Our next two recommendations have something in common: they both feature a take on the same famous American regional hamburger. Ahead of those posts, I figured it would be a good idea to tell you all about that burger, and why it’s so important.
It’s not the original hometown of the American hamburger, but there’s an argument to make that El Reno, Oklahoma is the rightful burger capital of the United States. Why? Because of one simple hamburger that was invented almost 100 years ago. Despite wholesale changes in economic circumstances, the diversity of available foods, and general societal behaviours: the Oklahoma Fried Onion Burger has retained its huge popularity both in the state that it was invented, and indeed across the planet.
It’s an incredibly simple concept. You take a ball of beef, put it on the flattop, and season with salt just like you would for any smashburger. This time, though, you cover the beef in razor thin slivers of white onion – and only then do you smash the beef down into the searing heat of the flattop. The sliced onion now merged with the beef, you give it a minute or two to let the edges of the patty begin to crisp before flipping and cooking the other side. As soon as you’ve flipped, pop a slice of American cheese on top and let that melt as the burger cooks. After another minute or two, your patty should be ready: place it inside a sliced burger bun (ideally a potato roll) with a modest spread of mustard and two pickle slices and voila. You have yourself an Oklahoma.
So what is it about this simple, unassuming sandwich that’s taken it from a hyper-regional creation to the hamburger hall of fame? As often is the case, it’s actually the simplicity of the Oklahoma that acts as its greatest asset. When made in its traditional form you get a glorious, subtly sweet taste come from the caramelised onions that acts as the perfect foil to the bitterness of the mustard. The heavy lifting, though, is done by the crisp-but-juicy smashed beef patty. Remember rule #1: the beef is always the star of the show.
Due to an oft-told urban myth that tells the story of its supposed invention, the Oklahoma is often referred to as the Depression Burger. The myth claims that it was created during America’s Great Depression in the 1930s but it actually predates that by about 7 years, having popped up at a hamburger joint in El Reno, OK as a result of the Great Railroad Strike of 1922.
400,000 railway workers across the nation walked off the job on July 1st of that year in search of better pay after their wages were cut by an average of 13% in the aftermath of World War I. In El Reno, a guy called Ross Davis had just opened Hamburger Inn which stood near a tram stop in the centre of town, and in an attempt to extend his beef supply out for longer, decided to begin smashing a large handful of finely sliced onions into the burger patty. Onions were already widely in use on burgers all over the country, and were much cheaper than beef. Ross eventually progressed to using 50% beef and 50% onions for each burger, inadvertently creating an instant classic – and due to its proximity to the tram stop, the alluring smell of onions would regularly lure customers off of the tram and to the walk-up window of the Hamburger Inn.
Over 100 years on, and Hamburger Inn is sadly no more. The legacy of the fried onion burger though lives on: every year on the first weekend of May, the streets in central El Reno are closed off so that an estimated 30,000 people can attend Fried Onion Burger Day, where the fire deparment cooks up an 850lb Oklahoma. The classic fried onion burger can be found in countless other hamburger restaurants in El Reno, with the likes of Sid’s Diner and Roberts’ Grill still serving the legendary hamburger to this day. What nobody saw coming, however, was the impact that this smalltown burger would have on the rest of the world.
Go to pretty much any major city in the UK these days and you’ll find at least one burger joint that has an Oklahoma on their menu. They’re not always entirely faithful to the original, and they’re not always very good. Sometimes the history and heritage of the burger is ignored, and it’s given a different name in order to appear more glamorous. I’m looking at you, Archie’s. I know you’re far more interested in style over substance, and creating some kind of social media-friendly aesthetic that looks great on Instagram, but come on. That is not an L.A. Burger. That’s the Oklahoma Fried Onion Burger. Put some respect on its name.
The point stands, though. The Oklahoma is a global hit, and nobody really knows why. Some of the thanks must probably be directed towards the Godfather of Hamburgers George Motz, who regards the onion burger as his speciality. On his tours around America and indeed the world, that is the burger he will cook. And yes, social media plays its part too: scroll through TikTok for literally 5 minutes and you’ll probably happen across innumerable food reviews or amateur chefs. Hamburgers are popular, so the law of averages says that eventually one of them has to feature an Oklahoma.
Either way, it’s a beautiful sight for a purist: a classic American hamburger, with the most minimalist of ingredients, taking the world by storm. Long live the Oklahoma Fried Onion Burger.
Hamburger Britannia 