Zuni Café’s Hamburger

Name: Zuni Café’s Hamburger
Total time: 1 d 1 h
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: american
Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds boneless beef chuck, well marbled; 1 generous teaspoon kosher salt; Focaccia (see recipe); Small-batch aioli (see recipe); Red oak leaf or other lettuce leaves, for garnish; Zucchini pickles (see recipe); Red onion pickles (see recipe)

Recipe from Judy Rodgers

Adapted by David Tanis

Updated Jan. 31, 2022

Zuni Café’s Hamburger — David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Total Time: 1 hour, plus up to 24 hours for salting
Rating: 4(306)
Comments: Read comments

Made to exacting standards, the hamburger at Zuni Café, in San Francisco, is legendary. First, grass-fed beef is salted well in advance of grinding, which gives the meat its succulence. Grilled over coals and flipped three times to prevent it from overcharring or becoming tough, the patty is rested, like a roast. It is then served on a toasted square of rosemary focaccia, smeared with handmade aioli and accompanied by Zuni’s acclaimed house pickles: fuchsia-red onion rings and turmeric-tinged sliced zucchini. It is wonderful on its own, but toppings like Shelburne Farms Cheddar, Bayley Hazen blue cheese, grilled onions or portobello mushroom are also available, and most customers can’t resist a heaping plate of shoestring potatoes alongside. It’s perfectly possible to make these burgers at home, but know that the full project involves several recipes, so it’s probably best to spread the work out over a few days. —David Tanis

Featured in: Zuni Café at 40: Still a Home for the Eclectic

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

For the Patties

1½pounds boneless beef chuck, well marbled
1generous teaspoon kosher salt

To Serve

Focaccia (see recipe)
Small-batch aioli (see recipe)
Red oak leaf or other lettuce leaves, for garnish
Zucchini pickles (see recipe)
Red onion pickles (see recipe)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

Step 1
Cut meat into 1-inch chunks or strips. Sprinkle with salt, tossing to coat well, and refrigerate, covered, for about 8 hours or up to 24 hours.
Step 2
Assemble your meat grinder, using the grinder plate with 3/16-inch holes. Chill the grinder in a bowl of ice water for 30 minutes or refrigerate for several hours. With motor set to medium speed, drop cold meat into grinding tube and let the machine pull pieces through (resist forcing the meat through with pushing tool) into a chilled bowl. Grind the meat twice. (You may also hand-chop the meat in small batches or use a food processor with a very sharp blade, but the patties will be a bit more fragile.)
Step 3
Working quickly, form 6-ounce patties by hand, first making spheres, then flattening them to a ¾-inch thickness. Press patties slightly thinner in the middle. (This ensures an even thickness in the finished burgers.) Keep patties refrigerated until ready to cook.
Step 4
If grilling, prepare your coals. Grill patties over medium-hot coals, flipping them three times to make sure they don’t char. A cold 6-ounce patty will take about 9 minutes for a rosy medium-rare. Rest for 2 to 3 minutes off the heat, as you would a roast, before serving. If using a preheated cast-iron pan over medium heat, cook burgers for about 10 minutes, also flipping three times, plus resting.
Step 5
To serve, warm a piece of focaccia for each burger and split the bread horizontally. Smear the bottom half with a dab of aioli, the add lettuce leaves and the cooked burger. Top with the other half of the focaccia. Serve with zucchini pickles and red onion pickles.

Ratings

4 out of 5

306 user ratings

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Private Notes

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Comments

John Dinsmore6 years ago

In my experience, a good food processor grinds meat quite well. Cube meat into 3/4 - 1 in cubes and freeze until stiff but not frozen. About 30 min. Process in small batches - large handful? - dump out and pick out any undesirable bits. Focaccia is a very hydrated and somewhat sticky dough, but you can knead it with lightly greased hands. It was made that way long before appliances. Happy cooking!~

Carol6 years ago

so for those of us without dough hooks to make the focaccia, and electric meat grinders, can you suggest some alternative prep advice? Not everyone has a fancy kitchen with expensive appliances. So many recipes look tempting but also daunting with the necessary gear

Buck3806 years ago

1987, sitting at the bar with a sublime margarita, watching Robin Williams and Christopher Reeve sweep through the room and mince up Zuni's dramatic staircase in matching jeans, to rapturous applause. Good times.

Kathie2 years ago

Please? Please a video so I can make it??? Thank you! XO

Janet3 years ago

Once I got the hang of mincing meat in a food processor, I stopped buying ground meat. The result is so much better, whatever you plan to cook with it. If the meat has been frozen, however, you will want to let the cubes dry on a rack in the refrigerator before proceeding. Otherwise, it will steam rather than sear in the pan. (Thank you, Kenji!) My ragu finally tastes like my mother's! She ground chuck in a manual grinder that she clamped to the kitchen table.

Dennis3 years ago

The pickles make an average burger great, and last a long time. Start by just making the pickles, to have on hand. Pickles pickles pickles. So good.

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