the world of burgers

By the late 19th century, the vast grasslands of the Great Plains had been opened up for cattle ranching. This made it possible for many Americans to consume beef almost daily. The hamburger remains as one of the cheapest forms of beef in America.

Adding cheese to hamburgers became popular in 1920. There are several competing claims as to who created the first cheeseburger. Lionel Sternberger is reputed to have introduced the cheeseburger in 1924 at the age of 16. He was working as a fry cook at his father's Pasadena, California, sandwich shop, "The Rite Spot", and "experimentally dropped a slab of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger." An early example of the cheeseburger appearing on a menu is a 1928 menu for the Los Angeles restaurant O'Dell's which listed a cheeseburger smothered with chili for 25 cents.

Other restaurants also claim to have invented the cheeseburger. For example, Kaelin's Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, said it invented the cheeseburger in 1934. One year later, a trademark for the name "cheeseburger" was awarded to Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado. According to Steak 'n Shake archives, the restaurant's founder, Gus Belt, applied for a trademark on the word in the 1930s.

An A&W Restaurants franchise in Lansing, Michigan, is credited with inventing the bacon cheeseburger in 1963, putting it on the menu after repeated requests from the same customer.

The steamed cheeseburger, a variation almost exclusively served in central Connecticut, is believed to have been invented at a restaurant called Jack's Lunch in Middletown, Connecticut, in the 1930s.

The largest cheeseburger ever made weighed 2,014 pounds (914 kg). It is said to have included "60 pounds (27 kg) of bacon, 50 pounds (23 kg) of lettuce, 50 pounds (23 kg) of sliced onions, 40 pounds (18 kg) of pickles, and 40 pounds (18 kg) of cheese." This record was set in 2012 by Minnesota's Black Bear Casino, smashing the previous record of 881 pounds (400 kg).

In the United States, National Cheeseburger Day is celebrated annually on September 18.

So what really makes the two so different? Well, as you all are most likely aware, a classic burger is made with a thicker patty that's either been seasoned before shaping or just seasoned with salt and pepper (or not seasoned at all). They're also often cooked to medium-rare or medium, which results in a nice, pink, and super juicy center. 

As you can guess from the intro, a smash burger is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. A loosely packed ball of ground beef that's been placed on a hot pan or grill and then pressed firmly into a thin patty with a spatula or a cast iron press. The burger is usually pressed down onto the very hot cooking surface for at least 10 seconds to get a proper sear. There's not really a medium-rare in the smash burger world, but you'll know it's done when it's nice and browned (almost slightly burned) on both sides. 

Even though classic burgers are also typically grilled, they're not pressed down and flattened like smash burgers.

Everything besides the burger patty (like the bun, toppings, sides, and dipping sauces) is pretty much the same for both, depending on where you go. And of course, any version of burger deserves great sides to go with them.

Louis Camille Maillard

French chemist Louis Camille Maillard first reported the reaction between proteins and sugars in 1912. In recent decades, scientists have unearthed more of Maillard’s detailed mechanisms.

Often described as non-enzymatic browning, the Maillard reaction gives a wide range of cooked foods their appealing flavours and colours. Sped along by heat, the Maillard reaction is actually a series of reactions,starting with one between protein and a reducing sugar, such as glucose or fructose. The reactions produce flavour chemicals and browning in foods including fried onions, toast, steak and roasted coffee.