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Cooking With Fire | The Hamburger, Part 1

The history of the hamburger is a murky one…

Though most historians agree that the name originates from Hamburg, Germany, there are others who insist that it is Hamburg, New York, that gets credit for the name of this classic food.

There are no less than a dozen families that claim that their ancestors invented the hamburger, from Charlie Nagreen to Oscar Weber Bilby to Fletcher Davis -- and without written and documented proof these claims will likely never be resolved.

But there is one thing that we can all agree on, and that is that the hamburger, in all of its forms, is an amazing dish.

From the simple all-beef patty on a bun you’ll find at diners and fast food establishments around the country to dressed up variations that sometimes sell for hundreds of dollars, such as the $777 Kobe beef and Maine lobster burger sold at a Las Vegas casino, if there is a menu involved, you’ll likely find a burger on it.

But perhaps the greatest thing about the hamburger is its versatility. It can go from breakfast to dinner in a snap, and with a couple meat and ingredient substitutions the burger makes the fusion of different world cuisines easy.

From turkey burgers to tofu burgers to burgers served with donuts as buns, it is a remarkable vessel of culinary creativity.

On this episode of Cooking with Fire my co-host Chef Tom and I will dive deeper into the history of the hamburger and give you the recipe for one of our favorite fusion burgers: the lamb burger.

 

Lamb Burger with Green Harissa

For the burger:

  • 1 lb ground lamb
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/4 cup parsley, minced
  • smoked salt
  • black pepper

For the Green Harissa:

  • 3 poblanos
  • 2 jalapeños
  • 1/4 cup cilantro, minced
  • 1/4 cup parsley, minced
  • 2 tbsp green onions
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tbsp mint
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • smoked salt

To serve:

  • tomato, thin sliced
  • red onion, thin sliced
  • feta
  • pita/naan
  1. Preheat your grill for high heat (450ºF) grilling, set up with direct and indirect grilling zones. 
  2. Place the poblanos and jalapeños on the grill, over direct heat. Grill on all sides until blackened. Transfer to zip top bag. Steam in the bag for 20 minutes. Remove from the bag and cut off the stems. Scrape out the seeds and discard. Peel the skin and discard. Roughly dice the flesh.
  3. Combine the peppers and the remaining harissa ingredients, except the oil and salt, in a food processor. Process until smooth. While the processor is running, slowly drizzle in the oil. Taste and season with the smoked salt, as needed.
  4. Combine the ground lamb, garlic and 1/4 cup minced parsley in a bowl. Mix well by hand. Form into 3 equal sized patties. Season each patty with the smoked salt and fresh cracked black pepper.
  5. Grill the burgers over direct heat until nicely browned. Flip and repeat. Move to indirect heat and continue cooking until the internal temperature reaches 160ºF. 
  6. Cut your naan flatbread into burger sized wedges. To built the burger, place crumbled feta on the bottom “bun,” then a slice or two of tomato. Top the tomato with the burger patty, then the green harissa, thin sliced red onions and the top “bun.”
Josh Cary may be the eCommerce Director at All Things Barbecue during the day, but at night he takes on the mantle of an award-winning Pitmaster, who has cooked on the competition barbecue circuit under various team names including ATBBQ, Yoder Smokers and the Que Tang Clan.
All Things Barbecue Staff Chef Tom Jackson is a Kansas native, born and raised in Wichita. In 2008 he and his wife moved to Portland, Oregon, where he attended Oregon Culinary Institute. Tom studied both general culinary skills as well as baking and pastry while working as a cook in a variety of restaurants. After graduating from Oregon Culinary Institute he began working as a bread baker and pastry chef at the renowned Ken’s Artisan Bakery in northwest Portland. He spent more than four years honing his skills under James Beard Award winning chef and owner Ken Forkish. In that time he and his wife had their first child, and the draw of home and family grew stronger. Longtime friends of the Cary family, owners of All Things Barbecue, they returned to Kansas to help All Things Barbecue continue to excel in their cooking classes. Tom has been further developing and building cooking classes and private events at All Things Barbecue since March 2014.