Breaking Ground: Use Shaved Beef for Excellent Burgers (Patreon)

Can the classic American hamburger be improved by ditching the ground beef and going for shaved?

Of all the memorable meals that Tessa and I had while in Oaxaca over the New Year, the one that most made me want to immediately jump into the kitchen and start experimenting was the carne asada taco that we had at La Boveda, the restaurant inside the beautiful Hotel Casona Sforza on the Oaxacan coast.

Don't get me wrong—the wealth of delicious local ingredients, interesting techniques, and intense flavors we experienced in Oaxaca was simply staggering, but this is the one dish that made me completely rethink a food I'm deeply familiar with: Hamburgers.

What was special about it?

Take a look:

Those deeply crusted, dark brown edges at first glance resemble the crust on a good smash burger. The cooking process is similar; The difference is in how the meat is prepared. I spoke with the chef, Andres Trujillo, who told me that they start by shaving beef ribeye paper thin on a slicer (the same preparation used for Philadelphia-style cheesesteaks) before smashing it onto a plancha. The result is meat with an insanely crisp, flavorful crust, but plenty of juicy, fatty bits running through the middle, and just a little bit more chew and textural variance than a burger made with ground beef.

In taco form it was outstanding, but my mind immediately started thinking: how would this taste as a smash burger?

It was easy to find out: delicious.

To make mine, I started with shaved beef that I bought from the Chinese supermarket, where it's sold to be dipped into Chinese hot pot or shabu shabu. There is a wide variety of cuts available. I tested this technique out with various combinations of shaved ribeye, shaved brisket, and shaved round, but what I found worked best was chuck roll, which has the deepest flavor and highest fat content of everything I found there. Chuck can be tough to eat as a steak, but shaved thin, it becomes melt-in-your-mouth tender.

Did I need to use A5 wagyu chuck roll for this particular burger? Nope. Was it worth it? Yes.

What was really remarkable was how well the burger holds its texture compared to one made with ground beef. While ground beef can show a hint of crispness, it typically softens and loses that crunch very fast. This burger, on the other hand, is audibly crunchy when you bite into it, and it stays that way.

To make it, I followed basic smashburger technique, but rather than forming a ball of ground beef to start, I shaped a pile of shaved beef into a patty before seasoning it with salt and pepper and pressing it down onto a hot, greaseless skillet (there’s plenty of fat in the meat that renders as it cooks).

I tried making a few Oklahoma onion burger-style–style (NYT paywall on that link), with a pile of thinly shaved onions pressed into the top of the patty as the bottom sears. They were great, but things really got interesting when I mixed those onions with some thinly sliced kimchi.

A slice of American cheese, some good pickles, a bun toasted with rendered beef fat, and some Kewpie mayo were all it needed.

Frankly, this may have become my new favorite way to make a burger.

Frankly, this may have become my new favorite way to make a burger. And stay tuned, because I'll be sharing a second recipe using this same technique to make flavor-packed cheesesteaks as well.

Recipe: Shaved Beef Smashburgers (with Kimchi Onions)

Every recipe I publish here is personally tested, tasted, and approved.

What I love about this recipe:

Using shaved beef instead of gound gives you more textural variance and bite.

Letting the burger cook most of the way through on one side allows you to maximize browning and crispness.

Yield: Makes 1 burgerActive Time: 5 minutesTotal Time: 5 minutesNotes: You can find shaved beef at Asian supermarkets. Use beef sliced as thin as you can find it, intended for shabu shabu or hot pot. I prefer using highly marbled cuts like shaved chuck roll, but leaner meat will work as well.

Ingredients

Three ounces (about 85g) thinly shaved beef, such as chuck roll or ribeye (see note)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 ounces (about 55g) thinly shaved yellow onion

1 ounce (about 28g) thinly sliced cabbage kimchi

1 sliced American cheese

1 soft burger bun

Mayonnaise (such as Kewpie)

Pickle chips

Method

Make the patty and kimchi onions: Pack the meat into a patty about the width of the burger bun. Season with salt and pepper. Use a spatula to flip the patty and season the second side. Combine the onion and kimchi in a small bowl and toss with your fingertips until homogenous.

Sear the patty: Preheat a small skillet over high heat until a bead of water dances around it as soon as you drop it in. Place the patty in the skillet. It should sizzle and smoke immediately. Press down on the edges gently to ensure good contact. Pile the onions and kimchi on top of the patty and press gently.

Flip and finish: Cook until the first side of the patty is deeply browned and crusty, about 1 minute. Using a thin metal spatula, carefully flip the patty so that it lies on top of the kimchi onions. Top with a slice of cheese. Reduce heat to medium and cook until the onions are frizzled around the edges and everything is piping, hot, about 2 minutes longer.

Meanwhile, toast the buns: While the patties and onions cook, use a spoon to spread some of the rendered fat from the pan onto the cut surfaces of a burger bun. Broil or toast until browned and crisp.

Assemble and eat: Spread some Kewpie mayo on each bun half. Lay some pickled on top of the burger and, using a thin metal spatula, transfer it to the bottom bun. Close the burger and serve immediately.