Make Your Next Burger Like Julia Child For A Meal Like No Other

Culinary titan Julia Child brought haute French cuisine to the American masses. That's hardly surprising. Between her hilarious cooking fail live on David Letterman and predilection for loads of butter, Child was nothing if not relatable. She even had a preferred method for cooking the humble hamburger.

She starts with a pound of 85% lean ground beef, which she mixes with plenty of salt and pepper. Then, she folds in a sauteed diced shallot and divides it into three or four patties (she considers four or five ounces the perfect size for a burger). She then forms a loose patty that's thin and wider than the bun. Loosely packing the meat keeps you from handling it too much and melting that precious fat; keeping it thin makes it cook faster, crisper, and just the right size for the bun.

This is where things get delicious and potentially a bit irresponsible. She preheats a cast iron pan and sprinkles salt in the bottom. That prevents the meat from sticking without adding oil, at least until the patty's natural fats start to seep out. She only cooks it for a couple of minutes on each side, preferring the burger rare, which is not in line with the United States Department of Agriculture's recommendations when it comes to pre-ground beef.

Fortunately, the USDA's recommendations against rare burgers apply primarily to pre-ground beef. That's because the act of grinding it creates more (tiny) surface areas for bacteria to grow on, so you need to cook it thoroughly. You can get around that by grinding your own meat à la Alton Brown and cooking it immediately, before that many bacteria have time to grow. Starting with a round steak is good if your goal is 85% lean, though you can also mix chuck (80%) and sirloin (90%).

To complete her burger, Child opts for a lightly toasted bun that she not-so-lightly butters (which is in no way shocking). As for toppings, that's up to you. Child says that iceberg is the only lettuce worth considering (which is correct). She's also okay with ketchup on a burger (agree to disagree) and is on board with an obscene amount of red onion. But, if you opt to follow her lead there, for everyone else's sake, grab a breath mint when you're done.