During my 30 years as a chef across the United States, one of the things I’ve always been looking for is a good burger. I haven’t had one in over 10 years and that was at an old friend’s house, and he’s a farmer. I was giving it my all at home, (JC) when he suddenly told me that he had a taste for a hamburger, but that he didn’t eat in any of the restaurants around because he couldn’t trust the cooks and their clean habits of preparing food, which is another article in the making. He decided to do some prepping and just wanted me to watch and walk me through his process, which I graciously agreed to do.

Now my friend JC who is 60 years old is a great home cook and also a renaissance man. He knows a lot of things here in Mississippi. He lives on a few acres where he has cows, chickens and a pond with bass, bream and catfish and usually has a small garden every year with corn, tomatoes, okra and other southern staples. He practices self-reliance passionately. He is a man of great humor and in fact, if I had met James Brown, the “Godfather of Soul”, I would have liked him to be like JC, who is the “Godfather of Black Life” here in Central Mississippi. JC loves James Brown’s music and even at his age he still imitates his dance when he hears some of his music. He is the hardest working man I know and a true industrious con man in the highest respects. He is pitch black and has a heart of gold.

JC comes from a large family and almost everyone lives in the same neighborhood (the street he lives on has his last name) and people are always looking for him for one reason or another, so I always love it when he spends time with him. to talk about food, my favorite topic. That’s how one day out of the blue he decided to share with me his way of making a juicy burger, and I heard in tunnel vision when he shared this recipe with me.

Let me be clear about this recipe. You can forget about buying the pre-ground veal or the chop at the supermarket. High-end meats are not necessary. It’s best to have a meat grinder or ask the butcher to grind it while you wait. Buns should be 4-5 inches in diameter, not those little ones. The iceburg lettuce should be chilled (double rinse and soak in ice water for no more than 5 minutes then pat dry before putting on the burger) and the tomatoes should preferably be organic steak and chilled. Use only sweet onions, such as Vidalia, Maui, Texas Sweet, or red onions, that have been thinly sliced ​​and kept chilled because you want hot to meet cold in this recipe. Use whole kosher dills and cut them yourself if you want pickles. You should use “Come Back Sauce” (forget mayo, mustard and ketchup, it’s mixed in the final design anyway) for the dressing and kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper should be sprinkled on after cooking the meat. If you grill, use wood smoke to enhance flavor or if you cook indoors, try

using a cast iron skillet (medium heat is fine), that’s how we food purists in Mississippi do it. Forget those Teflon-coated pans or any other nifty kitchen gadgets. Get yourself some cast iron cookware if you don’t have any. By the way, each burger should be divided into 8 oz portions. loose pies.

This recipe is for 4 people. I have a golden recipe for the best homemade fries and shakes, but I’ll have to give it to you later.

The best homemade burger in the US

1 pound each: beef ribs and beef brisket. (remove the meat from the bone of the beef ribs and remove the layer of what I call tendon, from the back of the ribs) then cut into small oblong pieces to fit into the chute of the meat grinder so as not to clog it up. Do a routine course.

4 tablespoons of peanut oil, or olive oil or clarified butter or any oil of your choice.

Frozen Iceburg Lettuce Leaves

Fresh 4″- 5″ Hamburger Buns or Authentic New Orleans French Toast or San Francisco Sourdough (my favorite)

Comeback sauce… buy it here… or get the recipe here.

Sliced ​​Kosher Dill Pickles

Thinly sliced ​​cold sweet onions… 32 degrees is considered cold for anything that is supposed to be cold.

Cold beefsteak tomatoes, rinsed and sliced. I prefer fresh “Organic” on all vegetables here when available.

Addresses:

1. After the meat is ground, add oil and form thin, loose patties about 5 1/2 inches in diameter. Make a hole in the middle of the burger to decrease shrinkage. I like to use a burger maker myself.

2. Place on grill or skillet and begin cooking, but DO NOT TURN THE PUTTERS BUT ONCE after 3-4 minutes. They’ll be done once you flip them over when the juices run clear if they cook through. Cook to at least medium.

3. Put a little butter on the buns and lightly toast the side the patties are facing. This seals the bun.

4. Assemble burgers with toppings of your choice, but add special Come Back Sauce and enjoy. Look how simple it was… Enjoy!

Please note: You can use as many cuts of the cow as you like. Just make sure the fat is at least 10% and no more than 15%.