The Utilitarian Press That Makes Smash Burgers At Home A Breeze
There are burgers, and then there are smash burgers. Whereas a regular burger might be valued for a thick, juicy patty so large it's hard to even take a bite, smash burgers are thin patties that are literally smashed onto a griddle. Often served as two patties in one burger, an easy smash burger recipe can be made in a pan right on your stove top, no grill required.
The thinness of the burger is its defining character, and this is achieved by smashing the patty onto the surface of your pan using a large spatula or even a bacon press. But, if you don't press hard enough you won't achieve that desired thinness with the crispy, frilly edges. Luckily one Tiktoker has come to the rescue with an ingenious hack that uses a tortilla press to essentially pre-smash your burger patties.
The concept is basically the same as making homemade tortillas. First, form your burgers into small round balls. Open the tortilla press, lay a piece of parchment paper down on it, then add the ball of ground meat. Put another sheet of parchment over the burger ball and then press down until it's flattened. When you open the tortilla press you'll have a ready-smashed patty in between the sheets of parchment, making it both easy to remove and easy to store (just stack a few parchment-covered patties on top of each other, slip into a ziploc, and pop in the fridge or freezer for later).
Some people say this isn't how to make a true smash burger
In the video this Tiktoker makes it look pretty easy. And, who doesn't like a shortcut to getting a smash burger on your plate faster?
@flavorgod Life Hack Episode 2: Tortilla Press Smash Burger Hack #lifehack #cooking #viral #recipes
Look carefully at the comments, though, and you'll see that not everyone is impressed. A number of comments point out that this shortcut essentially negates the entire smash part of the burger, because it hasn't been smashed down into the pan while cooking. A top comment in particular notes that by not actually smashing the burger while cooking you lose out on the precious Maillard reaction, which gives the smash burger its signature crispy, lacy exterior. True smash burger fans insist that without the smash, it's just a burger. A few years back the internet found itself divided over Ina Garten's smash burgers because, you guessed it, they claimed she didn't really smash them down as she cooked them.
At the end of the day, as long as the burger is delicious, does it really matter? It's up to you to decide whether or not using a tortilla press is cheating, but it does seem like a really genius way to prepare a whole bunch of smash burger patties in a short amount of time. As Ina would say, "How easy is that?"