The Basics: How to Make a Bacon Cheeseburger

Published on Thursday, June 5, 2008, by CHOW Food Team / Edit Post

The Basics: How to Make a Bacon Cheeseburger

Pan-fried in bacon grease

From the store to the kitchen to the table: We outline the steps that get you from something raw to something cooked using simple ingredients, free of measurements and complicated techniques. A method that you can have in your back pocket and whip out whenever you like. We call it recipe-free cooking.

Print PDF

View All Steps At Once

Step 1 >>

You'll need:

Go to Step 1

  • a frying pan
  • a knife
  • a spatula
  • two slices of bacon
  • 4 ounces of lean ground beef
  • salt and pepper
  • toppings and condiments of your choice (e.g., onion, lettuce, tomato, pickle, mustard, mayo, ketchup)
  • one hamburger bun
  • two slices of your favorite cheese

Illustrations by Bill Russell

ALLThe Basics
POST A COMMENT |27 Comments

COMMENT

  • Bacon grease makes everything better when you cook in it; pancakes, french toast, sandwiches, etc.

  • pay no attention to that crazy person, wild_orchid, behind the curtain... use the bacon grease from the bacon that already going on the burger, so you're not really technically getting anything extra... ahhh i love the sound of arteries hardening in the morning. :-)

  • Do you have ANY consideration for our health??? Cooking the burger in BACON GREASE??? WOW...I can hear the arteries hardening already!! The meat has enough fat in it (even if you use extra-lean ground beef) to be placed in the pan WITHOUT any oil, butter, or grease of any kind. And it will taste just as good...maybe even BETTER because you know you're eating something relatively healthy. HEALTHY...+READ

    Do you have ANY consideration for our health??? Cooking the burger in BACON GREASE??? WOW...I can hear the arteries hardening already!! The meat has enough fat in it (even if you use extra-lean ground beef) to be placed in the pan WITHOUT any oil, butter, or grease of any kind. And it will taste just as good...maybe even BETTER because you know you're eating something relatively healthy. HEALTHY FOOD IS GOOD FOOD TOO!!!-COLLAPSE

  • I see that Chow has gone seasonal for passover, putting this up now. I approve.

  • bison is fine, but I recommend grinding some pork fat or beef fat with it. You can do this with any lean meat like venison too. Otherwise you get bison hockeypucks.

    Another trick I use is after cooking the burger in bacon grease, drain off the excess fat, leaving just a film in the bottom of the pan, and then toast your buns, cut side down in the remaining fat. Sure it's decadent, but we're...+READ

    bison is fine, but I recommend grinding some pork fat or beef fat with it. You can do this with any lean meat like venison too. Otherwise you get bison hockeypucks.

    Another trick I use is after cooking the burger in bacon grease, drain off the excess fat, leaving just a film in the bottom of the pan, and then toast your buns, cut side down in the remaining fat. Sure it's decadent, but we're already having a bacon cheeseburger, right?

    Also if you want to speed up the cooking and the melting of the cheese, but a pot lid over the pan, or take an frying pan of equal size and put it upside down over the bottom pan. This locks in the heat and moisture (not to mention cuts down on grease spatter) and gives you a juicy burger even faster.

    Also, those toasted onion kaiser rolls make perfect hamburger buns!-COLLAPSE

  • with by becon burger ADD: blue cheese, barbeq sauce and mustard in a bowl mix together and spead on the bun YUM YUM YUM

  • Why do you people dislike lean ground beef but recommend bison, which is supposedly leaner than beef?

  • Oh yeah....and don't use the highest fat meat or the lowest fat meat....use the middle of the road meat (ground beef). Low fat is too dry and high fat tends to shrink up.

  • I've made my burgers like this for years:
    Fry the bacon and drain; crumble/break into smaller pieces so that when you take a bite (of your burger), you don't drag the whole slice of bacon off into your mouth or have to gnaw on it like a beaver to get thru it.
    Leave the grease in skillet and sprinkle black pepper and seasoned salt in the cast iron skillet.
    Place your thick, big, and very round...+READ

    I've made my burgers like this for years:
    Fry the bacon and drain; crumble/break into smaller pieces so that when you take a bite (of your burger), you don't drag the whole slice of bacon off into your mouth or have to gnaw on it like a beaver to get thru it.
    Leave the grease in skillet and sprinkle black pepper and seasoned salt in the cast iron skillet.
    Place your thick, big, and very round meat patties in skillet.
    Sprinkle top of patties with black pepper and seasoned salt.
    Cook/Fry at medium heat, turning occasionally until cooked to desired doneness. Place cheese (real) on patties when done.
    When patties are done, place buns under broiler or butter and grill or place under broiler to get some crunch.
    Put condiments on bottom bun, then burger, then bacon, then your favorite toppings, and then more condiments.
    Best darn burger you'll ever taste.-COLLAPSE

  • sorry my correct email is chippie.2@hotmail.com i made an error in typing

  • Toasted ciabatta is the perfect alternative to a bun! It adds taste and texture and lightly toasting stops it all going soggy. There is a 'posh burger' recipe in the recipe section of www.thebigblackpudding.com

  • my email is chippie.@hotmail,com if you want to share cooking

  • roasted over a open fire on a grill and it is yummy we even cook dear same way here and kangeroo and rabbits

  • You're welcome - what's the best way to cook / serve brahman bull meat?

  • Thanks for telling me that we have them here but call them brahman bull they live in the hills and meat is very tender

  • Chippie: Here's a link to some information about Bison: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bison

  • Can I ask 1 question please what is BISON I have never heard that name before in Australia.

  • Correction on Step 3 -- DO NOT spread the condiments on the bun this early! Well, not unless you want a soggy bun. Add the condiments last.

  • More on bison: http://www.chow.com/stories/11016
    plus a bison bacon cheeseburger: http://www.chow.com/recipes/11602

  • Ground bison is my first choice for a burger these days. Because it is lean, you just have to keep things on the rare side, otherwise you'll have a bison hockey puck.

  • Sounds nice but I would cook it on a B.B.Q and instead of beef I would use some good Australian kangeroo mince and maybe add some fresh home made garlic sauce and serve with a nice glass of chilled red wine or a nice cold beer

  • I agree with Vinosnob. "Lean ground beef" sounds delicious but it isn't, especially in a grilled hamburger from which a lot of the fat melts and ends up in the fire or on the grill. "Fat" equals "juicy" for hamburgers. Therefore, you need to have a lot of it in the burger to start. Twenty percent fat (or "80% lean," as Publix likes to put it) is more like it and represents the standard amount of...+READ

    I agree with Vinosnob. "Lean ground beef" sounds delicious but it isn't, especially in a grilled hamburger from which a lot of the fat melts and ends up in the fire or on the grill. "Fat" equals "juicy" for hamburgers. Therefore, you need to have a lot of it in the burger to start. Twenty percent fat (or "80% lean," as Publix likes to put it) is more like it and represents the standard amount of fat in garden variety ground beef.

    Also, if you select a beef cut and have the butcher grind it there for you, the meat is moister and tastes better. The recipe above does not address that.-COLLAPSE

  • "lean ground beef"??

    That's a bad idea; one of the best things about a burger is the juiciness and you won't get that with lean meat.

    My current favorite burger is made with ground bison. It's slightly leaner than beef, but still retains a ton of flavor.

  • Wow, I find the picture of all the raw ingredients assembled as a burger to look disturbingly tasty.

  • mw: you want it crispity or chewy - that's what it comes down to.

  • I notice Chow doesn't follow it's own advice about cooking bacon. In one of Chow's "You're Doing it All Wrong" pieces, the guy says bacon should be cooked on low heat - not medium - and that it should take 20 minutes - not eight.

  • Pretty tasty looking. I'd add some spices to the ground beef before cooking it, though; Herbs and spices and maybe some garlic.