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Cheeseburger

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For other uses, see Cheeseburger (disambiguation).
Cheeseburger
Cheeseburger
CourseMain course
Place of originUnited States
Serving temperatureHot
Main ingredientsGround beef patty, Cheese, bread buns
Food energy
(per serving)
600-1500 kcal (-5680 kJ)

A cheeseburger is a hamburger with cheese. Traditionally, the cheese is placed on top of the patty, but the burger can include many variations in structure, ingredients and composition. The term itself is a portmanteau of the words "cheese" and "hamburger." The cheese is usually sliced, and then added to the cooking hamburger patty shortly before the patty is completely cooked which allows the cheese to melt. Cheeseburgers are often served with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, mustard, mayonnaise or ketchup.

In fast food restaurants, the cheese used is typically processed cheese, but there are variations, such as cheddar, Swiss cheese, mozzarella, blue cheese and pepper jack. When cheese is added to a burger the nutritional value of the burger can be changed substantially. For example, a slice of Cheddar cheese can add 95 calories and 4.5 grams of saturated fat to a burger.[1] Other types and amounts of cheese would have varying effects, depending on their nutritional content.

History

Adding cheese to hamburgers became popular in the mid-1920s to mid-1930s, and there are several competing claims as to who created the first cheeseburger. Lionel Sternberger is reputed to have invented the cheeseburger in the mid-1920s at the age of 16 when 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."[2][3][4][5][6]

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 chile for 25 cents.[7]

Other restaurants say they invented the cheeseburger. For example, Kaelin's Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, say they invented the cheeseburger in 1934.[8] One year later, a trademark for the name "cheeseburger" was awarded to Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver, Colorado.[9] According to Steak 'n Shake archives, the restaurant's founder, Gus Belt, applied for a trademark on the word in the 1930s.[10][11][12]

Variations

Main article: Regional variations of hamburgers
A Burger King "Quad Stacker" cheeseburger, containing four patties and bacon.

Ingredients

The ingredients used to create cheeseburgers follow similar patterns found in the regional variations of hamburgers. Popular regional toppings can include bacon, avocado or guacamole, sliced sautéed mushrooms or onions, cheese sauce and/or chili. Somewhat less common ingredients include egg, feta cheese, salsa, jalapeños and other kinds of chile peppers, anchovies, slices of ham or bologna, horseradish, sauerkraut, pastrami or teriyaki-seasoned beef, tartar sauce, french fries, onion rings, potato chips, a pat of butter, pineapple and tofu.

A cheeseburger may have more than one hamburger patty and more than one slice of cheese. A stack of two patties is called a double cheeseburger; a triple cheeseburger has three, and a quadruple has four.[13][14]

Religious and regional

Israel

Further information: McDonald's Israel

Traditionally, the cheeseburger is not kosher as it combines ground beef and cheese. Mixtures of milk and meat (Hebrew: בשר בחלב, basar bechalav, literally "meat in milk") are prohibited according to Jewish law - Halakha (Hebrew: הלכה). This dietary law, basic to kashrut (Hebrew: כַּשְׁרוּת), is based on a verse in the Book of Exodus which forbids "boiling a (kid) goat in its mother's milk".[15][16] This prohibition appears again in Deuteronomy.[17] This dietary law sparked controversy in Jerusalem when McDonald's began opening franchises there that sold cheeseburgers.[18] Since that time, McDonald's has opened both kosher and non-kosher restaurants in Israel.[19]

New York City

In an attempt to provide a "kosher cheeseburger", a kosher restaurant in New York City created a controversial cheeseburger variation which replaces cheese with soy cheese.[20]

See also

Famous specialty hamburgers that regularly come with cheese:

References

  1. ^ "Nutrition Information for: Cheeseburger". FitDay.com. FitDay. Retrieved 2010-02-11.
  2. ^ "Lionel Clark Sternberg obituary". Time. 1964-02-07. Retrieved 2007-05-18. …at the hungry age of 16, [Sternberger] experimentally dropped a slice of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger while helping out at his father's sandwich shop in Pasadena, thereby inventing the cheeseburger…
  3. ^ Harvey, Steve (1991-03-27). "Only in L.A.". L.A. Times. p. B2. Cooking at his father's short-order joint in Pasadena in the early 1920s, [Sternberger] experimentally tossed a slice (variety unknown) on a hamburger...
  4. ^ Perry, Charles (2004-06-09). "It's an L.A. Thing; Our burgers are the best with good reason: We made them here first". L.A. Times. p. F1.
  5. ^ "Yes, it was invented in Pasadena! Probably. Tracing the cheeseburger from inception to Bob's Big Boy". Pasadena Sun. 2012-01-13. Retrieved 2012-05-13.
  6. ^ "The Tale of the Cheeseburger". San Gabriel Valley Tribune. 1999-06-23. Retrieved 2012-05-13.
  7. ^ "Old Menus Tell the History of Hamburgers in L.A." Metropolitan News-Enterprise. 2004-01-15. Retrieved 2012-05-13.
  8. ^ "Louisville Facts & Firsts - LouisvilleKy.gov". City of Louisville, Kentucky. Retrieved 2006-07-29.
  9. ^ History of the Cheeseburger Retrieved on 2 October 2008.
  10. ^ Flick Fact 2/20/2012 Monday Retrieved on 21 February 2012.
  11. ^ Our 'Top 5 List' of little-known facts about Bloomington-Normal Retrieved on 21 February 2012.
  12. ^ Steak 'n Shake vs Burger King, Memorandum and Order Retrieved on 21 February 2012.
  13. ^ "In-N-Out Burgers: With an emphasis on quality, this fast feeder shows its rare appeal. (Regional Powerhouse Chains)". Nation's Restaurant News. 2002-01-28. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  14. ^ Hall, David (2006-10-24). "Society's fast food intake reeks". Daily Skiff. DailySkiff.com. Retrieved 2010-02-13.
  15. ^ Exodus 34:26
  16. ^ Exodus 23:19
  17. ^ Deuteronomy 14:21
  18. ^ Bronner, Ethan (1995-09-03). "Big Mac under attack in Jerusalem As McDonald's rings up sales of nonkosher burgers, outcry on `cultural identity' heard". Boston Globe. bostonglobe.com. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
  19. ^ "Will residents of Jerusalem get to bite a kosher Big Mac?". J. the Jewish News Weekly of Northern California Magazine. jweekly.com. 2001-12-21. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
  20. ^ Montefinise, Angela (2008-03-02). "Jews Have A Beef". New York Post. nypost.com. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
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