I have a confession: I have never actually been to Shake Shack. I’ve been to NY and DC, but never experienced Shake Shack in all its glory. After seeing photos of the famous burgers and crinkle fries on Instagram, I did some Googling to see what the hype is all about. Spoiler alert: it’s all about the sauce.

The Shake Shack burger has cheddar cheese, a really good bun, and of course the sauce. I used an 80/20 fat ratio in the beef – you don’t want it too lean (come on, it’s burger!), but you want a good ratio of lean to fat. Somewhere I read to freeze the burger patties for ten minutes or so immediately before placing on a hot grill because you want the meat to be cold. Also, if you want this to be really amazing, butter and grill the inside of the buns.

I am not a fan of mayo, but it is the key ingredient in the sauce and it really makes the burger special. I served the burgers with roasted asparagus, potatoes, chips and guac, and a tomato mozzarella salad.

If you want to learn more about Shake Shack’s infamous burger, read the recent article by Epicurious: ‘The Secrets to Making the Shake Shack Burger at Home.’ High quality beef, smash it, and scrape it.

Makes 4 hamburgers

BURGERS
1 pound ground beef

SHAKE SHACK SAUCE
1/4 cup mayo
1 1/2 teaspoons juice from a pickle jar
1 1/2 teaspoons ketchup
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder

4 buns (I got mine at Fresh Market)
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Cheddar cheese
Leaf lettuce
tomato slices

Form the meat into four patties and place them on a plate and freeze for ten minutes (don’t leave them in there any longer). Place them on the grill or in a hot pan over the stove with a little oil.

Make the sauce: Combine all of the ingredients.

Butter the inside of the buns and place on the grill or in a pan for 1-2 minutes.

Assemble the burgers: Place the burgers on the toasted buns. Spread the top of the buns with the sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, and onions.

Xx, Libby