The Art of the Burger

June 1, 2015
This English adaptation of Michelin-starred chef Fischer’s German cookbook retains the inventive recipes of the original but offers little additional information for Anglophone readers and cooks. Opening with a surprisingly cursory introduction, Fischer moves immediately to hamburger buns, which range from the basic (simple burger or brioche rolls) to the painfully complex, such as curry chili or squid ink. Offering that specificity so early in the book might turn readers off, and every recipe tests one’s patience as well as eyesight, but those who stick with it—and, most importantly, those who can overlook the book’s wild obtrusive typography and design—will find some terrific ideas that manage to be both inventive and tasty without being arch (for the most part). The Camemburger, marrying watercress, cranberries, and fried cheese; the Italian Job, with smoked brisket, ham, burrata, roasted tomatoes, and arugula; and Breakfast at Tiffany’s, with bratwurst, eggs, cheese, and bacon, are straightforward and rewarding. However, dishes like the Smoker’s Empire, a basic beef burger smoked with beech chips and finished in an oven, may be too labor-intensive for those looking for a simple riff on the basic Saturday night burger.

June 1, 2015
Americans too often forget that their iconic, ubiquitous food is named for a German city. So it hardly should come as a surprise that a German chef should come forward with a guide to cooking contemporary hamburgers. Fischer, a decorated chef, turns his modernist talents to this classic sandwich. Not content merely with all-beef patties, Fischer ramps up the entire focus of a burger, starting with the bun. He offers recipes for rolls made of brioche, unusually spiced ones, and even one darkened with squid ink. Special sauces run from barbecue to mayonnaise and pesto. A vast variety of fillings combine for special burger incarnations: veal, tuna, herring, liver, chicken, and tofu. Japanese, Indian, Tex-Mex, and other ethnic variations offer something for nearly every taste. Color photographs graphically deconstruct each burger, showing layer by layer how to construct them from multiple ingredients.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)