Northwest Indiana Style Smash Burger Recipes

Steps:

• Heat a griddle or large cast-iron skillet over medium heat for at least 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the mayonnaise, mustard and pickle brine in a small bowl. Combine the onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a separate small bowl. Set aside.
• Loosely form the beef into 4 balls; set aside. Working in batches, lightly brush the griddle with butter and toast the buns cut-side down until lightly browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
• Brush the griddle with more butter and add 1 ball of beef. Press firmly with 2 large crisscrossed metal spatulas for exactly 10 seconds, then gently remove the spatulas. Sprinkle the patties with some of the seasoning mixture and continue cooking, undisturbed, until well browned, 1 1/2to 2 minutes. (Start cooking another burger at this point.) Flip the patty, sprinkle with more of the seasoning mixture and top with 1 cheese slice. Continue cooking until the cheese is melted around the edges and the bottom of the burger is browned, about 1 more minute. Repeat with the remaining beef.
• Spread the mayonnaise mixture on the bun tops and add some ketchup. Serve the patties on the buns with the pickles, tomato, red onion and lettuce.

Steps:

• Place a 9-in. cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Meanwhile, gently shape beef into 4 balls, shaping just enough to keep together (do not compact). , Increase burner temperature to medium-high; add oil. Working in batches, add beef. With a heavy metal spatula, flatten to 1/4- to 1/2-in. thickness; sprinkle each with 1/8 teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook until edges start to brown, about 1-1/2 minutes. Turn burgers and sprinkle with additional 1/8 teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook until well browned and a thermometer reads at least 160°, 1 minute. Repeat with remaining beef., Serve burgers on buns with toppings as desired.

Steps:

• Set 2 burners to high and 2 burners to medium on a 36-inch Blackstone® Griddle Cooking Station and preheat for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, stir the ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard and chopped pickle in a small bowl and set aside. Stir the garlic powder, onion powder, 2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a separate small bowl. Set aside.
• Loosely form the beef into 8 balls; set aside. Working in batches, lightly brush butter onto the medium-heat side of the griddle and toast the buns cut-side down until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Flip and keep warm while you cook the burgers.
• Brush butter onto the high-heat side of the griddle and add the onions. Cook, tossing with a metal spatula occasionally, until starting to brown slightly, about 3 minutes. Divide the onions into 4 equal piles, spacing them a couple inches apart. Top each pile with 1 ball of beef. Smash each ball with the back of a spatula or a burger press until the patty is about 1/4 inch thick. Repeat with the remining 4 beef balls directly on the griddle. Season the patties with half the seasoning mixture and continue cooking, undisturbed, until well browned, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Flip the patties, sprinkle with the remaining seasoning mixture and top each plain patty with 1 cheese slice. Continue cooking until the cheese is melted around the edges and the bottoms of the patties are browned, about 1 more minute.
• Spread the ketchup mixture on the bun tops. Fill each bun with 1 onion patty, 1 plain patty, 1 tomato slice, 1 lettuce leaf and some of the onions, if any, that were left on the griddle.

Steps:

• Put the beef chunks on a baking sheet in a single layer, leaving 1/2 inch of space around each chunk. Freeze the meat until very firm and starting to harden around the edges but still pliable, 15 to 25 minutes.
• Place half of the meat in a food processor and pulse, stopping and redistributing the meat around the bowl as necessary to ensure even grinding, until coarsely ground, 10 to 15 one-second pulses. Transfer the meat back to the baking sheet, overturning the bowl and without directly touching the meat. Repeat the grinding process with the remaining meat. Spread the ground meat over the baking sheet and inspect carefully, discarding any long strands of gristle or large chunks of hard meat or fat.
• Heat a cast-iron skillet or large heavy griddle pan over high heat. Divide the meat into 6 portions, then form each into a large, thin patty with your hands; focus on loosely packed meat and a larger circumference than thickness. Season with salt and pepper.
• In 2 batches, cook the patties. Press them down once with a spatula as soon as you put them in the skillet. Do not smoosh them again. Cook until crusty brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip once and drape 2 pieces of cheese on top of each so it melts down the side while the other side cooks. Cook to the desired temperature.
• Set a nonstick pan over medium heat. Butter the pretzel buns and toast until golden brown, about 2 minutes.
• Arrange the burgers on the pretzel buns, top with pickled jalapenos and serve with a side of DijOli.
• Mix the mayonnaise, Dijon, stone-ground mustard, honey and garlic together in a small bowl. Season to taste.

Steps:

• Add oil or butter to a large cast-iron or stainless-steel skillet and place over medium heat. Gently divide ground beef into 8 small piles of around 4 ounces each, and even more gently gather them together into orbs that are about 2 inches in height. Do not form patties.
• Increase heat under skillet to high. Put half the orbs into the skillet with plenty of distance between them and, using a stiff metal spatula, press down on each one to form a burger that is around 4 inches in diameter and about 1/2 inch thick. Season with salt and pepper.
• Cook without moving until patties have achieved a deep, burnished crust, a little less than 2 minutes. Use the spatula to scrape free and carefully turn burgers over. If using cheese, lay slices on meat.
• Continue to cook until meat is cooked through, approximately a minute or so longer. Remove burgers from skillet, place on buns and top as desired. Repeat process with remaining burgers. Serving two hamburgers on a single bun is not an outrageous option.

Steps:

• For the burgers: Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat until very hot, at least 5 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of the oil to the pan and heat until almost smoking. Lightly salt and pepper both sides of the patties and add to the pan, being careful of splattering. Cook over medium-high heat for about 4 minutes or until patties are well browned and crisping up. Flip the burgers and smash down with your spatula until they are 1/4-inch thick. Top each patty with a slice of cheese and cook until well-browned on the bottoms, about 4 minutes more. Transfer to a plate.
• While the burgers are cooking, heat a second large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. When hot, add the onions. Lower the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions brown and caramelize, about 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt.
• For the avocado spread: Place the avocado, cilantro, vinegar, salt and pepper in a food processer and pulse until well combined.
• To assemble the burgers, dollop avocado spread on the bottoms of the buns, top with patties, then onions, tomatoes and lettuce.