Smash burger 

The smashed burger is a type of hamburger or better, a particular technique used to cook patty, the meat disc, which increases the surface of the succulent crust that we all love. Much used in the '20s of the '1900, it then fell into disuse with the advent of frozen burgers: it is a matter of "crushing" the hamburger during cooking, but to do it in a precise way. Here's what the smashed burger is, where it comes from and how to make it at home to perfection. If to cook a hamburger the main rule has always been to absolutely avoid letting the meat juices come out, there is a technique that subverts this principle and that certainly angers the purists of the grill: the smashed burger. A hamburger that, instead of being gently placed on the hot grill, is literally crushed, increase the surface on which the crust will form. Here's what exactly the smashed burger is, how to prepare it and the mistakes to watch out for to avoid bringing a disc of dried meat to the table.

Let's talk about one of the most important chemical reactions in the kitchen, the one that makes our steaks succulent: the Maillard reaction is essential to prepare a good meat dish that must be cooked on the grill or on the griddle. It is a chemical reaction that involves meat proteins, to be precise the amino acids of which they are formed: these react at high temperatures, together with sugars, forming the typical brown crust of meat.

In reality, we are talking about complex reactions, which also have intermediate stages such as glycosamine and Amadori compounds – Heyns, responsible for browning, and which depend many on factors – such as the types and amount of sugars, the pH of the environment and the amino acids present linked to the variety of meat – so that we should speak, more correctly, of Maillard reactions. In any case, the result is the chemical transformation of the meat that results in that succulent crust that we are used to eating and whose smell immediately triggers the stimulus of appetite: not to be confused, as many do, with the caramelization of sugars, another type of reaction that does not involve amino acids.

The Maillard reaction occurs around 160 °C (between 160 °C and 180 °C). And it is precisely at this temperature that the meat of the hamburger, if you want to prepare a smashed, is crushed, increasing the surface in contact with the pan / plate and maximizing browning. But, to avoid ruining your meat, there are very specific rules to follow.

How to make the shamshed burger and the mistakes not to make

The goal is therefore to increase the crust of the meat by preventing the liquids contained in it from escaping. The first rule, for example, for a perfect smashed burger is that the meat must be very fresh: this result, in fact, can not be obtained if the patty (the meat disc) has been frozen. Here are the other rules to follow: Remove the meat from the fridge only a few minutes before cooking. When the meat is in the fridge, in fact, the fat is still compact and the disc perfectly retains all its juices, which can not yet melt; use a pan or plate made of iron, steel or cast iron, which can withstand high temperatures without ruining, as could happen with a pan with a non-stick coating; wait until the plate is really hot, otherwise you will ruin the smashed effect; the difference between the temperature of the meat and that of the plate must be maximum; the temperature of the plate should bearound 300 – 350 °C. You can decide to lightly grease the plate with oil or butter, but also to cook the meat as it is, avoiding adding other fats; Crush your hamburger only and exclusively within the first 30 seconds of cooking: beyond this time, in fact, the meat will begin to heat up even inside, melting the fats and thus allowing the liquids to escape. Crush hard especially the first 10 seconds and no longer crush the burger after the first 30 seconds; Turn the burgers when you start to see signs of cooking on the edges. Once the disc is turned, hold it on the plate for 1 minute, 1 minute and a half maximum. To encourage this type of technique, rather than a slightly flattened disc, it would be good to use a sort of meat "meatball", which should have a percentage of fat around 20% of the total. 

Smashed burger: where it comes from and why it is rarely used

The smashed burger is one of the oldest techniques for baking burgers. Smashing began to be widespread during the '20s in the American Midwest thanks to the White Castle fast food chain and was immediately appreciated by consumers who praised this maximization of the taste of the burger crust. But the smashed burger has a big "flaw": you can't do it with frozen burgers. For this reason, the technique gradually loses consensus in favor of other "unsmashed" methods that allow the use of frozen foods.

After being put in the cellar for a while, this technique came back into vogue in the first decade of the 2000s, also thanks to the changes that have occurred slowly but effectively in the fast food industry, which today devotes more time to the raw material, offering different options to customers. In 2007, as proof of the revival of smashed in Denver, a chain was founded that almost bears his name, SmashBurger, which bases its preparations on this technique (and not only) and that in a few years has greatly increased its premises throughout the United States.

Now that we know the whole theory about "smashed burgers", let's see how to apply it to practice. Here are all the steps explained step by step.

In reality, these are real meatballs that will then be crushed directly into the pan. Always use meat with the right percentage of fat (around 20%) and keep the meat in the fridge until cooked. The pan (steel, iron or cast iron) must be red-hot, 300°-350°C. You can not grease it or brush it lightly with melted butter. Both options are valid and commonly used (I did not use butter). Put the meat in the pan and crush firmly for 10 seconds helping, if necessary, with another tool. At this point a problem may arise, the meat may stick to the spatula. The best solution is to use pieces of parchment paper to put between the meat and the spatula so that they are not in direct contact. After 10 seconds of "smashing", let the patty cook. This is the time to salt the meat. Check the edges. As soon as there are signs of cooking it means that the time has come to turn it over. Americans say that patty should literally be scraped from the pan, being careful not to spoil the crust. To me it has always come off the pan with ease. Use a spatula with a very thin and sharp edge. Once you turn the patty you will find yourself with a uniform crust over the entire surface. Once the patty is turned, cook it for another minute (better than less). If you want, now is the time to add the cheese. A "smashed burger" ends up straight into a potato masher where it is pressed hard to squeeze out its juices. And these are the juices of a "smashed burger". Do you still think it's a dry burger?

I leave you with the words found on the Smashburger website: https://www.smashburger.com/

"We all know that magic happens when meat and heat collide. But, forget everything you thought you knew about grilling a burger. Smashing is what makes ours so astonishingly flavorful."