By J. Kenji López-Alt
- Total Time
- 15 to 30 minutes
- Rating
- 4(1,611)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Homer Davis and his son Ross invented what he called the Depression burger at the Hamburger Inn in El Reno, Okla., as a means to add inexpensive bulk to their burgers. Rather than toasting, the buns are steamed in onion-scented vapor. That the technique — cooking the patties smashed-style with a huge amount of thinly shaved onions and steaming the buns — and restaurant remain popular to this day is a testament to the burgers’ deliciousness. If you prefer, you can take the cooking (and the accompanying lingering onion aroma) completely out of the house by heating the skillet or griddle directly over a very hot grill and cooking outdoors (see Tip).
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 1pound ground beef, preferably 20 to 30 percent fat
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2medium or 1 large yellow or white onion, sliced as thinly as possible, and on a mandoline for best results (8 to 10 ounces of sliced onion)
- 4slices American cheese
- 4soft, sturdy hamburger buns, such as King’s Hawaiian rolls
- Dill pickle chips and condiments, as desired
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Preparation
Step
1
Divide the beef: Line a 13-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Divide the ground beef into 4 even balls. Working one ball at a time and using your hands, massage the meat until it is cohesive and tacky, about 15 seconds. Next, using clean hands, roll each into a smooth ball. Place the balls on the baking sheet, with 1 ball in the center of each quadrant. Refrigerate until ready to cook.
Step
2
Shape the patties: Gently press each ball into a disk-shaped patty about 3 inches wide. Place the patties on a sheet pan or large plate, and season the tops with salt and pepper. Flip the patties, and top each with a large pile of sliced onions — as many as you can balance on top; they should resemble a large haystack. (It is important to not add salt to the onions at this point, as it will draw out excess moisture, which will inhibit searing.)
Step
3
Heat the skillet or griddle: Heat a large (12-inch) cast-iron or carbon-steel skillet or griddle (see Tips) over an indoor burner set to high heat or on the grates of a hot outdoor grill for a few minutes until very hot; a drop of water should skitter around the surface. (If you don’t have a pan skillet or griddle big enough, you can cook the burgers in batches.) Place 1 patty of beef in the center of one quadrant of the pan, with the onions on top (do not add any oil).
Step
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Smash the burgers: Using a very stiff spatula, press on the onions and beef to form a patty 4½- to 5-inches wide. As you smash, focus on the patty’s edges so that the finished patty is slightly thicker in the center and smashed out as thinly as possible along the edges. Repeat with the remaining patties. Use the spatula to place any stray onions back on top of the burgers. Season the onions lightly with salt and pepper.
Step
5
Cook the burgers: Allow patties to cook without moving until the edges are dark brown and crusty, 1 to 2 minutes. Holding the spatula upside down (so that the head of the spatula is angled down to increase leverage), scrape the edges of each patty off the pan, working around each patty to ensure that you don’t leave any crispy edges behind. When the edges have all been loosened, turn the spatula back over (so you are holding it the standard way) and flip the patties onion side down. Use the spatula and tongs or a fork to tuck any stray onion slices mostly under the patties.
Step
6
Steam the cheese and buns: Add a slice of cheese to each patty. Place the top half of each burger bun on top of the cheese, and place the bottom half of each bun on top of the top bun, split-side down. Cover the pan or griddle with a large domed lid, a large overturned saucepan or a clean folded dish towel. (To avoid a fire, make sure the edges of the dish towel do not hang over the skillet or griddle. If cooking on an outdoor grill, just close the lid.) Continue cooking until the onions are browned along the edges and the buns are steamed through, 1 to 2 minutes longer.
Step
7
To serve, open the cover or lid. Remove the bottom burger bun halves to a serving platter. Add pickles and condiments as desired. (These burgers don’t typically need condiments.) Lift each burger from the skillet with the spatula and transfer to the bottom bun. Serve immediately.
Tips
- To add some chargrilled flavor, heat your entire gas or charcoal grill to high heat. (A full chimney of coals spread out under the cooking surface for a standard kettle grill, or all the burners on high for a gas grill.) Next, smash the onion-topped patties on top of a parchment-lined sheet tray in Step 2.
- When ready to cook, heat a skillet or griddle directly over one side of the grill until very hot (5 minutes with the lid off, if cooking with coal, or 15 minutes with the lid on, if cooking with gas). When the skillet is hot, brush both the grates over the empty half of the grill and the skillet or griddle with a little neutral cooking oil. Add the onion-topped patties to the grates with a spatula, season with salt and pepper, and let them cook without moving until well charred on the bottom, 1 to 2 minutes. When ready to flip, flip them straight into the skillet, onion-side down, and continue cooking exactly as directed in Step 6.
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Cooking Notes
Jay
My ex’s grandfather made these at his diner in Oklahoma so they were always known in the family as grandpa burgers. No cheese, onions diced instead of sliced, served with yellow mustard. Very good. Frying the onions separately is definitely NOT the same thing and not better. But it was a very bitter divorce so I might need therapy if I made these.
Dan
Wowowow!! What a delicious burger! We followed the recipe exactly and took the suggestion to put a cast iron on the grill to prevent onion-house. I made a couple with the Impossible meat too and my vegetarian husband was a big fan as well! Was worth prepping everything in advance before bringing it out to the grill since everything was quick. Highly highly recommend this recipe. Bravo Kenji!
Richard
The folks in El Reno have been using the method described in the recipe for 80 years. I bet they know best. You're welcome!
jenna
I always use Martin's potato rolls. Very soft, not sweet.
EK
one of the best items i have purchased is a portable induction cooktop. when i want to make fried chicken, which just makes a spectacular mess, i pull out this piece of magic, set it up outside on a table and get to work. same would go for these, which i am going to make this weekend. outside.
Alexis
Trader Joe's brioche buns are my go-to for hamburgers. Soft and sweet but much sturdier than other brioche buns I've tried.
supah
I dislike the sweetness of Kings Hawaiian rolls - does anyone have a go-to that isn’t a sugarbomb?
John
you'll miss out on the triple effect of onions cooked three ways (caramelized/seared/steamed). The smashing allows for more charring and the huge quantity of onions adds moisture to the burger
moteltan
Everything should be as simple as it can be, but not simpler. When to salt, how to scrape to get all the Maillard reaction into the final product, bathing the buns in onion steam--these are details important to the successful execution of the recipe. Don't over-simplify.
Tucsonbabe
Does anyone remember the old "White Castle" chain in NYC. The burgers in this article are very similar to the 25 cent burger that you purchased at White Castle by the sackful. And, when the NY Daily News ran a coupon, it was "Katie bar the door". The missing element in any good "cheap" burger is the amount of old grease on the grill and in the walls of the establishment. This gives the finishing touch to the unforgettable flavor. Alas, Mr.Lopez-Alt. you can never get this at home.
Ben
Nope. If you smash in the first 30 seconds you just deform raw meat. No fat or juices are lost. See Kenji's article on serious eats: https://www.seriouseats.com/classic-smashed-burgers-recipe
econnie
These are very tasty--I will definitely make again. My family used to like huge, fat, juicy burgers, but we're not the carnivores we once were. I love onions, but raw onions are too harsh, these cooked onions are mellow. I followed the recipe with no condiments and the only thing I would recommend is a little additional salt and pepper at the end. Thank you!
cc
Interestingly, the article mentions Telway Hamburgers for an inspirational take on the preparation. The original owner of Telway's was an Oklahoma veteran! I'm a OU Sooner grad, now residing in Michigan. I've been to both onion burger counters and I can attest - delicious! My tip: use a cast-iron skillet, heat it slowly until it's fire hot. Have everyone and everything ready, at the table and be ready to sit down when you put the meat on. Prep takes a while, but the cooking goes quickly!
moteltan
The article goes into detail about how onion cells release more of their savory, umami (meat-like) compounds when sliced into rings parallel to the onion's equator.
Jackie
Seems to me this misses the whole point of the exercise; to allow the two ingredients to interact.
Thatbobbyg
Todd-O-Phonic Todd turned me onto to these, pow pow pow!
Rex
I did not like these. They came out too thin, and as others have said, give your house an extreme case of the onions. The onion flavor manifests as one-dimensional and crude, overpowering everything else.
PA
Wow..these are delicious!! Honestly know that I have had burgers with onion placed into the burger there is no going back. It makes the burgers so flavorful and moist. I definitely recommend taking the extra step of putting them on the grill as the char-grill flavor adds so much flavor. Just be careful when you flip on the onion side as there was flare-up. Really really good. Highly recommend.
Mike
The best. Dream about these.
Jim Z
Did them on the BBQ grill with a stone and they picked up that great smokey flavor - it is now our go to for our outdoor burgers.
Nancy
I made these in a small slider size for my book club's discussion of The Grapes of Wrath, which has a lengthy description of Al, a diner cook, making these burgers. (Quoted below by Vin C Sayville NY). Excellent.
J
Excellent. Did with veg burger.
Trisha
At this time of year, virtually everything I make gets garden tomatoes added on, and this burger was no exception. This was the jiuciest and most delicious burger I've ever made. Will use a sturdier, toasted bun next time as this was too soft & mushy with the added tomato slice.
Sally
I lived in Oklahoma for the first 65 years of my life and have eaten at both burger joints in El Reno. I now live in Colorado (the place I've been trying to get to all my life) and tonight I tried this burger recipe and cooked the burgers as directed in a large fry pan on my induction cooktop. The burgers were the BEST burgers I've ever made and were at least a close second to the burgers in El Reno if not equal. I think we'll have burgers again tomorrow night... Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Lwood
I’m not too old but in the early 60’s Steak & Shake made what today is a SmashBurger … really crispy edges, but they didn’t go so far as the OK folks with the Onions which would be a big hit with me! I have no idea when they started making their burgers, but it’s rare to see one of them open anymore.
Christine
Killer burgers! Left off the cheese, we aren't cheese eaters. I fried peppers and onions just right. What a party our mouths and tummies had!
Dodie
I made this with Impossible Burger "meat" and enjoyed it on the best of buns, Dave's Killer Bread 21 Whole Grains, and a side of roasted potato wedges and ketchup. Absolutely delicious, guilt-free comfort food.
Kevin
Delicious, straightforward, quick as advertised. Way more approval than a burger usually gets.
Vin C Sayville NY
He presses down a hissing hamburger with his spatula. He lays the split buns on the plate to toast and heat. He gathers up stray onions from the plate and heaps them on the meat and presses them in with the spatula. He puts half the bun on top of the meat, paints the other half with melted butter, with thin pickle relish. Holding the bun on the meat, he slips the spatula under the thin pad of meat, flips it over, lays the buttered half on top, and drops the hamburger on a small plate.
Ombret
I got regular burgers on top of a separate pile of charred onions. No magic.
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