Fire up the backyard grill for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend; it’s time for a classic hamburger. With my recipe for a Short Rib Burger featuring a spicy seasoning with Louisiana coffee, I am out to create a new classic burger.  I’ve done it before, and it’s high time to do it again.

Is this Short Rib Burger recipe the next great Louisiana burger?  (All photos credit: George Graham)

It’s been a few years since I traveled from my home in South Louisiana to compete in Napa, California on the nationally televised Food Network Challenge.  It was at the Sutter Home Winery Build-A-Better-Burger cook-off where, as a finalist, I cooked my Bluesiana Burger and won the respect of the judges.  I guess that out of 9000 burger entries, first runner-up was pretty respectable.  With my experience behind me, I am often asked what I would do differently today in developing a competition-caliber Louisiana burger.

Ok, let’s talk burgers and my lessons learned.

Meat, bread, and other stuff–some might say burgers are pretty simple.  To be honest, they are correct–a basic, plain and simple hamburger can often be memorable.  Do you remember that hamburger your mom made for you while watching her from the kitchen table?  Or how about dad’s backyard, pit-grilled burgers?  Those were perfect–and perfectly simple.

So, the premise of my  Short Rib Burger – new Louisiana burger best – is simplicity and focus on quality ingredients that elevate the basic experience.  If truth be told, simplicity can take a lot of thought – and work.

First things first, the meat must be of exceptional quality.  In my previous burger attempts, I went for store-bought 80/20 pre-ground chuck.  While adequate, I now realize that commercial grinds lack flavor, needed texture, and the fat content varies.  After long research and taste trials, I discovered the perfect burger is made from ground short rib.

In my Short Rib Burger, nothing beats fresh, hand-ground beef.

The bone-in, English-cut, short ribs work best.  I’ve tried lesser cuts of beef as well as expensive rib-eye and choice sirloin, but the short rib, cut off the bone, dry-aged overnight and ground with some added fat, proves most consistently flavorful.  This burger meat is bold, beefy and flavorful with a hearty, textural quality that redefines the burger experience.

As for seasoning the meat, it is usually done in one of three different methods, and I implore you to use only one.  First, many cooks add mega seasoning inside the meat before shaping the patties, and I suggest that is dead wrong.  When cooked to medium rare, the interior of the burger should have a depth of beef flavor, not masked with excessive spice.  Next, lots of pit masters add a sweet sauce while grilling, but that only works to either coat the meat with a sticky mess or, even worse, burn the meat to a charcoal hockey puck.

I recommend a third, and even simpler, option: Apply a dry rub to the outside of the meat.  This method creates an exterior crust that seals in the juices and provides a textural contrast.  To stay true to the Louisiana roots of my  Short Rib Burger, I developed a rub that features an icon of our state’s culinary heritage–Community Coffee.  That’s right, a dark roast coffee-based dry rub that adds depth of flavor and an umami-induced taste elevation.  Finely ground coffee beans, when blended with garlic powder, kosher salt, coarsely ground black pepper, and dark brown sugar, creates a coating that balances out as a dark and rich, salty, yet sweet, peppery punch.

Coffee and other simple flavors add up to the perfect spice rub for my Short Rib Burger.

As for cooking methods, there is a majority opinion that the backyard pit or gas grill is best for burgers.  I disagree.  I recommend you take a lesson from your mom and fire up the stove and take out the heaviest and blackest cast-iron skillet you can find.  Open flame grilling on hot grates creates two negatives that work against the perfect burger–burning and loss of juices.  No matter how fast you sear, the juices will escape, and the resulting flare-ups will burn the beef.  A hot griddle seals in flavor and protects the meat with a crusty exterior.

Condiment choices are vast in the many options and uniquely different directions to go in this Short Rib Burger recipe: mustardy, ketchupy sweet, hot and spicy, or even blandly basic mayo only.  I subscribe to a variation of a Louisiana Creolaise sauce.  There are many recipes for a Creolaise, but my version omits the horseradish and goes with three simple ingredients;  mayonnaise, Creole mustard and a splash of hot sauce.

A personal note: I am not a fan of lettuce and tomato on a burger.  I will always ask for it on the side or not at all.  To me, these vegetables get in the way of the whole purpose of eating a burger.  It sidetracks and derails the experience by adding a foreign element that misses the point of the beef-eating experience.  No salad on my burger.

Onion is a different story.  Tastes vary, but for me, this Short Rib Burger will feature my version of caramelized onions called Cajunized onions that add a zest and depth of flavor that elevates the beef experience.  By adding a sweet kiss of cane molasses and grilling on hot cast iron, the aggressive bite of the onion is mellowed and rounded out to a rich sweetness punched with Cajun spice.

Cheese is crucial, and the choice of cheese to go on my Short Rib Burger is one of the most important lessons learned through my burger competition experience.  There are many cheeses that work, and work beautifully, in supporting the beef.  For meltability, good ol’ sliced American is best, but it just doesn’t cut it for me in the flavor factor.  For the answer, it’s back to basics again–cheddar cheese.  Aged sharp cheddar, the yellow variety, has just that sharp twang that mellows out all the competing burger flavors and wraps it all up in a comforting cushion of taste.  But, there is a trick to melting cheddar quickly and consistently, so pay close attention to the recipe instructions.

And what about the bun?

Bread should not be an afterthought, but I will be the first to admit that baking your own buns from scratch is an overreach for a burger outing.  After all, it’s just a burger.  I think basic is best, and I try to stay away from the alternative options of artisan loaves of sourdough, focaccia, ciabatta and the like.  I have a source for a simple, soft and light–almost brioche-like–bun that I’ve found locally in my hometown.  Do your research and find a good one that you can depend on.

So, with this Short Rib Burger, it’s back to basics for me.

While I don’t foresee entering any more competitions, I can assure you my best burger days are ahead of me.  For me, cooking is a journey of discovery and sometimes you have to go to the mountaintop to see there is a simpler path to your destination, even if it does take some extra work to get there.

Richly marbled short ribs cut off the bone are essential for my Short Rib Burger recipe.

Hand-cut fries for my Short Rib Burger – the perfect hand-ground burger.

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