Alvin Cailan's Burger Tips

Alvin Cailan's Burger Tips 

Alvin Cailan is a high-profile chef in America's Filipino food movement. We first met Alvin at his now-legendary restaurant, Eggslut in Los Angeles, a foodie cult favorite specializing in affordable but sophisticated egg sandwiches.

Alvin hosts the wildly popular, The Burger Show, on First We Feast's YouTube channel, with episodes exceeding one million views and a wide range of guests including Seth Rogen and Padma Lakshmi. Although adept at many cuisines, burgers are Alvin’s passion. He uses Snake River Farms ground beef for numerous pop-ups including one last fall with Marshawn Lynch where they introduced the Beast Mode Burger.

An expert like Chef Cailan has made literally thousands of mouthwatering burgers and knows how to make them awesome. He sent us some of his tips to make your next burger great.

The Bun

• The best buns are soft and squishy, not hard and crusty.
• The flatter the better.
• The ratio of bun to meat is super important, a great burger shouldn’t be all bread.
• Always butter the bun before toasting.
• Only toast on the sliced side of the bun.

The Cheese

• American Cheese is the Undisputed Champion!
• Cheddar is too strong and will overtake the flavor of the patty.
• Secret tip: cold shredded cheese is a revelation for burgers.

The Condiments

• Mustard, mayo and ketchup mixed together is all you need.
• Pickles are good, make sure it’s the perfect amount and doesn’t take away from the flavor of the beef.
• Lettuce and tomatoes are not necessary.
• Onions have a great affinity with beef, cooked or raw.

The Meat

• A good burger blend comes primarily from good steer, Snake River Farms burgers are made from the best!
• The higher the fat content the juicer the burger.
• Cook thin burgers “smash” style. Smash burgers are fast, easy and are almost always cooked to perfection.
• Cook thick patties likes a steak, either on a grill cooked to medium rare or in a pan seared with herbs and garlic and basted in butter.
• DO NOT salt the patty before you form it, it will get tough and the burger will seize up.
• Season right before you cook.
• Sear, sear, sear! Crust on the patty is what makes burgers great.