This is certainly a “less than cosmic” topic, so here goes.
I saw a picture of the “6-dollar burger” in Carl’s Jr. today. It had the lettuce and tomato beneath the patty. I’ve always been a “lettuce and tomato go on top” kind of guy. In fact, more specifically, it goes: bottom bun, meat patty, cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup/special sauce, top bun. There is no room for discussion. This is the proper way it should be.
Who are these wackos that dare to violate this basic law of nature? :rolleyes:
While this topic doesn’t carry the weighty import of toilet paper roll orientation, it does bear considering. And once considered, it’s rapidly apparent that the meat belongs pressed against the bottom bun, thereby providing transcendantly flavorful support for the lesser ingredients.
I can only assume that the test kitchen of Carls Jr. has fallen under the spell of young upstart marketing whizzes, intent on dragging the restaurant to the leading edge of pre-assembled fat delivery systems. The Carls Jr. Pretentious Burger cannot be far behind, draped grossly with raddichio and slathered with caviar.
Letucce, tomato and onion go on top of the patty! No ifs ands or butts < smile > about it.
Here’s my favorite burger set up:
Bun, mustard, patty, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, onion, mayonnaise, bun. You can put the ketchup on top of the onion but I like the mayo to be separated a little.
No cheese on my hamburger and no pickles either. Those can be on the side. Oh, and I do prefer the buns to be lightly buttered and either toasted or grilled on the cut side.
I like mine plain— meat and cheese only. Lettuce gets a wilted on a burger. Onions are raw on cooked meat and the cheese is supposed to be melted… this is just my opinion and I am a freak about food…I am NOT the majority.
I worked in Mc’ds for a few months and always used to make them upside down and get chewed out by the managers , upside down they seemed more stable so I made them that way.
I learned to put the lettuce on the bottom with the tomato on the top after a finicky son had trouble holding onto the traditional slippery burger. And don’t tell me that all youse geeniuses never had your tomato/lettuce/mayo combo come sliding off the burger!
I hate when the burger is too “slippery” because it was not properly constructed. I have refused to patronise certain establishments just because of that one fact. The condiments are a strange thing, though. I once tried and loved a burger with green olives on it, another used cucumber slices instead of pickles. But the Aussies actually desecrate the burger with beet root. GAG…I can not eat that nasty stuff in any form, and most certianly never on my burger.
The major point is this…the burger must be able to maintain structural integrity, while still allowing the consumer to experiment with the variety of condiments available.
If anyone has any great burger recipes as well as proper order, please let us know.
I apologise for the hijack.
IMHO, the only correct, proper, blueprint, milspec burger is one cooked on a charcoal (not gas) grill, with lettuce, tomato and mayo, and optionally cheese. Maybe a couple of sweet pickle slices if I’m feeling really frisky. Onions are to be avoided as they overwhelm the subtle, intertwined flavors of the burger and other condiments. While fast-food burgers can be tasty in their own ways, all are mere caricatures of this ideal.
The only proper arrangement is bottom bun component, lettuce, meat patty, cheese melted onto the meat, tomato on top of the cheese and mayo slathered on top component of bun where it meets tomato. If the lettuce and tomato, or lettuce and mayo, are in contact, the coefficient of friction is too low and stuff will spew everywhere when you bite in. I thought everyone knew this :D.
Mayo…on a burger…blechhh!!! Ketchup belongs on a burger (one of the very very few cases which I allow the use of this condiment.)
Anyhow, back to OP…of course the patty goes on the bottom. When you make a regular sandwich, what’s your first layer? Always meat, then cheese, then veggies. Why would anyone want to disturb this sacred order? And it makes logical sense, too. Heavy stuff on bottom. You need a solid architectural foundation to make a good sandwich. I find it curious that geepee found them more stable the other way 'round.
Oh, and as a sidenote, it often permissible, at least in my old neck of the woods (chicago), to eat cheeseburgers upside down. I would assume this is to avoid burning the roof of your mouth with sticky melted cheese.
For my burger dollar, lettuce and tomato belong in the garbage along with pickles and onions. The Genseric burger consists entirely of (from top to bottom)
[ul]
[li]Top Bun[/li][li]Mustard[/li][li]Top Patty[/li][li]Cheese[/li][li]Bottom Patty[/li][li]Mustard[/li][li]Bottom Bun[/li][/ul]
Anything other order is a deviation from standard, and while tolerated and eaten, it is not a perfect burger. Addtional ingredients are not acceptable.
