I prefer the egg on my burger (and fried), not in it.
All this simple burger talk makes me think of this scene from Parks and Rec:
Egg on burger is also an awesome thing. cook over easy, and before putting the top bun on, cutting the egg in half with a knife to let the egg run all over the place.
To be fair, the list of things a fried egg isn’t amazing on is pretty small.
If an egg in a burger is an abomination, what does that make the “juicy lucy?”
I think I am going to finally pull this trigger this summer and get a Big Green Egg. Anyone here have one?
I heard nothing but amazing things. I have the classic large weber kettle grill.
It’s a chicago pizza. Delicious, but not the real thing.
Same deal with sliders, and thick bar burgers, and jersey style onion-burgers.
Sliders? Because they have onions in them?
Otherwise your list reminded me of a slider joint we had in town a decade ago (in reido we trust… ). I always enjoyed how pissed-off the cook got when people asked for no onions.
If you Americans call grills broilers and BBQs grills, what do you call “a BBQ”? An event?
No, because sliders are a very specific type of hamburger and not the platonic ideal I described above. Very small patties, with onions, usually onion juice, and tiny soft steamed buns with american cheese. Here’s St. Ozersky’s explanation, and here’s another article with pictures.
That’s a regionally delicate subject in the US. My friends from the south say that there is no such thing as a “BBQ grill” because barbecue can only be used to talk about a whole hog slow cooked (usually over 12 hours or more). Burgers and dogs over an outdoor grill is not considered BBQ for them (“That’s just grilling!”).
Typically if you go to a barbecue restaurant its slow roasted pork or beef that has been slow roasted for hours. It can also refer to the event where families will get together to share that kind of food.
But, as it does vary so much, many people in other areas of the US (like in the west coast) will continue to call grills BBQs and the events will be a BBQ party where nothing but burgers, dogs and side dishes will be served.
BBQ means low heat and wood smoke. Anyone saying differently is simply using incorrect nomenclature, like calling a squirrel a furry rat with a thick tail.
BBQ is one of very few uniquely American foods. It refers to something very specific.
I had a Weber gas grill because it had direct gas connect (never had to refill a propane bottle) and I could fire it up and have things cooking within minutes. The bad thing on gas grills is that you lose a certain amount of flavor. Now I have a wood pellet grill - it’s still indirect heat, like the Weber, but the wood smoke really makes everything more flavorful. Just wish I bought a larger one.
Nice! Pellet grills are awesome! All the flavor of real BBQ and next to zero effort.
BBQ is a food, the object with which that food is cooked (also, sometimes, a pit), and also an outdoor party where that food may be eaten.
More frequently, the things eaten AT a BBQ are cooked on something else (a grill).
A broiler is a kind of chicken. You can barbeque a broiler.
I’ve got the large. Between the money and the size, it’s kind of a commitment. I don’t use mine much at the moment, though, because my wife and children are currently in pescetarian mode, the bastards.
How thick does the burger have to be to qualify as a “thick bar burger”? Because this is my favorite burger, and it does look a bit thick. My option is, if a burger like that isn’t a burger to you, then you can keep your purity. I have one of these every few months, and the blend of meat in this burger (shoulder or chuck or brisket) + (short rib or hangar steak scraps) + (sirloin tips or another highly marbled cut) + bone marrow + suet, makes for an exceptionally meaty experience.
That is definitely a bar burger. Too thick to be a classic purist burger. Looks tasty, though.
I may have posted this in another thread. Just after I built it. Charcoal on right, gas on left. It has served me well in the last… year and a half I think?
Edit: Just about a year, by the timestamp.
While I won’t really get into the burger discussion (I grind my own) I will discuss one or two things that work well for me.
-
Chimney starter. If you have a chimney starter and you have issues with charcoal burnout/time issues there is a pretty simple fix. Put fresh coals down first. Then place the already started coals over them. This will essentially double the cooking time. This works great for indirect cooking. The problem with chimney starters is that a lot of the heat goes to half burning the charcoal in the starter. Then you can always do it again. Assuming you have a place for the starter to “warm up”.
-
What Stusser says is very true. Using non-briquette charcoal is cool and leet, but the average person doesn’t realize how fast the suckers burn. Use the above idea or stick with the tried and true Kingsford (non-matchlight) until you get it right.