White Castle Hamburger
My earliest memory of having a White Castle Hamburgers was back in the 1960s. My Aunt’s Father owned a construction company and we went to White Castles to buy Hamburgers for the crew. They cost $0.12 cents each at the time and we ordered 120 hamburgers. I remember the shocked look of the person taking our order.
When I was in my 20s, we would stop at a White Castles after we had been out for the evening. If you do not have a White Castles in your area and don’t understand the craze about sliders after a night out, you can watch the 2004 movie, Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle. The pair set-out on a late night quest through New Jersey to satisfy their munchie craving for sliders.
This is my copycat version of a White Castle Hamburger. I had moved to a state that didn’t have any White Castles in the area. This was also before you could purchase them at the grocery store. I think my version is pretty close. The key is to steam the thin burgers over a pile of onions. No need to even flip them.
From my research, White Castle uses rehydrated onions. They really make the burger tasty. I typically use Weinke’s Market Dill Chips Pickles. Mainly because of their flavor, but also for how thin they are. These typically need to be purchase online unless you live in Wisconsin. The link is below:
Finally, you place the bun on the top of the burger, so the steam rises up through the holes in the hamburgers and into the bun. When they are cooked, simply slide the burger with the onions onto the bottom bun.
If you like my White Castle Cheeseburger Recipe, please leave a comment and let me know what you think. If you made it, post your wonderful images on Instagram and tag me. Don’t forget to subscribe and you will be emailed each time I post a new recipe.
White Castle Cheeseburgers (copycat recipe)
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef (85% lean)
- Onion Flakes
- 5 Tablespoons Water
- Kosher Salt
- Freshly Ground Pepper
- Garlic Powder
- Garnish:
- Kraft Velveeta Slices (cut into 4)
- Wienke's Market Dill Chips
- Slider Buns
Directions
- Step 1 Roll out the ground beef into a rectangle, about a 1/4″ thick, between 2 pieces of wax paper.
- Step 2 Make each burger 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 inches. They will shrink down while cooking. You could go a little bigger at 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches each.
- Step 3 Place the meat still on the wax paper on a tray. Place in the freezer for about 15 minutes.
- Step 4 Remove from the freezer to make the holes. I used the small end of a little juicer. It was perfect for making 4 holes in each burger. You may need to use the tip of a knife of fork to remove the meat from each hole.
- Step 5 After the holes are made in all the burgers, place the meat in the freezer for about 1 hour.
- Step 6 Spray the bottom of a large frying pan, generously with non-stick cooking spray.
- Step 7 Add the onion flakes and water to reconstitute them. Spread the onions around to make a thin layer. Season lightly with kosher salt and pepper. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes until the onion turn a light golden brown. Add water as needed. Do not let them burn.
- Step 8 Remove the hamburger patties from the freezer. Lay them on top of the onions. Season lightly with Kosher salt, pepper and garlic powder. Let them cook for 5 minutes.
- Step 9 I flip the patties (even though White Castles does not). Place the bottom of the bun on top of each patty. Let them cook for another 5 to 6 minutes or until cooked.
- Step 10 Prepare the top of the bun while the burgers are cooking. Bun, dill chips and cheese. Set aside.
- Step 11 Slide the hamburger patties with the bottom part of the bun, from the pan onto a spatula, taking with them all those good onions.
- Step 12 Take the top of the bun with the dill chips and cheese and move it right underneathth the burger that is on the spatula. While holding the top and bottom part of the bun together with the hamburger in place, remove the spatula. Turn it right-side up and place on a serving tray. This may take a little practice.
Note: I use 2-3 Weinke’s Market Dill Chips since they are sliced very thin. You only need 1/4 of a slice of Velveeta cheese for each burger.
