McDonald's Quarter Pounder Hack - that might be just the best burger to date!

This just might be a very big offence against all, who like their super posh burgers. But really, I don't care.

The story goes like that: so I went with a couple of bodies out yesterday night. And after drinking and dancing [yeah - you read right...] there is definitely a big yearning of some fatty food. And it might not be at all a big surprise, that McDonald's is not far.

In the middle of the night, even the biggest food snob don't have a big choice [except to go home and to your fridge and choose between confit chicken legs, 63ºC semi soft boiled eggs and 75 hour short-ribs... I plead guilty, milord]. But even with the most obscenely delicious and sumptuous produce in your fridge, you still don't want to invest too much time in the kitchen, when all you want is a couple of relaxing youtube videos [Fresh from the Boat is one of my favourites] and then listening to the void in space on your mattress.

So McDonald's.
One of my goto's is the Quarter Pounder. Since my hunger was bigger than what a single hamburger can handle, the McDonald's Royal with Cheese [John Travolta was absolutely right - in Europe it is not called Quarter Pounder - while it would sell eventually better than the Royal Cheese moniker] was my first choice... besides of the Big Mac.
However I do hate "American cheese". Let's face it: it is not even 100% real cheese - it is just some cheese scraps plus water, plus seasonings plus sodium citrate [or another "salt" to emulsify]. No - in this case I am not against the food additive - it is quite natural - you can make it yourself, if you are "mixing" a solution of bicarbonate and citric acid.
However the cheese usually used commercially is really crap [in the book the Modernist Cuisine at home they suggest to make your own melty "American" cheese out of super-delicious cheeses like Compte, Parmigiani, Stilton... you name it - the advantage is, that you can slice it after you melted it together and the food additive keeps the cheese from splitting].

Anyway - I am again drifting off topic, when it comes to the magics of avantgarde cuisine.

Back to the burger: I always order my QP without cheese and add real cheese at home - also today.
Previously I used a bunsenburner to melt and caramelizse the cheese - nice, but it could get better.
Since I have watched below youtube video about the best burgers in the US - one odd spot used a deep fryer with old fat, to fry the burger patties up - in the last minutes even with the cheese!

So I still had a pan with fat on my stove. Heated it up extremely hot, fried the burger patty of the QP on one side; flipped it - put cheese on [I had emmenthaler] and fried it also on the other side - napping the hot oil over the top of the burger - over the cheese!

The cheese melted obviously - but also crisped up. I just added Dijon mustard on the QP bun and added on top a bit of my homemade sriracha... and bam!

Honestly - I was surprised, how delish the burger was! The cheese was perfectly molten - but had some crisp, which was unusual. The patty was a bit overdone - but due to the [good] crumbly texture, it wasn't really a problem - much more pronounced was the crispy exterior of the meat itself.

This made me wonder - is a Shack Stack or a Johnny Rocket burger better than that?
I would say, they are different. But better? No! This is one of the most awesome burgers I ever had! It even slightly surpasses a sous vide burger [as this will be never as crispy].

So here you have it- you can make hack a simple [and comparable cheap] quarter pounder into the most delicious burger in 5 minutes or less!

Your welcome!

Lava hot cheese squirting out of a burger? It is the Shack Stack!

Lately there were some controversies about - what is the best burger.
Fooderati colleague Geordie Armani was rather disappointed by Shake Shack - however Foodiva rather approved the quality...

For me it is Shake Shack. It is just the perfect balance between the comforting archetypal virtues  of the classic American dish and the more gourmet approach.

Well - I was excited to find a Shake Shack in the Dalma Mall in Abu Dhabi a couple of weeks ago [then still under construction] - and yesterday I have discovered, that the second Shake Shack in the UAE is now open.

These days, I try to avoid over-ordering, so I opt for the peanut butter shake, one New York styled hot dog [this was not available, so I cancelled it without replacement] and the shack stack.

I was so excited, that I even forgot to ask for the removal of the tomato on the burger [yeah - I really dislike tomato slices on burgers].
Service is swift [though there is a bit assembly line feel to it], you get your buzzer and after only few minutes, you can pick up your metal tray. The interior of the restaurant is very similar to the Shake Shack in Dubai - Mall of the Emirates - only that they put some cocktail tables and stools besides of the kitchen, so you can spend your waiting time in watching the busy kitchen.

But it is not about the interior - it is all about the burger! The burger bun is soft and fresh [not sure, if this is objective - but I had the impression, that the bun was a tad crisper at the Mall of the Emirates - maybe I am fantasizing - maybe it one teething problem...

The burger is relatively high [if you take into account, that the beef patty is flat] - this is, because the cheese stuffed, crispy breaded portobello is sitting on top of the meat.
If you compress the burger, super hot lavalike cheese is squirting out. You might burn yourself - but it is just so awesome, that you can't resist to wait until it cools down a bit.
The burger is just right - juicy enough, but typical burger [not a rissole or meatball like in most posh burger joints] - it is tender there is no sign of gristle or sinew at all [unfortunately an often seen thing here in the UAE]. It just taste like fresh meat - and this is totally awesome.

The different parts [breadroll, lettuce, pickles, stuffed portobello and burger patty - not forgetting the shack shake sauce] then just join together - the sum is greater than the parts - it just taste like cheese-lava and beef infused heaven.
Unfortunately the peanut butter shake wasn't that great - while nice and tasty for the first sips, it revealed a certain egginess which wasn't nice at all. Johnny Rockets is still doing the meanest shakes...

Now to the rating:


WOW or MEH:                  Wow
Ambiance:                           7
Value for Money [1-10]:     7
Deliciousness [1-10]:           8
Staff Helpfulness [1-10]:     7
Going back:                         Definitely
Overall Score:                      8


Shake Shack is perfect for those who overall like McDonalds, however don't like the quality shortcuts which the guys with the golden arcs are doing. Lets face it - they are doing burgers and hot dogs [nothing fancy with truffles or foie gras] - however if you are understanding this, the food is really magical. Not sure about the shakes and the concretes. I would rather suggest to try there refreshing Arnold Palmer [half traditional lemonade - half iced tea]. Awesome!