What makes a perfect burger?

This was around the time when burgers began to become burgers instead of a piece of chicken, bone and all, crushed between two big buns with a side of sauce or sauce and mayonnaise. 

Those were the burgers from a time before we knew burgers. Then, Wimpy, Euro Hut and La Bamba brought about new kinds of burgers, which were like the burgers we had in school except much better.

Fast forward to 2015 and now we have more options than we can choose from. From a complete gourmet experience to a street-side delicacy, burgers have now infiltrated every eating scene. But have we managed to produce the perfect burger? That is a question too hard to answer with ease. 

See, the perfect burger isn't one that comes with a step by step recipe. It can easily vary from person to person but certain elements remain fixed. It is the presence of these elements that make the burger perfect. Adding something extra, apart from them, can enhance or ruin a burger but the absence of these elements make a burger just not worth it. 

So, what are the key elements? The first, according to experts, is the meat to bun ratio. You cannot eat a burger where the meat is much more than the bun. Another unacceptable situation is when you run out of meat but there's more of the bun left. Thus, the first thing you need to look out for is balance. The balance is perhaps the most important feature of a burger. And it isn't only the balance between the bun and the meat but with most other ingredients as well. 

If the balance is right, then it is time to move onto the next thing: the bun. The bun should never outsize or even dominate the taste of the patty. The patty is the burger and its taste cannot be overwhelmed by anything else. The bun used can also not be too dry or too soggy because of the sauces used. 

The buns should be soft, plump and easy to chew. Some people swear by sesame seed buns and others do not. That choice is yours, but the others are not.  Toasting the bun is a good idea as that helps the bun retain its softness while also adding a sort of crispiness around the edges. The bun must of course be able to soak up the juices without crumbling and that is again an important aspect to consider. 

After the buns, comes the most important element of the burger which is the burger patty itself. This is the one thing that deserves the most attention. Without a good meat, a burger falls flat on its face. The chuck or briskets are good cuts to use for your patty but that really is up to whoever is serving you the burger. 

However, you can check if there is ample fat content. A burger should be either 40 percent fat and 60 percent meat or ideally 80 percent meat and 20 percent fat. Without the fat, the burger dries up and is hard to chew or even taste the flavours. Also, remember that it is good for the meat to cook in the grease from the fat. The grease works as a natural-flavouring agent and helps to make the burger taste meatier. If your burger does not taste like meat, then it is not a burger at all. And make sure the patty reaches the edge of the bun. 

Finally, we come to the sauces, veggies and the condiments. Lettuce, tomatoes and onions are crowd favourites, however it is important to use the ingredients with the right texture. For instance, the lettuce used should be crispy or crunchy. It cannot be a soggy, dead piece of betel leaf. The lettuce, in reality, doesn't add much to the flavour and using a soggy one kills the taste rather than enhances it. A crunchy onion and a little tomato again adds to the flavour. 

Pickles give the burger that extra zing and about using cheese, it is easy to compose a whole ballad. Top it all off with tomato sauce and even mustard and mayonnaise if you want. Served like that, short of the mushrooms, the bacon, the this and the that, you have the perfect burger with the most necessary elements. 

One of the biggest problems is the use of too many ingredients. A burger is not a sandwich. The focus should always be on the patty and how it tastes. The patty is the orchestra and the rest make up the symphony. And a symphony is irrelevant without an orchestra. The same thing applies to burger or it just did as I just applied it. Now that you know, go off looking for the perfect burger in down and look down upon those who don't know the rules.

Photo: Sazzad Ibne Sayed
Food prepared by Chef Dominic Gomes, Hotel Pan Pacific Sonargaon