Onion-fried burgers, Oklahoma style?

In article <[email protected]>, "Dave K."
<[email protected]> wrote:

> What's the secret to making onion-fried burgers, like the ones famous in Oklahoma? You know, the
> kind of burgers that are served with loads of delicious, soft, carmelized onions on top?

> Any tips you can give me on how to make true onion-fried burgers would be greatly appreciated!!
> Thanks in advance for your help!!

I've never been to Oklahoma, and may not know what you're talking about, but I won't let that stop
me from trying to answer your question! There's no way to cook those onions in the time it takes to
cook a burger. Just like spaghetti, roast beef and meatloaf, they have to be made in advance and
either kept warm, or be warmed up on the grill with the burger.

ObCaliforniaOnionBurger: I was traveling up to see the relatives a couple of months ago, and saw a
sign advertising the Black Bear Diner. I had heard good things about this chain, but had never eaten
there myself. I decided that I was hungry for a burger and fries, and stopped there for lunch. I
went in at the same time as an older couple, and we were seated at adjacent tables. I was looking at
the burger section of the menu. The menu said that the standard size burger was 1/2 pound, unless
the description said otherwise. The first burger was the papa burger, and it was 3/4 pound. I knew
that was too much for me. The last burger was the baby burger, at 1/4 pound. That was more my size,
but it wasn't that much cheaper. There were a bunch of burger choices in between. I settled on the
mama burger. While I was looking at the menu, the couple already knew what they wanted before they
came in. They wanted *one* papa burger, with an extra plate, and announced that they were going to
share it! I had never seen two adults share a burger. My waitress was busy, so the hostess brought
me my burger. It was the biggest burger I've ever seen, and I soon realized that I'd be doing well
to eat half of it. It came on a huge plate with about three times as many fries as I could possibly
eat. I could well see how two people could share the larger burger. I opened it up and saw grilled
onions. This pleased me, but it seemed like only the papa burger had grilled onions, and I hadn't
requested them. I figured they must have had extras, and gave them to me as a bonus. I noticed that
the couple hadn't gotten their burger yet, even though they had ordered first. In a while the
waitress came to me and admitted that I had the couple's burger, and that even though they had big
burgers, they weren't *that* big. She assured me that I would only be charged for what I ordered.
When the waitress came to clear my plate, I told her that I had been planning my dinner menu, but I
think that I just *had* dinner!

--
Dan Abel Sonoma State University AIS [email protected]

On Thu, 4 Dec 2003 13:19:37 -0600, "Dave K."
<[email protected]> wrote:

>What's the secret to making onion-fried burgers, like the ones famous in Oklahoma?

I don't know about Oakiehoma, but when the burger is almost done, I drain about half the fat (either
in the sink or use a paper town to soak it up) and put the onions underneath the burger, stirring
around a few times. This will serve to deglaze the pan with the onions, causing the browed bits of
burger in the pan to stick to the onions and well as baste the onions from the top with the burger -
giving them a carmelized appearance/texture.

Properly done, you can get the onions out in about 90-120 seconds at the same time the
burger is done.

I just did this for breakfast this morning using a cioppolina, and again for lunch with white onion
with the same excellent results.

-sw

In article <[email protected]>, Dan Abel <[email protected]> wrote:

> > Any tips you can give me on how to make true onion-fried burgers would be greatly appreciated!!
> > Thanks in advance for your help!!
>
>
> I've never been to Oklahoma, and may not know what you're talking about, but I won't let that stop
> me from trying to answer your question! There's no way to cook those onions in the time it takes
> to cook a burger.

I *have* been to Oklahoma, and I'm sorry to tell you you're wrong. They chug a handful of onions on
the grill and mash the hamburger down on it. It really does seem to get at least mildly carmelized.
They didn't seem to be cooked over very high heat when I've had them (which was twice). They are
certainly not carmelized like you you make for chopped liver or something similar....

Mike Beede

Thanks for the detailed instructions ... I'll have to try that!!

Dave

--
NOTE: Please delete the word "REMOVE" from my e-mail address when replying. This is a spam guard.
"Steve Wertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:xtWdnSUNrNUIoU2iRVn-
[email protected]...
> On Thu, 4 Dec 2003 13:19:37 -0600, "Dave K." <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
> >What's the secret to making onion-fried burgers, like the ones famous in Oklahoma?
>
> I don't know about Oakiehoma, but when the burger is almost done, I drain about half the fat
> (either in the sink or use a paper town to soak it up) and put the onions underneath the burger,
> stirring around a few times. This will serve to deglaze the pan with the onions, causing the
> browed bits of burger in the pan to stick to the onions and well as baste the onions from the top
> with the burger - giving them a carmelized appearance/texture.
>
> Properly done, you can get the onions out in about 90-120 seconds at the same time the burger
> is done.
>
> I just did this for breakfast this morning using a cioppolina, and again for lunch with white
> onion with the same excellent results.
>
> -sw

Mike,

Come to think of it, you're right. They don't turn out as sweet as carmelized onions that have been
cooking for an hour or more, but they turn soft and brown and have the appearance of carmelized
onions. They definitely look different then regular grilled onions, such as if you saute them in
butter. As the next person who posted said, it's probably the meat juice and the bits of burger at
the bottom of the pan that stick to the onions that give them a deeper brown color than regular
sauteed onions.

Dave

--
NOTE: Please delete the word "REMOVE" from my e-mail address when replying. This is a spam guard.
"Mike Beede" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:051220030142164545%[email protected]...
> In article <[email protected]>, Dan Abel
<[email protected]> wrote:
>
> > > Any tips you can give me on how to make true onion-fried burgers would
be
> > > greatly appreciated!! Thanks in advance for your help!!
> >
> >
> > I've never been to Oklahoma, and may not know what you're talking about, but I won't let that
> > stop me from trying to answer your question!
There's
> > no way to cook those onions in the time it takes to cook a burger.
>
> I *have* been to Oklahoma, and I'm sorry to tell you you're wrong. They chug a handful of onions
> on the grill and mash the hamburger down on it. It really does seem to get at least mildly
> carmelized. They didn't
seem
> to be cooked over very high heat when I've had them (which was twice). They are certainly not
> carmelized like you you make for chopped liver or something similar....
>
> Mike Beede

Dave K. wrote:
> What's the secret to making onion-fried burgers, like the ones famous in Oklahoma? You know, the
> kind of burgers that are served with loads of delicious, soft, carmelized onions on top?
>
> Specifically, I want to know how you get the onions to carmelize on the grill in the short time
> that it takes to cook a burger? Whenever I've tried to carmelize onions, you have to cook them on
> low heat for a long, long time. Is there a certain kind of onion to use for faster carmelization,
> or do you use regular yellow onions? Do you slice them thinly to get them to cook faster? Do you
> do anything to the onions in advance to get them to carmelize faster?
>
> Do you have to use higher-fat hamburger than the typical 80% lean stuff, so there is more grease
> to cook the onions in?
>
> Any tips you can give me on how to make true onion-fried burgers would be greatly appreciated!!
> Thanks in advance for your help!!

Sounds almost like White Castle (or here in the Southern U.S., Krystal). The burger is served with
tiny almost carmelized bits of onion on top of the burger. Of course, in this case the burgers are
so tiny you could eat about 6 of them before you feel full.

Jill

"jmcquown" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news[email protected]...
> Dave K. wrote:
> > What's the secret to making onion-fried burgers, like the ones famous in Oklahoma? You know, the
> > kind of burgers that are served with loads of delicious, soft, carmelized onions on top?
> >
> > Specifically, I want to know how you get the onions to carmelize on the grill in the short time
> > that it takes to cook a burger? Whenever I've tried to carmelize onions, you have to cook them
> > on low heat for a long, long time. Is there a certain kind of onion to use for faster
> > carmelization, or do you use regular yellow onions? Do you slice them thinly to get them to cook
> > faster? Do you do anything to the onions in advance to get them to carmelize faster?
> >
> > Do you have to use higher-fat hamburger than the typical 80% lean stuff, so there is more grease
> > to cook the onions in?
> >
> > Any tips you can give me on how to make true onion-fried burgers would be greatly appreciated!!
> > Thanks in advance for your help!!
>
> Sounds almost like White Castle (or here in the Southern U.S., Krystal). The burger is served with
> tiny almost carmelized bits of onion on top of
the
> burger. Of course, in this case the burgers are so tiny you could eat
about
> 6 of them before you feel full.
>
> Jill
>
>

Ugh @ White Castle, those don't even deserve to be called burgers! = )

Jimmy Tango wrote:
> "jmcquown" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news[email protected]...
>> Dave K. wrote:
>>> What's the secret to making onion-fried burgers, like the ones famous in Oklahoma? You know, the
>>> kind of burgers that are served with loads of delicious, soft, carmelized onions on top?
>>>
>>> Specifically, I want to know how you get the onions to carmelize on the grill in the short time
>>> that it takes to cook a burger? Whenever I've tried to carmelize onions, you have to cook them
>>> on low heat for a long, long time. Is there a certain kind of onion to use for faster
>>> carmelization, or do you use regular yellow onions? Do you slice them thinly to get them to cook
>>> faster? Do you do anything to the onions in advance to get them to carmelize faster?
>>>
>>> Do you have to use higher-fat hamburger than the typical 80% lean stuff, so there is more grease
>>> to cook the onions in?
>>>
>>> Any tips you can give me on how to make true onion-fried burgers would be greatly appreciated!!
>>> Thanks in advance for your help!!
>>
>> Sounds almost like White Castle (or here in the Southern U.S., Krystal). The burger is served
>> with tiny almost carmelized bits of onion on top of the burger. Of course, in this case the
>> burgers are so tiny you could eat about 6 of them before you feel full.
>>
>> Jill
>>
>>
>
> Ugh @ White Castle, those don't even deserve to be called burgers! = )

(laughing) Given some of the recipes you've posted here I find that comment hilarious!

Back 20 years ago, if someone had a big night out on the town, Krystal (the Southern version of
White Castle) was the only place you could get munchies at 2 a.m. Many a person I know has a story
about going to get those disgusting burgers in the wee hours of the morning. Me, I went for the
chili (which, it turned out, was Hormel) and the oyster crackers

Jill

On Sat, 06 Dec 2003 19:34:57 GMT, "Jimmy Tango"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Ugh @ White Castle, those don't even deserve to be called burgers! = )

I consider White Castle 'burgers' more of a Dim Sum than any sort of hamburger. Steamed buns with
meat inside is Chinese, not American.

-sw

On Sat, 06 Dec 2003 16:02:24 -0600, Steve Wertz
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On Sat, 06 Dec 2003 19:34:57 GMT, "Jimmy Tango" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>>Ugh @ White Castle, those don't even deserve to be called burgers! = )
>
>I consider White Castle 'burgers' more of a Dim Sum than any sort of hamburger. Steamed buns with
>meat inside is Chinese, not American.
>
>-sw
in the wash., d.c. area they were known as 'little tavern's. just the place to get a couple death-
balls when you're somewhat loaded.

your pal, blake

I've lived a good part of my life in, or close by, Oklahoma. I've NEVER heard of this, except at
White Castles - and that was in Kansas.

"blake murphy" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Sat, 06 Dec 2003 16:02:24 -0600, Steve Wertz <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >On Sat, 06 Dec 2003 19:34:57 GMT, "Jimmy Tango" <[email protected]> wrote:
> >
> >
> >>Ugh @ White Castle, those don't even deserve to be called burgers! = )
> >
> >I consider White Castle 'burgers' more of a Dim Sum than any sort of hamburger. Steamed buns with
> >meat inside is Chinese, not American.
> >
> >-sw
> in the wash., d.c. area they were known as 'little tavern's. just the place to get a couple death-
> balls when you're somewhat loaded.
>
> your pal, blake