This creation from Boston's Lower Depths Tap Room sounds ingenious:
The prospect of discovering the ultimate bacon cheeseburger is what first piqued my interest: beyond being topped with maple-smoked bacon, the steakhouse’s eight ounces of Angus chuck are actually mixed with bacon grease prior to cooking. The first thing you’ll notice, though, is the strong flavor of fresh garlic that’s also used to season the beef. Next come the combined tastes of mango salsa and habanero aïoli, which balance the garlic and charred beef with a striking mix of sweetness and heat. (Memo to UBurger: the Lower Depths really cooks burgers to order, and my medium-rare request produced a crisp exterior and a juicy, admirably pink heart.)
You had me at infused bacon grease. But what's with the garlic and the mango salsa aïoli? Gilding the lily, says me.
Adam, I was there the day after it opened but was short on cash, henced limited myself to the $1 Fenway Franks. I would be happy to write up a review for AHT, if you're interested. Keep an eye out.
I always do this. I started because it's often hard to get full-fat ground chuck at the market - lots of your bigger grocery stores (which I try to avoid but sometimes can't) and even butcher shops are stuck on lean versions. I knew I needed more fat in there to baste my burgers during cooking, and I remembered I'd seen an old food show on TV that claimed that you don't end up with an unhealthier final product when you cook with fatty ground beef because most of the fat is rendered out anyway, so I started folding a couple of tablespoons of bacon fat into my meat mix. I like the results...
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3 Comments:
Adam, I was there the day after it opened but was short on cash, henced limited myself to the $1 Fenway Franks. I would be happy to write up a review for AHT, if you're interested. Keep an eye out.
Hamburger Weekly Journalist at 5:56PM on 03/29/07
Weekly J: I'd love to see a review of this thing. How come I've never heard of this idea of infusing burger meat with bacon grease pre-cook? Genius!
Adam Kuban at 8:14PM on 03/30/07
I always do this. I started because it's often hard to get full-fat ground chuck at the market - lots of your bigger grocery stores (which I try to avoid but sometimes can't) and even butcher shops are stuck on lean versions. I knew I needed more fat in there to baste my burgers during cooking, and I remembered I'd seen an old food show on TV that claimed that you don't end up with an unhealthier final product when you cook with fatty ground beef because most of the fat is rendered out anyway, so I started folding a couple of tablespoons of bacon fat into my meat mix. I like the results...
Hamburger Andy at 8:12PM on 04/18/07