Mike
would you like 7 shares of NXTL
or a burger?
Medium-rare, hold the foie gras
Hamburgers have gone upscale but the best are simple
By Michael Endelman, Globe Correspondent, 2/20/2002
Food writers across the country have been lavishing attention on the db Burger, a $27 hamburger served by the chef Daniel Boulud at his midtown New York restaurant, db Bistro Moderne. This gourmet take on the all-American classic is loaded with high-ticket ingredients like foie gras, black truffles, and red wine-braised short ribs.
Of course Manhattanites will pay extravagantly for dressed-up comfort food, but the popularity of Boulud's pricey staple illustrates a more important point: Hamburgers can dress up for dinner.
The reputation of America's most popular dish has been sullied by the fast food industry. Assembled correctly, a hamburger can be a decidedly adult meal. The compact combination of seared meat, sharp cheese, and cool condiments contained in a thick bun satisfies in a way few other meals can.
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Inspired by Boulud's fancy burger, and several impressive local examples, I set out to fashion a similarly exquisite burger at home. Very quickly I learned that hamburger recipes are like opinions about Dan Duquette: Everybody's got one. A handful of experts helped me synthesize the various recommendations and tactics into a single recipe. Forgoing the flamboyant tastes of Daniel Boulud, my perfect home-cooked burger takes a minimalist approach, with an emphasis on detail.
No great hamburger can be made without high-quality, flavorful beef. Unfortunately for the calorie-conscious cook, lean meat is forbidden. ''I think all the rage is the diet and lean meat, but it doesn't have a whole lot of flavor; it's like eating protein for the sake of protein,'' says John Dewar, the Newton-based butcher who supplies top-notch restaurants like Hamersley's Bistro and the Bristol Lounge at the Four Seasons, plus local burger palaces such as Mr. and Mrs. Bartley's Burger Cottage in Harvard Square.
''For a real flavorful burger, we supply a lot of restaurants with a ground Angus steer chuck,'' Dewar said. The combination of 82 percent lean meat and 18 percent fat, Dewar says, allows the burger to stay juicy, and not greasy, and to hold its form during cooking.
Ground beef should be handled with the reverence of sushi chefs, Dewar says.
''Don't buy any of that stuff in the plastic package with the `to-sell' date on it,'' he warns. ''Buy a piece of chuck steak or chuck roll and have them grind it to order for you. Then take it home and make it immediately; the flavor will be affected from sitting around.''
The forming of the patties should be a mindful task. Try to handle the meat as little as possible; pressing and playing with the meat will make it tough and rubbery. Bill Bartley, co-owner of Mr. and Mrs. Bartley's, urges cooks to avoid touching the meat with bare hands.
''The oils from your hands can affect the flavor of the burger, and the heat of your hands will also change the taste,'' he says. ''It's very slight, but it all adds up.'' Instead, the patties should be shaped gently, using wax paper or rubber gloves.
When it comes to flavoring, basic is best. ''It should be the simplest thing in the world,'' Bartley says. ''You can add all sorts of stuff to the meat, but then you've got meatloaf, not a burger.'' A sprinkle of salt and pepper on both sides of the patty helps to create a dark, crispy, salty crust that contrasts nicely with the soft interior.
Professional kitchens achieve this balance of crusty and tender by cooking burgers at extremely high temperatures, usually flipping the burger only once. While most people can't replicate a restaurant's exact cooking conditions (the Bristol Lounge uses an infra-red gas grill; Bartley's has a 600-degree flat grill), an approximation is a cast-iron skillet, brought to high temperature, using a little vegetable oil and butter.
Don't cover the burger as it cooks, says Ed Gannon, executive chef at the Four Seasons. ''That will cause it to steam, and the steam will drop into the pan and cool down the cooking temperature - you end up searing the bottom and steaming the top, which makes it tough.''
Pressing down on the burger with a spatula, however tempting, will also hurt the end result.
When buying the bun, opt against the prepackaged hamburger buns from the supermarket; these slightly sweet, chewy items usually fall apart after the first bite. The Bristol Lounge uses a thick, lightly toasted poppy seed bulkie roll, which maintains its shape throughout the meal and soaks up drippings. And since it's slightly bigger than the burger patty, it catches stray condiments after their inevitable shifting. I found a nearly identical roll in the bakery section of my neighborhood Shaw's.
Marion Cunningham, author of the revised ''Fannie Farmer Cookbook,'' stresses a neat, easy-to-eat burger. ''The perfect hamburger has to be assembled with some attention, you don't want everything falling out when you take a bite.'' To combat the shift and drift of condiments, Cunningham suggests chopping up onion and lettuce into chunks and then spreading them onto the bun with mayonnaise.
The perfect hamburger
Serves 4
11/2pounds freshly ground chuck steak
Salt and pepper to taste
1tablespoon butter
1teaspoon vegetable oil
Finely grated sharp cheddar cheese, optional
1/4head iceberg lettuce, chopped to small chunks
1/2of a red onion, diced
3tablespoons mayonnaise
4lightly toasted bulkie rolls
1tomato, sliced thin
1. Using wax paper or rubber gloves, divide the beef into four equal portions. Carefully form the portions into patties about 1 inch thick and 3 inches wide, without pressing hard or squeezing the meat too firmly. Sprinkle salt and fresh ground pepper onto both sides of the patty.
2. In a cast-iron skillet, bring the butter and vegetable oil up to a high heat. When the butter is completely melted and begins to foam, gently place the burger patties into the pan. Sear the first side until it's dark brown, then flip the patty to the other side. Flip to avoid burning until the burger is done to your liking, probably around 8 to 10 minutes. Be sure not to press down on the meat with the spatula, though it's tempting.
3. For cheeseburgers, sprinkle a tablespoon of grated sharp cheddar on top of the patty and place under the broiler for about 30 seconds. This, combined with the heat of the burger, will melt the cheese.
4. In a medium bowl, combine lettuce, onion, and mayonnaise. Spread on toasted bulkie rolls, add burgers. Serve with ketchup, mustard, and slices of tomato.
This story ran on page E1 of the Boston Globe on 2/20/2002.
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