Now I get it. When you think a recipe by Fred, you would never think hamburger. The last time I ever made a burger was probably in college, where I made the patties too thick and almost unhinged my jaw attempting to bite into one. But I have learned a few tricks since then, namely since I was practicing with hamburg steak, and while a hamburg steak is not a traditional American hamburger, working with and shaping ground beef helped me better understand how it cooks. I also wanted to make burgers because I wanted to use my sourdough starter to make burger buns! Generally speaking, the thinner the patty, the better. The ground beef will shrink as it cooks, so if the patty is large and thin, there is a lot less shrinkage compared to if you tried to make a tall patty. And that is why I love the concept of a smash burger. Smash burgers consist of a patty that starts as a large ball of ground meat, and that is pressed against a scorching hot surface so that it is forcibly thinned out, and the patty gets really crispy at the edges, but still stays juicy in the middle. So I opted for that route instead of trying to pre-form my patties with a ring mold and dealing with the potential shrinkage, which happened to my failed burger patties I made back in college. The last thing I would want here is for my patty to be 1/5 the size of the bun, but fortunately here, it was almost a 1 to 1 ratio after going the smash burger route!

For the recipe, we have sourdough buns that have everything bagel seasoning, the burger mince, thinly sliced shallots, and pepperjack cheese. The buns are the most technical aspect of the dish, since making a dough of any kind, especially with sourdough starter, takes a lot of time. If you want to just use homemade buns, to skip time, you totally can. But in my case, this entire recipe came about because I wanted to make burger buns with my starter, so that’s what I did here. With the burger mince itself, I used a wagyu ground beef plus minced bacon, just to guarantee a juicy burger. When you are cooking a smash burger, it is important to be decisive and quick when pressing the patties down against a scorching hot pan, just so that the patties don’t get deformed and can stay somewhat round. I like using a metal spatula to do this, since almost everyone has a metal spatula in their kitchen. The cheese of choice for me was pepperjack; I love the mild sweetness of a Monterey jack, and the peppercorns add a nice spice and heat. It is a cheese with a lot of nice characteristics to it. I also used shallots instead of onions for my smash burgers, just because a raw shallot is mildly sweeter than a raw onion. Sans the bun, the rest of this recipe can literally be done in 10 minutes, so it can come together quickly once you get the buns made!

For the sourdough buns:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2oz sourdough starter
1/4 cup lukewarm water
1 tsp olive oil
a pinch of salt
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp everything bagel seasoning

In a bowl, mix together the flour, sourdough, lukewarm water, olive oil, salt, and sugar, kneading it into a smooth dough. Allow the dough to rest, covered, at room temperature for at least 2 hours, or until almost doubled in size. Then divide the dough into 4 portions, rolling each one into a smooth ball. Place each ball onto a lined sheet tray, in 4-inch ring molds. Allow the dough balls to rest at room temperature, covered, for another hour. Then brush the tops of the rolls with beaten egg yolk and sprinkle on top the everything bagel seasoning.

Bake the dough balls at 375 degrees F for 25 minutes. Allow the buns to fully cool before cutting them in half horizontally. Prior to assembly, toast the buns, either in the oven or in a pan.

For the burger mince:
15oz ground beef
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1oz finely minced raw bacon

In a bowl, mix everything together until combined. Divide the mixture into 4 balls. Keep these chilled prior to cooking.

For garnish:
Burger mince balls
1 shallot, peeled and thinly sliced
4 slices pepperjack cheese

Heat a nonstick or cast iron pan on high for at least 3 minutes. Then add a small amount of canola oil. One to two at a time(depending on the size of your pan), smash one of the burger mince balls using a spatula against the surface of the pan, allowing it to sear while flattened on the pan for 2-3 minutes. Flip the patty then add on a few slivers of the thinly sliced shallot and a slice of the cheese, allowing the burger to cook on the other side for another 2 minutes before transferring to the bun.