Every Good Burger Deserves...

...fries???

...kimchi???

...garlic herb butter???

...French onions???

...candied bacon???

...a hungry mouth???

...all of the above???

You may know that inspiration for the hamburger did not originate in the United States, but rather in Hamburg, Germany, even though the hamburger itself actually came much later. But here are some statistics that you may not know.

1. Americans alone eat more than 50 billion hamburgers a year!

2. Worldwide, McDonald's sells 75 hamburgers per second!

3. May is Hamburger Month, and May 28 is Hamburger Day!

I recently celebrated Hamburger Month with a few new recipes of my own, starting with these phenomenal Korean-Inspired Kimchi Smash Burgers. It was love at first bite and since I am currently in South Korea, it seemed appropriate timing for posting this recipe.

For the burgers, I combined two pounds of meatloaf mixture (ground beef, pork, and veal, but you can use any ground meat you prefer) with one half cup each of diced onions, brown sugar and soy sauce, two teaspoons each of sesame oil and gochugaru (Korean chili powder), one tablespoon grated fresh ginger, and three minced garlic cloves.

Next, I divided the mixture into eight (one quarter pound) portions and rolled into balls. I also made a sauce by combining one quarter cup kewpie mayonnaise with one tablespoon gochujang.

I preheated my griddle, melted butter, and toasted the brioche buns.

I added the burgers, immediately smashed them using a burger press and sprinkled them with salt. I cooked for 4 minutes per side, until a nice crust had formed, flipped, and sprinkled the other side with salt.

Two slices of cheese per patty - any type you like! I prefer American because of how well it melts, but I also used cheddar on several.

To build the burgers, I started by slathering all of the buns with the mayonnaise mixture...

...followed by lettuce, one burger, and fresh kimchi....

...and finally, the second burger and more kimchi.

Why would anyone not want to immediately eat these???

And as if that burger was not good enough, check out these Garlic Herb Stuffed French Onion Burgers with Candied Bacon!

I started with the onions since they always take the longest. I sliced one large sweet onion and sautéed in a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil until they started to soften and caramelize, around 5 minutes.

I added around a quarter cup of beef broth and scraped the bits off the bottom of the skillet.

Next, I reduced the heat to low and added one minced garlic clove.

I let the onions cook for 20 minutes until they had fully caramelized. (Tip - if they start to burn, add a little more beef stock or water.) Finally, I added a tablespoon or two of balsamic vinegar, stirring to combine, and removed from the heat. While the onions cooked, I made the candied bacon by laying slices of bacon on a rimmed baking sheet, sprinkling lightly with brown sugar and black pepper, and baking at 350 degrees for around 20 minutes, checking around the 15 minute mark.

Next, I made the garlic herb butter by combining four tablespoons of room-temperature butter with two minced garlic cloves, fresh chopped herbs (parsley, thyme, rosemary, and chives or whatever you prefer), one teaspoon salt, and fresh black pepper. Once combined, I formed into a log using parchment paper, and popped it into the refrigerator.

For the burgers, I used one and half pounds of 80/20 ground beef and seasoned with salt, pepper, plus a few dashes of Worcestershire. I formed into three large patties. (You can also make them slightly smaller to get four burgers.)

I used my fingers to create a well in the center for a tablespoon of the garlic herb butter, and then formed the meat back into a patty, completely encasing the butter.

I thought these burgers deserved more than standard buns so I used onion rolls which I sliced and toasted with freshly shredded gruyere. I popped the sheet pan under the broiler for. few minutes until the cheese melted and the buns toasted.

I had a bit of herb butter remaining so I added it to the onions for even more flavor, but if you do not have any leftover herb butter, you can skip this step.

I seasoned both sides of the burgers with salt and popped them onto my preheated griddle (or grill), cooking for around 6 minutes per side for medium. Do not be tempted to press down on the burgers or they will lose their juice and potentially the garlic herb butter in the middle!

Once I flipped them, I added even more shredded gruyere and allowed it to melt.

To assemble, I placed a heaping mound of onions on top of the melted cheese on the buns...

...followed by the candied bacon.

A tomato slice with salt and pepper acts as a throne for the burger!

Mayo on the top bun never hurts!

The burger sits on its throne!

I topped with fresh arugula but you can use any green you like, or no greens at all!

Drooling yet?!?!

Look at the garlic butter ooze out of the middle! These burgers are phenomenal!

If you are going to make out-of-the-ordinary burgers you need out-of-the-ordinary fries to go along with them, right? Disco Fries are big in our neighboring state of New Jersey. Fries smothered in cheese sauce and gravy? Yes please! But I decided to amp things up by making a spicy cheese sauce and using tater tots instead of fries to create Spicy Disco Tots.

In a medium sauce pan, I combined one and a half cups heavy cream with three cups shredded white cheddar, three tablespoons gochujang, one teaspoon salt, and one quarter teaspoon black pepper. I cooked until the cheese had melted, stirring frequently until the sauce was combined and smooth. I set it aside and kept it warm.

For the gravy, I started with two tablespoons butter and flour, cooking until it became a light brown color. I then added one clove of grated garlic, two cups of beef stock, one teaspoon Worcestershire, and a pinch of salt and pepper. I cooked, stirring often, until the gravy thickened, then tasted for seasoning and set aside to keep warm.

I cooked a 32 ounce bag of frozen tater tots according to the package directions and placed a mound in each bowl. I topped with cheese sauce, gravy, a dollop of chili crisp, chopped parsley and scallions, and an orange wheel.

There is certainly nothing wrong with an ordinary burger and fries, but if you try any of the recipes in this post, I think you will agree that there is definitely a place for extraordinary as well!