PrintRecipe: Pimento Cheese Burgers
One of the beautiful things about burgerworld is that, despite the legion of fast-food and fast-casual chains out there, regional burger styles have managed to keep a foothold. I've talked before about the cheese-stuffed Jucy Lucy–style burgers in the Twin Cities and the butterburgers of Wisconsin, but today, I'd like to highlight pimento cheese burgers, a specialty in Columbia, South Carolina.
Prior to reading John T. Edge's book Hamburger & Fries, I'd only heard of pimento cheese being served, in the South, on stalks of celery or eaten as the filling of a sandwich. But Mr. Edge ferreted out these delicious-sounding burgers in the Palmetto State.
Here's a recipe, adapted from Mr. Edge's book, that you might want to try this weekend.
Pimento Cheese Burgers
- serves 4 -
Edge counsels against using any condiments beyond the pimento cheese. It will be enough, he says.
Ingredients
For the pimento cheese:
24 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 (4 ounce) jar diced pimentos, drained
1 teaspoon dried, rubbed sage
1 tablespoon black pepper
2 tablespoons scallions, chopped
Pinch of sugar (or more to taste)
1/3 cup mayonnaise
For the burgers:
1 pound ground chuck
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
4 buns
Lettuce and tomato (optional)
Procedure
1. Combine the cheddar, pimentos, sage, pepper, scallions, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the mayo, working the mixture into a chunky paste. Chill mixture if not using immediately, but remove it from the fridge a before you start cooking your burgers because it needs some time to soften.
2. Combine the chuck, salt, and pepper in a bowl, working the meat just enough to thoroughly mix in the salt and pepper (too much handling makes for tough burgers). Form meat into 4 equal-size patties. Heat a heavy skillet or grill to medium-high heat. Cook over heat 3 to 4 minutes (for medium-rare) on each side.
3. Slather buns with pimento cheese spread, add cooked patties, and top with lettuce and/or tomato, if desired.
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3 Comments:
A fine post and I hope some readers from here and A Hamburger Today try one this weekend, (I admit as soon as I saw the title I knew what I was having for dinner, it helps that my vegan girlfriend is out of town on work for the weekend).
They get a lot of trash talk and funny looks from many to whom I rhapsodize about the glories these burgers, but what can I say, I savor the pimento cheese burger in all it's splendor, especially with some homemade pimento cheese. I prefer grated cheddar and grated American in my pimento cheese probably because that's how my grandma made it and I like the texture a bit more that way. Some people just have nothing but hate for the pimento cheese because of the processed cheese and mayonnaise used in grocery store varieties, but for me, a little bit of the American cheese works well to mellow the cheddar a bit. Plus I loved summer lunches with my grandma after working in the garden: pimento cheese sandwich on pumpernickel bread with iced sun-tea and a side of Fritos from nearby San Antonio.
When I drove through S. Carolina for the first time I have to say I was humbled by the genius of spreading pimento cheese on a burger. The partially melted, gooey pimento cheese works perfect on the burger [for me I like it when it has a chance to mingle with the hot burger so it melts a bit, and although I think lettuce and tomato are a must, I agree that adding any more condiments is superfluous, just make sure you slather on enough of the pimento cheese].
How could it not have spread beyond S. C. I wondered. Hadn't even seen nor heard of it in N. C.? Do you know are they available or popular outside S. C. at all? I don't know if Mr. Edge discusses it in his book.
intheyearofthepig at 2:09PM on 07/06/07
John T. Edge does discuss it in his book, and his words are similar to yours. He laments the fact that it remains a regional item and says that he proselytizes for it wherever he goes. Here's hoping this helps you and him spread the word. I'll try making one soon and will post some pix from the experiment.
Adam Kuban at 3:22PM on 07/06/07
Believe it or not, pimento cheese burgers are popular all over the south, as are plain old pimento cheese sandwiches. My mother always gets pimento cheese dogs at The Varsity in Atlanta, and I know they've got burgers too. I can't say I'm as crazy about pimento cheese as she is. Here's an article from January that references a couple of Atlanta pimento cheeseburger spots: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6877304
em at 1:31PM on 07/09/07