Bun appetit

Attention all pressers, squeezers and smashers: Drop your spatulas and slowly back away from the grill. Pressing the heck out of a hamburger is hereby declared a major culinary crime during Akron's summer of hamburger love.

In the next few weeks, Akron will become the epicenter of hamburger happenings as the national media arrive to cover hamburger-eating contests, hamburger-making contests and hamburger trials to determine where the iconic American sandwich was invented.

Of course, we all know it was invented in the mid-1880s by native sons Charles and Frank Menches, who used ground beef when they ran out of pork sausage for the sandwiches they sold at fairs. Still, cities in Connecticut, Texas and Wisconsin plan to send delegations to dispute that fact during the first National Hamburger Festival Aug. 12 and 13. While the argument rages and the cameras roll (the Food Network will be here, and maybe the Today show), we must put our best hamburgers forward. So no pressing, squeezing or smashing this summer.

``If you own one of those hamburger presses, throw it away,'' advises Don Mauer of Raleigh, N.C., who claims to be neutral on the origin question, yet volunteered to help prep Akron grillers for the big showdown. Mauer is author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Grilling. He is so serious about hamburgers that he grinds his own meat and bakes his own buns.

You may want to, too, if you plan to enter the Beacon Journal Best Hamburger Contest. (See entry details on Page E2.) Or you could go to all that trouble for the mere pleasure of tasting the best hamburger of your life.

Mauer knows that not many cooks will haul out the meat grinder, so he provided tips that can improve any hamburger. His most important advice is to handle the ground meat gently to avoid compacting it and making it tough. Gently mix seasonings into the raw ground beef with a fork. Never mix and squish the meat with your hands, he said.

The meat should be seasoned with salt and pepper before you mix it, not after the patties are shaped, in order to distribute the seasonings throughout the burger. Form the seasoned meat into patties as gently as possible. Press just enough to hold the meat together.

Don't press the cooking burgers with a spatula. ``Not ever,'' Mauer said. ``Even I want to do it. I want to press them. But by doing that you are literally squeezing the moisture right out of that burger.''

Mauer swears by fresh-ground chuck with a ratio of 20 percent fat to 80 percent lean. He buys roasts, trims off the fat and weighs the meat and fat to get the right proportions before grinding them together.

If buying already-ground beef, look for 80-percent lean ground chuck. Make sure the label specifies ``chuck,'' which has lots of flavor, he said. Ground meat that is 20 percent fat, but that doesn't have ``chuck'' on the label, could be made from a different cut.

Burgers taste best when grilled over a charcoal fire, Mauer said. He recommends a two-level fire of hot coals on one side and medium-hot coals on the other. The burgers are seared over the hot coals for two minutes on each side, then moved to the other side of the grill to finish cooking. Searing the meat does not seal in the juices, but it does produce a yummy, caramelized exterior.

Mauer uses an instant-read thermometer, stuck horizontally through the middle of a burger, to determine doneness. Health experts recommend cooking hamburgers to an internal temperature of 165 degrees to avoid the possibility of food-borne illness. Those who prefer medium-rare burgers and are willing to take a chance should cook the meat to 135 to 140 degrees.

Finally, don't skimp on the bun. Buy a good-quality bun from a bakery and toast the cut sides lightly on the grill before slipping in the perfectly cooked hamburger. Aaaah.

``I think you're going to have one dynamite hamburger,'' Mauer said.

Although Mauer prefers seasoning his hamburgers only with a bit of salt and pepper, he shared a recipe for Outside In Cheeseburgers, in which the cheese is shredded and mixed all through the hamburger. That way, you don't lose cheese from drips down the side, and there's cheese in every bite, he said.

Start practicing at your July Fourth cookout, and by the time the Hamburger Festival rolls around, Akron will be a city of burger perfection. Those pretenders in New Haven, Conn.; Athens, Texas; and Seymour, Wis., won't stand a chance.

``One of my goals is to (make) Northeast Ohio and Akron the hamburger capital of the world,'' said Drew Cerza, the Buffalo, N.Y., promoter who put that city's chicken wing festival on the map and will run the Akron festival.

Ah, Drew. We already are.

OUTSIDE IN CHEESEBURGERS

2 ¼ lbs. ground chuck or 80 percent lean ground beef
1 ½ cups grated mild Cheddar cheese
1 ½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. fresh-ground pepper
6 good-quality hamburger buns
Ketchup, mustard, pickles, onion, tomato, lettuce, mayo

Build a fire in a charcoal grill with 6 quarts briquettes. When hot, arrange the briquettes for a 2-level fire by placing a pile of briquettes on one side and a single layer on the other. If using a gas grill, preheat burners, and turn one side to high heat and the other side to medium heat.

While the grill heats, place ground chuck, cheese, salt and pepper in a bowl. With clean hands or a fork, lightly mix cheese and seasonings into the meat. Gently shape into 6 patties ½ to ¾-inch thick; be careful not to press the meat too hard.

On the charcoal grill, cook uncovered over high heat 1 to 2 minutes per side. Move to medium heat and grill uncovered for 9 to 10 minutes longer, turning every 2 minutes, until a meat thermometer inserted horizontally in the side of a patty registers 135 to 140 degrees for medium-rare or 165 for well done.

On a gas grill, cook over high heat for 1 to 2 minutes then over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes, covered, turning once.

Let patties rest 5 minutes off the grill while toasting the buns, cut sides down, over high heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Place patties on buns and top as desired. Makes 6 burgers.

From The Idiot's Guide to Grilling by Don Mauer.

BACON AND SMOKED-CHEESE BURGER

2 ¼ lbs. ground round, chuck or sirloin
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
Salt, fresh-ground peppe2
12 thin slices bacon
6 slices ( ½ inch thick) Vidalia onion
6 slices smoked mozzarella, ¼ inch thick

Preheat a gas grill to high. Divide the meat into 6 equal portions. Lightly wet your hands with cold water, then form each portion into a round patty 4 inches across and of even thickness. Wrap each patty with 2 strips of bacon perpendicular to each other.

Oil the grill grate. Brush one side of the patties and onion slices with butter. Place butter-sides down on the grill and cook uncovered until nicely browned, about 4 minutes. Brush the other side lightly with more melted butter and turn the patties and onion slices with a spatula. Continue grilling, uncovered, until cooked to taste, about 4 minutes for medium.

Brush the cut sides of the buns with the remaining melted butter and place, cut sides down, on the grill the last 2 minutes.

Place the burgers and onion slices on the buns. Top with the cheese. The heat of the burgers will melt the cheese. Makes 6 servings.

From The Barbecue Bible by Steven Raichlen.

ANCHO CHILE AND GUACAMOLE BURGER

8 strips bacon
Guacamole (recipe follows)
3 dried ancho chiles
2 tbsp oil
1 small red onion, minced
3 tbsp. minced garlic
4 green onions, green parts only, minced
1 tsp. salt
1 ½ lbs. groud round
4 flour tortillas

Cook bacon until crisp in a skillet and drain on paper towels. Set aside. Make guacamole and refrigerate until ready to use, or up to 4 hours.

Soak chiles in boiling water to cover for about 2 hours, or until they soften. Weigh the chiles down with a plate if necessary to fully submerge them. When soft, remove stems and seeds. Coarsely chop chiles. Saute in a skillet in 1 tablespoon of the oil with the onion, garlic and green onion tops until onions soften. Stir in salt.

Puree ¼ cup of the chile mixture with ¼ cup water in a food processor or blender, drizzling in more water if necessary until mixture is the consistency of ketchup.

Transfer remaining chile mixture to a bowl to cool. When cool, add ground beef and gently mix just until combined. Shape into 4 burgers about ¾-inch thick and 4 inches across. Make a ¼-inch dimple in the center of each burger with the tips of your three middle fingers.

Heat a cast-iron skillet over high heat until very hot. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil and tilt to spread it evenly over bottom of pan. Cook burgers uncovered for 5 minutes. Turn and cook 4 minutes longer for medium-rare, or as desired.

Serve each burger on a flour tortilla topped with guacamole, 2 strips of bacon and 2 tablespoons of the pureed chili mixture. Makes 4 burgers.

From Great Burgers by Bob Sloan.

GUACAMOLE

1 ripe avocado
2 tbsp. chopped red onion
2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 tbsp. minced garlic
salt to taste

Combine the avocado flesh and remaining ingredients in a bowl. Mash together with a potato masher or fork just until combined. Place plastic wrap directly on mixture and refrigerate up to 4 hours.

Beacon Journal 06282006 Bun appetit