Burgers on Bruce loves to cook

Forming burger patties

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A burger patty is ground meat, portioned and shaped, and almost nothing else. Its texture comes from how little you handle it, and its size decides everything after it: how it cooks, how much of it ends up as crust, and which bun it fits. Most burgers here use thin patties, because a thin patty is mostly crust and a burger is mostly about crust.

Seasoning burgers

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Salt only ever touches the outside of a burger patty made with ground beef or pork. Mixed into raw mince, salt pulls out moisture and binds the proteins, the same way it does in sausage, and the patty comes out dense and springy instead of loose and crumbly. Season the surface, either as the patty hits the pan or as it comes off.

Cooking the patties

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

There are many ways to cook a burger patty. I prefer a patty with a crust, so that’s what I’ll outline.

A burger patty cooks for its crust. The surface has to be hot enough to brown the meat before the thin patty overcooks, so the pan is hotter than for almost anything else, and the patty stays still until it’s ready to flip. Done is medium to medium-well, never tough.

Assembling burgers

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The patty brings salt, fat, and savoury depth. Everything else on the burger is there to contrast it: something cold and crunchy (lettuce, raw onion, pickle) and something sharp (onion, mustard, pickle, vinegar). Skip the cold crunch and the burger is one note. Skip the sharpness and it turns heavy by the third bite. Get both, on a bun that fits, and even a mediocre patty works.

Sauces and condiments

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A burger sauce adds sweetness, acid, and sharpness, and sometimes fat. There are two ways to get there: keep the condiments separate and let them meet on the burger, or blend them into one spread. Either way, the sauce sits against the bread, where it soaks in, and it shouldn’t drown the onion and pickle.

The Bruce burger

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The burger I make at home. It starts from [[The Whopper]]: one wide patty with everything cold stacked on top. The technique comes from the [[White Spot burger]]: a thin griddled patty, seasoned after it cooks, built deluxe. Every part is there because I tested the alternatives and they lost.

Mozza burger

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A&W Canada’s bacon cheeseburger, built around mozzarella instead of cheddar. Mozzarella is mild and milky, so the sauce does the work: Mozza sauce, a creamy, tangy spread of mayo, relish, and chili sauce, goes on both buns. Bacon, lettuce, and tomato fill in the rest.

Mozza burger sauce

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The classic Canadian A&W Mozza burger has a sweet sauce.

Mechanic

A mayo base with roughly half as much red relish, and a spoonful of Thousand Island to round it out. The relish brings the sweetness, sourness, and texture; the chili sauce in it gives the tomato tang that sets it apart from a plain relish mayo.

Teen burger

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The classic diner burger, as A&W Canada still makes it. One seasoned patty, real cheddar, and bacon, under every topping a diner offers: lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, ketchup, mustard, and Teen sauce, a tangy, slightly sweet, savoury mayonnaise spread with mustard, sugar, and spices. The seasoning is what makes it taste like a Teen: Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, not plain salt.

The Whopper

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The big fast-food burger. One wide, flame-grilled patty, and above it everything cold: pickles, raw onion, ketchup, tomato, and lettuce, with mayo on both halves of a toasted sesame bun. The char from the grill is what sets it apart from the griddled burgers. I made these for about five years as a teen, and they’re the base of the burger I make at home today: [[The Bruce burger]].

Big Boy burger

Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

I’ve never liked the Big Mac, but I once tried a Big Boy burger. It feels like an old-school, club-sandwich take on the Big Mac, but it’s closer to a diner burger, so it has real texture and sharpness. I admit I still don’t get the middle bun, but when in Rome.

McDouble burger

Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The [[Fast-food double burger]] as one chain fixed it, and the cheapest way to eat two patties. Two thin patties, one slice of cheese between them, and the fast-food condiments: ketchup, mustard, sour pickles, and onion. Nothing cold or crunchy and nothing optional. Every part is there because it’s cheap, fast, and the same every time.

Oklahoma fried onion burger

Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The fried onion burger is a classic diner burger; sweet, savoury, and simple.

Mechanic

The onion is smashed into the patty, not cooked beside it. A ball of beef goes on a hot griddle under a pile of paper-thin onion, and a heavy press drives the onion into the meat. The beef browns underneath while the onion steams in its juices on top; after the flip, the onion fries in the beef fat until it’s sweet and browned at the edges. Use about 2 parts beef to 1 part onion by weight: less onion and it’s a smash burger with a garnish, more and the patty won’t hold together. The onion has to be sliced paper thin, or it won’t cook through before the beef is done.

Pub burger

Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This build is the opposite of the smash. Where the griddled burgers press a little beef thin for crust, the pub burger keeps a lot of beef thick for juice: one hand-formed patty, cooked so the centre stays moist, on a toasted soft bun that can hold it. The toppings stay simple and savoury so the beef leads. It’s built to be a hearty meal on its own plate, with a knife beside it and chips on the side.

Smash burger

Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This build is all crust. Each patty is a cold ball of beef smashed thin on a very hot griddle, so the whole underside browns at once and the edges go lacy and crisp. Thin patties have little bulk, so they’re stacked two (or three) high with cheese melted between them. Onion goes under the patties, pickles and sauce on top.

Drive-in deluxe burger

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is a variation of the [[White Spot burger]], the drive-in and diner burger I grew up with. I love onions, so it has two kinds.

The build works because everything above the patty is cold, crunchy, sharp, or sour, and the patty below brings the salt, fat, and savoury depth. It’s [[The Bruce burger]] with the drive-in’s two sauces in place of mayo and mustard.

Fast-food double burger

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is the rich build. Where the drive-in deluxe is all contrast, this one leans into salt and fat: two thin, soft patties with a slice of processed cheese melted between them. Pickles, ketchup, mustard, and onion keep it from going heavy. It’s the one case where American cheese earns its place on a burger.

Grilled onion burger

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This build is about one ingredient: onion, cooked down in the beef fat until it’s sweet. Where the drive-in deluxe gets its contrast from cold crunch, this one is sweet and savoury with one soft, even texture. I make these occasionally, especially if I happen to be prepping [[French onion soup]].

The impossible quest for the perfect chicken burger

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

According to r/burgers, most chicken burgers are not burgers:

A chicken sandwich contains an entire piece of chicken or filet, rather [sic] a ground and blended patty. A pulled chicken sandwich is also not a burger.

The quest for the perfect burger

Sun, 27 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

My first restaurant job was flipping burgers, and I loved it. Not just the job, the food. Standing at a griddle all shift taught me what I actually wanted from a burger: crunchy, fresh veg, a thin patty, and flavours that didn’t hide.

In-N-Out burger spread

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Sometimes I’m craving a diner-style griddle burger with a classic hamburger sauce. This is a fairly close match to a popular burger chain that hasn’t made it to our region yet.

Burger night costing (2022)

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Ingredient costs and menu pricing from a home burger night, 2022.

Ingredient costs

Ingredient	Package price	Unit	Portion	Cost/portion
Beef	$10.12/kg	kg	120g	$1.21
Buns	$7.34/doz	doz	1	$0.61
Pickles	$15.99/4L	4L	5g	$0.02
Cheese	$99/case	slice	1	$0.15
Onion	$0.016/g	g	5g	$0.08
Ketchup	$0.004/ml	ml	6ml	$0.02
Mustard	$0.003/ml	ml	3.5ml	$0.01
Lettuce	$0.002/g	g	5g	$0.01
Tomato	$0.008/g	g	15g	$0.12
Bacon	$20.50/kg	kg	50g	$1.03
Chicken	$18.49/kg	kg	130g	$2.40
Potato	$0.002/g	g	175g	$0.35
Cheese curds	$0.020/g	g	50g	$0.98
Gravy	$0.001/g	g	50g	$0.06

Menu pricing (single burger)

Item	Food cost	Price at 20% food cost	Actual price	Actual food cost %
Deluxe	$2.08	$10.40	$8	26%
Cheese	$2.23	$11.15	$9	25%
Cheese + Bacon	$3.26	$16.30	$10	33%
Chicken	$3.27	$16.35	$15	22%
Fries	$0.35	$1.75	$5	7%
Poutine	$1.39	$6.95	$10	14%

Chef John’s hamburger buns

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Based on a recipe from Fooooood Wishes Dot Com. If you didn’t sing that in your head, go find John’s videos on YouTube and watch them until you do.

Even on your first try, these buns are better than what you can find in most markets, mostly because they’re fresh and you have to work for them.

Pan-fried chicken burger

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is a sort of copy-cat recipe of the BK classic chicken sandwich, which is a lightly breaded, pepper-forward, minced patty made from mostly white meat. I like them with fresh onion, mustard, lettuce, pickles, tomatoes, and mayonnaise. The goal is something with a few layers of crunch, some bite, and a good kick of savoury fatty goodness.

Turkey burgers

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

It can be difficult to make turkey into a great burger without some extra oomph. This recipe uses extras packed with flavour to add savouriness, improve texture, and help browning.

Vegan burger

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A hearty bean, nut, and mushroom burger. The vital wheat gluten gives it a savoury chew, so it holds together in the pan instead of crumbling.

Ingredients

1 cup walnuts and/or cashews, chopped
1 cup black beans, chopped or mashed
1 cup chickpeas, chopped or mashed
1 onion, diced
225 g (8 oz) mushrooms, diced
1 cup oats, pulsed in a food processor if you can
½ cup grated beets
½ cup vital wheat gluten
2 tbsp soy sauce
½ tbsp ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, diced, or ½ tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp vegan mayonnaise
1 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
¼ tsp liquid smoke
2 tbsp olive oil, plus more for frying
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper

Method

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high. Fry the mushrooms, onion, and nuts until the mushrooms have given up their liquid and everything is browning, 8–10 minutes. Add the garlic and tomato paste and fry until fragrant, about 1 minute. Let cool.

White Spot burger

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is Bruce’s take on the classic White Spot Triple “O” deluxe burger (lettuce and tomatoes make it deluxe; cheddar and bacon make it a “BC” burger).

The White Spot burgers are something like a 70:30 beef blend on a soft bun. I believe they use preformed patties these days, but I’ve found that at home a smashed 115–140 g (4–5 oz) patty works better, as you can get a nice crust on it.

Bruce's burger sauce

Sat, 31 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This is a simple, classic burger sauce.

Mechanic

A 1:1:1 ratio by volume: mayo, diced burger pickles, mustard. Kewpie in place of or alongside regular mayo adds sweetness and acidity.

McDouble

Tue, 01 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A very cravable burger. This is the closest I’ve gotten to perfecting it, along with its little sibling, the single drive-thru hamburger.

Mechanic

The McDouble is built on two thin patties, a single slice of cheese between them, and a sharp dressing ratio. Double-grinding the beef (or triple-grinding, for softer still) is what gives the patty its soft, almost pillowy texture rather than a coarse, chewy one. The seasoning is a 4:2:1 ratio of salt, MSG, and black pepper by weight, plus 0.25 parts onion powder if you like.

Chicken patties

Sun, 01 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

I love chicken sandwiches. The ground chicken patties bread nicely, but are also great on their own.

Mechanic

Two separate formulas. The brine is for whole breast fillets pounded thin: the vinegar tenderizes and the salt firms the texture. The ground chicken follows a percentage formula per kilogram, which scales cleanly for larger batches. Added water and a little baking soda raise the pH, so the meat holds more moisture and turns springy and substantial, like Vietnamese or Chinese beef balls.