip the veggies and just put, from the bottom: bun, sauce (and good ketchup is OK, but not catsup), meat, cheese, specialty stuff like bacon and/or green chilies and/or onion straws and/or pulled pork and/or an egg, then more sauce and a top bun. Bun is toasted with butter.

[Billy Van]

Hey, what's the difference between ketchup and catsup? I thought it was only the spelling. BTW, love that '58 Buick!

[58limited]

The cat in catsup tastes gamey to me. The Buick is a cool car, turns heads wherever I drive it.

[Attjack]

I like your method. However, when it comes to pickles, I like them on the bottom right after the sauce and before the patty. I also like to dry them off a bit in case the juice somehow makes it through the protective mayo layer.

[Bkhuna]

The pattie to filler ratio in this illustration is way off.

[WayneT]

Thanks for posting this SheilaAnn . Reading this and seeing Attjack ‘s diagram makes a believer out of me. It’s not that I think the traditional ‘corporate way’ is always best, this just seems to make structural sense to me. If this isn’t already a sticky, maybe Huskee should give it consideration.

[Huskee]

Good idea, stickied.

[WillTravelForFood]

We've been flipping the burgers (WITH CHEESE) upside down as they come off the grill, so the bottom bun is immediately protected by the cheese.

We then put the top bun immediately onto the top of the (no-cheese-side) burger for transport.

This method prevents the cheese from coming off with the top bun when people grab a burger and open it up to apply condiments. Strictly a practical matter, with the bonus of no soggy bottom.

[WillTravelForFood]

SheilaAnn - if you make cheeseburgers but just place the patties onto a platter for later assembly, the dreaded CheeseLift(tm) is not an issue for you. But if you assemble meat+bun straight off the grill to the table, CheeseLift is a real problem.

[Bkhuna]

CheeseLift? Do we need a support group for that?

[WayneT]

Wow, this makes AHOALOS too. Time to go forth and buy more burger stuff.

[WillTravelForFood]

It's not a burger, but Burger King officially puts ketchup on their hot dogs

(they also put the patty directly on the bottom bun, per the photo)
(

[SheilaAnn]

That’s why I don’t eat Burger King…. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[FireMan]

You had me at "not say ketchup". 😍

[WayneT]

Ketchup and burgers. Mac n’ cheese. Apple pie and ice cream. Chocolate and bananas. They are all matches made in heaven. In fact, I think they are mentioned in the Fourteen Commandments.

[FireMan]

Nope, not fer me. HFCS mixed with CS, a sugar cocktail that feeds cancer. I’m workin rill hard at not doin that.

[JoeSousa]

The two main things I try to keep in mind are:

1. Have something on the bun to keep liquid from soaking in. This is usually mayonnaise or a mayonnaise based sauce. A piece of lettuce can work as well but I generally don't like lettuce on a burger.

2. Avoid two slippery things next to each other. So don't put the pickles right next to the tomatoes.

Lately I have been leaning towards simpler burgers. There is a time and a place for a bunch of toppings but it is also hard to beat a classic cheeseburger made as minimally as possible.

[Richard Chrz]

I avoid pickles all together, I generally add dill pickle chips. Admittedly not a fan of all the extra juice that comes with a pickle, on the burger, or even on the plate. But, I know I’m likely in the minority. I’ve likely been ordering burgers sans pickles for 35 years.

[SheilaAnn]

I hate pickles on a sandwich (warm pickles). My pickles are always on the side so they are still cold. I only mentioned pickles in the veggie section because people put pickles on burgers. Like jimmy buffet. 🤪🍔

[JoeSousa]

Richard Chrz I usually dry my pickle slices between some paper towels to get rid of as much juice as I can.

[Richard Chrz]

No culinary training, I just built mine by how I like to eat one. So, this is by no means the right way, just my "current" way. Likely will evolve.

My standard is Both top and bottom buns buttered and toasted (grilled). On the bottom bun apply mustard and mayo, it seems to help prevent a lot of the bun from getting soggy by burger goodness in turn helping the bun keep structure, then patty with cheese (this is often doubled), if I have access to good tomatoes, they are sliced and on the cheese, the cheese helps hold them, from there I top with chopped lettuce and purple onion. I find pushing down on the top bun to eat, holds the lettuce and onion in place, and when I take a bite, I’m not taking a leaf of lettuce, the tomato slices stays in place, and the mayo mustard just is good in each bite.

[FireMan]

Yeah it’s built!

[SheilaAnn]

Your burgers always look amazing!

[WayneT]

Richard needs a separate sticky topic on food presentation and picture composition. Always magazine worthy.

[Purc]

I make mine that way as well but when I eat any sandwich, I eat it upside down. I grab it right side up and turn it upside down as I start to eat it. Weird?? A friend of mine was head of marketing for a southern fast food hamburger chain and told me they layered a burger in a certain way so that your taste buds were involved in a certain order for the best flavor. But I messed the system up by turning the sandwich upside down. SheilaAnn does it matter or was I told a story?

[FireMan]

Whutta you think?

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

there are two popular chains who build an upside down burger that I'm aware of. While the tastebud science makes sense, I think you should build a burger like Sheila says but then eat it upside down not serve it that way. Then the juices have less time to soak the bun I eat so fast it doesn't matter and I do it very similar to how she said.

[SheilaAnn]

Purc I do not think you are wrong with the "science" of building a burger/sandwich. I remember I had a manager trainee and he goes on to explain how the tastebuds work with the fat in mayo, the acid in mustard or tomatoes, etc. it was fascinating.
ItsAllGoneToTheDogs at home or out, when my bottom bun gets, soggy, I flip it!

[FireMan]

It was no accident. I did cook the crispiest skin I have ever done on a yard bird, dang!
Apologize fer crashin a burger party.

[Richard Chrz]

Strange looking burger my friend, but I’d eat it!

[bbqLuv]

Now you are talking, Chicken Burger, no bun

[shify]

I’m a simple man.

Bun
Cheese
Burger
Bun

The ingredients for a salad are best left for the salad, not as a topping for a burger.