Cheesiest Cheeseburgers

Author Notes

Generally speaking, there are two kinds of cheeseburgers: First, what we’ll call the classic melter, where you plop a slice of cheese on top of a just-flipped patty. And second, the Juicy Lucy, a midwestern approach where cheese gets stuffed inside the raw patty, only to ooze out after being cooked and cut, like a chocolate lava cake. This Big Little Recipe is neither. Instead, grated cheese gets mixed right with the ground beef, so the two can become one. When given the ultra-quick smashburger treatment—I used J. Kenji Lopéz-Alt’s Genius method as a launching pad—the cheese not only melts throughout the burger patty, but it creates a crispy, crackly, cheesy crust, just like a frico.

Now, when it comes to bread and toppings, I’m of the belief that burgers are a choose-your-own-adventure sandwich, which means you get to lead the way. I’m loyal to barely-toasted, squidgy English muffins, iceberg lettuce, bread-and-butter pickles, and mustard-mayo. But maybe you prefer a potato bun or pretzel roll or buttery brioche. Maybe you want avocado and tomato, or bacon and kimchi, or no toppings at all. It’s all good. Just make sure that you eat this right away, when the cheese is still warm and melty. It goes without saying that this scales up easily—just keep in mind that each beef ball needs its own space to smash and brown, so use a big enough pan or multiple pans as needed. —Emma Laperruque