¼ # 80/20 ground beef ¼ teaspoon salt 1 bun 1 piece of cheddar cheese ¼ yellow onion, THINLY sliced Optional garnishes: dill pickles, iceberg lettuce, onions, ketchup, mustard, mayo
Method
Divide the ground beef into ¼ # pieces, one per person. Make a firm ball of beef and season each burger with ¼ teaspoon salt on all sides. Set aside. Warm two cast iron pans over medium heat/7 and add a couple drops of oil to the smaller pan for toasting the buns. Toast the buns on the pans by GENTLY pressing them into the warm oil. Toast until the surface is golden. Repeat with all buns. Transfer the toasted buns to a serving plate.
Increase the heat on the large pan to medium-high/8 and keep a careful eye on the pans. Sprinkle some water onto the pan, if it sizzles you are ready to smash your burgers.
Transfer 1-2 burger balls to the hot pans leaving a little space between each patty. The burgers should sizzle on contact — if they don't, remove beef and wait for the pan to heat up. Work in batches if necessary.
Place a piece of small parchment on the burger and press down to smash, using a small stainless bowl. Smash until pretty thin, this will ensure even cooking, fast cooking and nice crispy edges. Add the sliced onions if you want caramelized onions on your burger. You are ready to flip the burger when you see a dark brown sear on the underside. Flip! Cook for another 2 minutes or until you see a very thin red line of raw beef. ADD THE CHEESE, remove from the heat, COVER THE PAN with a cooking sheet, and give cheese about 2 min to melt.
Transfer the burger directly to the toasted buns and garnish with your favorite burger toppings.
