Burger Wisdom and Lore: A REAL Bacon Burger, at last!

What do I mean by that? As the kids today might text each other: “Like everybody’s had a Bacon Burger, like millions of times, eh?” Not like the one I’m going to describe briefly in today’s post. and I have to say, it’s an improvement even on my standard two-meat masterpiece! Read on and be amazed. Better yet, make some and eat ’em!

Big, Juicy Bacon Burger - © htownchowdown.comThe new standard: A real Bacon Burger, with the Bacon incorporated in the patty.
Grilled Tomatoes and melted Cheese round out a masterpiece.

Okay… My standard burger for some time, now, has been a 5 oz. / 150 g / 1/3 pounder made up of the following ingredients…

For 6 nice burgers:

450 g Medium Ground Beef
450 g Ground Pork
1.5 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. freshly ground Black Pepper
1 tbsp. dried Parsley
1 tbsp. dried Basil
2 tsp. dried Thyme
2 tsp. dried Oregano
2 tsp. Worcestershire (if desired) OR 2 tsp. of Balsamic Vinegar
3 cloves fresh Garlic, finely chopped
1/3 cup fine dry Bread Crumbs
1/3 cup Milk

I know this sounds fussy and complicated, but it really isn’t. The patties go together in just a few minutes once you’ve done it a few times and committed the recipe to memory.

Just put all the ingredients – except the Bread Crumbs and milk –  into a large mixing bowl and mix well with your hands. Don’t use a food processor or a stand mixer; you’ll destroy the lovey texture of the ground meats and the the natural juices of the meat will all run out of the patty leaving it dense and heavy. Wear latex or plastic gloves for this to protect your manicure!

Once the meat mixture is nice and evenly blended, put the Milk and the Bread Crumbs into a measuring cup and stir well with a fork, until all the milk is sopped up by the Crumbs. Then add to the meat mixture and go at it gently with your hands again until it’s all evenly incorporated.

Divide the meat into six even portions and form into patties. I have a nifty ring mould set you can get at any cookware store for about ten dollars which is great for making burger patties of uniform density and thickness. That way, they all cook at the same rate and you can, with a little practice, easily gauge doneness of any given burger by the time it spends on the heat.

You can cook these burgers any way you want, on any grill or griddle or pan. You can also make up a bunch in advance (take advantage of Ground Beef specials at the supermarket!) and freeze them, separated by sheets of parchment or freezer paper, for use anytime.

So what’s with the heavenly Bacon Burger?

I’ll tell you what…

Just take my (fomrer) standard burger patty recipe and remove the Basil and Oregano. Add 250 g / 1/2 lb. of Smoked Bacon, diced into 1/4 in. / 1 cm pieces, and blend in with the other ingredients by hand as described above. And be sure to use the Worcester/Balsamico this time. Then go ahead with the bread Crumbs and Milk as usual.

Trust me… You’ve never had such a juicy burger before, nor as mouthwatering a burger, when it comes to the trademark Umami flavour that anything smoked brings to a dish.

Your stomach will love you for the rest of your life!

And… What better way to kick off Grilling Season?

~ Maggie J.