The pandemic has stopped me having people over. I miss my friends. The silver lining is that it gives me a chance to develop recipes for the day when I can have friends over again.
One of the best things to have when friends come over is a great burger. Sadly, in my opinion, great burgers are a thing of the past. To prevent E. coli bacteria from making you sick, you need to cook burgers to well done. They just aren’t as juicy as I would like.
Add to that, if you are cooking burgers, you are tied to the grill and don’t spend time with your friends.
I’ve had this crazy idea. Fatties are moist because they are stuffed and wrapped in bacon. Could you use them to get a juicy burger without putting your friends at risk of a food born infection? Also, the fact you make them ahead would mean that you would just have more time to spend with your friends. They'd just make up their buns and you'd put a slice of fatty on the bun.
I deliberately kept the fillings to a minimum. I didn't want a stuffing that would ooze out when serving the burgers. I wanted a stuffing that would add flavour and moisture to the meat. I went with mushrooms, onions and just a touch of cheese to add more fat.
I also added some bread crumbs and eggs to the beef to further keep the moisture level up.
This is how I made my Burger Party Fatty.
Mix the following in a bowl:
Cut the bottom corners out of a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag.
Put the beef mixture in the bag and seal the top. Roll the beef into an even layer that fills the back. Open the seal and cut the edges of the bag and flip it open.
Put an 18 inch (46 cm) length of wax paper on top of the beef and turn the rolled beef over. Lift the bag off.
Mix the following in a bowl:
Pinch the seam and ends to seal. Wrap the wax paper around the cylinder and freeze for 1 1/2 hours. This will stop the fatty from disforming while putting the bacon wrap on.
Sadly, the package of bacon I had was pitiful. But I managed to make a bacon weave by putting one slice of bacon vertically on the workspace. Put one slice of bacon at a ninety-degree angle with its end under the vertical slice. Put another slice under that with its end over the vertical slice. Alternate under and over slices for the full length of the vertical slice.
Fold all horizontal slices that are under the vertical slice over the vertical slice. Lay a second vertical slice next to the first and unfold the horizontal slices back over it.
Fold the horizontal slices under the second vertical slice over and place a third vertical slice next to the second. Unfold the horizontal slices.
Continue adding vertical slices for the full length of the horizontal slices.
Put the rolled beef on the bacon weave and roll it to wrap the beef.
Preheat your smoker to 250 F (120 C) and put the fatty in the smoker. Cook to an internal temperature of 155 F (68 C), about 3 1/2 hours. This is longer than my usual fatty cook due to the addition of the eggs and bread. It normally runs closer to 3 hours.
Let the beef rest for 10 minutes (the internal temperature will increase to 160 F (70 C) during the rest).
Slice the fatty to make beef patties for burgers. Add your desired toppings and enjoy!
The Verdict
This turned out great! Even though the beef was well done it had a moist texture and lots of juice from the bacon, onions, cheese, and mushrooms. The ingredients added to the beef gave it a big flavour.
Making this would mean you could visit with your guests and just pull the fatty off and slice it when they were ready to eat.
This made really great burgers!
Disco
One of the best things to have when friends come over is a great burger. Sadly, in my opinion, great burgers are a thing of the past. To prevent E. coli bacteria from making you sick, you need to cook burgers to well done. They just aren’t as juicy as I would like.
Add to that, if you are cooking burgers, you are tied to the grill and don’t spend time with your friends.
I’ve had this crazy idea. Fatties are moist because they are stuffed and wrapped in bacon. Could you use them to get a juicy burger without putting your friends at risk of a food born infection? Also, the fact you make them ahead would mean that you would just have more time to spend with your friends. They'd just make up their buns and you'd put a slice of fatty on the bun.
I deliberately kept the fillings to a minimum. I didn't want a stuffing that would ooze out when serving the burgers. I wanted a stuffing that would add flavour and moisture to the meat. I went with mushrooms, onions and just a touch of cheese to add more fat.
I also added some bread crumbs and eggs to the beef to further keep the moisture level up.
This is how I made my Burger Party Fatty.
Mix the following in a bowl:
- 125 ml (1/2 cup) breadcrumbs
- 2 lightly beaten eggs
- 20 ml (4 tsp) Dijon mustard
- 4 ml (3/4 tsp) salt
- 2 ml (1/2 tsp) pepper
- 5 ml (1 tsp) Worcestershire sauce
Cut the bottom corners out of a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag.
Put the beef mixture in the bag and seal the top. Roll the beef into an even layer that fills the back. Open the seal and cut the edges of the bag and flip it open.
Put an 18 inch (46 cm) length of wax paper on top of the beef and turn the rolled beef over. Lift the bag off.
Mix the following in a bowl:
- 175 ml (3/4 cup) fine diced onion
- 175 ml (3/4 cup) fine diced mushrooms
- 175 ml (3/4 cup) sharp cheddar cheese
Pinch the seam and ends to seal. Wrap the wax paper around the cylinder and freeze for 1 1/2 hours. This will stop the fatty from disforming while putting the bacon wrap on.
Sadly, the package of bacon I had was pitiful. But I managed to make a bacon weave by putting one slice of bacon vertically on the workspace. Put one slice of bacon at a ninety-degree angle with its end under the vertical slice. Put another slice under that with its end over the vertical slice. Alternate under and over slices for the full length of the vertical slice.
Fold all horizontal slices that are under the vertical slice over the vertical slice. Lay a second vertical slice next to the first and unfold the horizontal slices back over it.
Fold the horizontal slices under the second vertical slice over and place a third vertical slice next to the second. Unfold the horizontal slices.
Continue adding vertical slices for the full length of the horizontal slices.
Put the rolled beef on the bacon weave and roll it to wrap the beef.
Preheat your smoker to 250 F (120 C) and put the fatty in the smoker. Cook to an internal temperature of 155 F (68 C), about 3 1/2 hours. This is longer than my usual fatty cook due to the addition of the eggs and bread. It normally runs closer to 3 hours.
Let the beef rest for 10 minutes (the internal temperature will increase to 160 F (70 C) during the rest).
Slice the fatty to make beef patties for burgers. Add your desired toppings and enjoy!
The Verdict
This turned out great! Even though the beef was well done it had a moist texture and lots of juice from the bacon, onions, cheese, and mushrooms. The ingredients added to the beef gave it a big flavour.
Making this would mean you could visit with your guests and just pull the fatty off and slice it when they were ready to eat.
This made really great burgers!
Disco