Best Hamburgers Diner Style Recipes

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HAMBURGERS (DINER STYLE)



Hamburgers (Diner Style) image

This is the traditional, griddled hamburger of diners and takeaway spots, smashed thin and cooked crisp on its edges. It is best to cook in a heavy, cast-iron skillet slicked with oil or fat, and not on a grill. For meat, ask a butcher for coarse-ground chuck steak, with at least a 20 percent fat content, or grind your own. Keep it in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook, and try not to handle it with your fingers - use an ice-cream scoop or spoon instead. Plop down a few ounces in the pan, smash it with a spatula, salt it, let it go crisp and flip. Add cheese and get your bun toasted. The process moves quickly.

Provided by Sam Sifton

Categories     weeknight, burgers, main course

Time 20m

Yield 4 to 8 servings

Number Of Ingredients 6

1/2 teaspoon neutral oil, like canola, or a pat of unsalted butter
2 pounds ground chuck, at least 20 percent fat
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
8 slices cheese (optional)
8 soft hamburger buns, lightly toasted
Lettuce leaves, sliced tomatoes and condiments, as desired

Steps:

  • Add oil or butter to a large cast-iron or stainless-steel skillet and place over medium heat. Gently divide ground beef into 8 small piles of around 4 ounces each, and even more gently gather them together into orbs that are about 2 inches in height. Do not form patties.
  • Increase heat under skillet to high. Put half the orbs into the skillet with plenty of distance between them and, using a stiff metal spatula, press down on each one to form a burger that is around 4 inches in diameter and about 1/2 inch thick. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Cook without moving until patties have achieved a deep, burnished crust, a little less than 2 minutes. Use the spatula to scrape free and carefully turn burgers over. If using cheese, lay slices on meat.
  • Continue to cook until meat is cooked through, approximately a minute or so longer. Remove burgers from skillet, place on buns and top as desired. Repeat process with remaining burgers. Serving two hamburgers on a single bun is not an outrageous option.

DINER-STYLE HAMBURGERS



Diner-Style Hamburgers image

Sometimes it's just not convenient to fire up a grill, whether you're out of propane or charcoal, it's pouring down rain, or whatever reason. That's OK: these burgers are best cooked "diner-style," on a hot griddle or in a skillet. But they're so good, you may find yourself making burgers indoors even when you COULD use the grill. A thin coat of mayo makes for perfectly toasted buns (the same trick works great for grilled cheese sandwiches, too.) Don't feel like hamburgers? Scale up the recipe a bit, and serve in a plate as "chopped steaks," topped with mushroom gravy.

Provided by Larry Cline @larrywcline-1309

Categories     Burgers

Number Of Ingredients 6

1 pound(s) ground chuck (80% lean)
1/2 cup(s) panko crumbs (regular bread crumbs won't work)
1/2 cup(s) grated cheddar cheese
1 package(s) beef-onion soup mix
4 hamburger buns
1-2 tablespoon(s) mayonnaise

Steps:

  • In a large bowl, combine the chilled ground chuck with the Panko crumbs, grated cheese, and onion soup mix, working it with your hands just until they're well-mixed.
  • Form into four patties about a half-inch thick. (Tip: pressing the center a little thinner helps prevent burgers from "balling up" as they cook.) Set aside while the buns are toasting.
  • Spread the cut sides of the buns with a very thin layer of mayonnaise, and place cut-sides down on a hot non-stick griddle or skillet for 20-30 seconds, just until they toast. Remove and set aside where they'll stay warm.
  • Now put the hamburger patties on the griddle, and cook over medium heat, flipping once, until they reach the desired degree of doneness. (These can handle being cooked to medium well or more without getting dry.) DO NOT PRESS ON THE PATTIES with the spatula as they cook; that just makes you lose the juiciness.
  • There's cheese in these already, but if you want more, top each patty with a slice of cheese in the last minute of cooking, sprinkle a tablespoon of water next to it, and then cover with a lid over so the steam will melt the cheese. Serve the hot burgers on the toasted buns with your favorite toppings.

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