Hamburger

A hamburger comprises a soft bun or round roll sandwiching a meat patty in the center. The meat is traditionally beef. On top of the patty and covered by the top part of the bun are slices of tomato, lettuce, and usually onion with pickles. Hamburgers are often accompanied by a side set of french fries. Hailed as America’s favorite food, the hamburger has been popularized across the globe and is widely eaten by most westernized countries. The notion of fast food is synonymous with hamburgers, with fast food or take-away restaurants supplying the demand. Although showing no decline in popularity, there has been a move to include healthier options. The red meat beef patty may be substituted by a chicken, turkey, or fish patty inside the bun, albeit that it is not considered to be a true hamburger. Vegetarian burgers have also become commonplace.

Brief History

The history of the hamburger appears to be divided into two aspects: the American-type hamburger, with which most people are familiar, and the idea of the hamburger from Hamburg, Germany. The essential difference is in the name and sandwich. Hamburgers may have been inspired in the German city with the profusion of beef from cows in the country terrain. Given the lack of refrigeration, the meat had to be cooked immediately, and the Hamburg beef patties became popular. With the introduction of the bun to sandwich meat patties, the concept of the American classical hamburger became renowned at the start of the nineteenth century. Where and who exactly coined the sandwich idea has faded into history; however, the first-known hamburger restaurant is dated as 1921 in Wichita, Kansas.

While the hamburger seems to be a modern invention, the concept of eating ground meat in the form of patties is not new. Historically, there is evidence that ground meat was eaten in Egyptian civilizations. In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, with the leading emperor Genghis Khan, armies were known to have softened ground meat by riding atop saddle covered bits of lamb and mutton. The raw patties would then be eaten as the horse riders fought their battles. Kubla Khan brought the meat patties into Russia; there it became a culinary dish known as steak tartare; it became known as tartare steak in Germany when German-Russian sea travel occurred. By the late eighteenth century, "hamburg steak" became the common name of these frikadelle patties, entering the American shores when German sailors arrived there.

McDonald’s, created in the 1940s as a Californian drive-in burger bar, has become a brand name of hamburgers. Now found in countries as far afield as Japan and India, McDonald’s burgers are adapted to suit the clientele, from rice burgers to tikka spicy vegetable burgers, respectively.

The Guinness Book of Records details the largest hamburger ever made on September 2, 2014 at the Black Bear Casino Resort in Carlton, Minnesota. The weight of the hamburger was 913.54 kg (2,014 lb). The toppings included: 2.81 kg (52.5 lb) of tomatoes, 22.68 kg (50 lb) of lettuce, 27.22 kg (60 lb) of onion, 8.62 kg (19 lb) of pickles, 18.14 kg (40 lb) of American cheese and 7.48 kg (16.15 lb) of bacon.

Hamburger Today

The American population consumes a large quantity of fast food daily, with hamburgers and the accompanying french fries topping the list. The ease with which the meal can be obtained and eaten, and the relatively inexpensive purchase possibilities available, make the hamburger a quick choice. The meal can be eaten on the run, without cutlery, or at a roadside drive-in, cheap burger joint, or more upmarket restaurant. The sophistication with which the burger is served depends on the venue, chef’s expertise, and customer desire.

Fast food has also become notorious as an unhealthy and fatty eating option. The side fries dish (often in recooked old oil) or the types of condiments added (salt, sugar-filled ketchup, for example), as well as the coke or milkshake drunk with the meal, satisfy taste buds but may contribute to a culture of obesity and heart concerns. Meat for hamburgers may be processed, frozen, and mixed with other products to increase volume rather than nutritional value. There is a high chance that artificial additives are added, not only to the meat, but to the buns as well.

To address the quality of burgers, though not necessarily the health factor, burger bars purporting to offer better burgers have sprung into existence across America. Elliot Negin, writing in the Huffington Post, mentions the "better-burger" upscale eateries are providing competition to the established top three chains McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s. Calorie counting of the premium burgers has indicated that they may contain more calories, with nutritionists questioning whether these are healthier or just larger and perhaps tastier. Another relevant issue relates to the hormones and antibiotics with which the cows supplying the beef are fed. The location and feeding of the cows is also a contributory factor to health standards, per the animals eating genetically modified substances or chewing on grass in open pastures.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlight the propensity of the E. coli germ, often found in the raw ground beef of hamburgers. When adequate cooking at a high-enough temperature does not occur, the germ can be ingested through eating or via cross contamination. Whether all restaurants follow standard health and safety precautions is a moot point. A study conducted by CDC over 385 restaurants revealed that the majority of managers attested to their workers not testing hamburger temperature with a thermometer leading to 10 percent being undercooked. Furthermore, cross contamination risk was rife given the high proportion of workers not washing their hands during preparation of raw ground beef, touching other food items, using the same utensils without cleaning them, or wiping their hands on cloths and aprons.

In August 2013, the world’s first test-tube grown hamburger was advertised as ready to be served in a London restaurant. Laboratory hamburgers, part of an experiment initiated in the Netherlands, aimed to use stem cells of cows to produce an artificial meat substance. Scientists have claimed that laboratory meat would become commercially available within ten years. Natural News reports that the Food Standards Agency is requesting proof that the test-tube Petri meat product is safe for human consumption.

Bibliography

Avery, Tori. "A Brief History of Hamburgers." Tori Avery, 2016. Web. 24 April 2016.

CBS News. Interview with Eric Schlosser. "Americans Are Obsessed with Fast Food: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal." CBS News.com, 31 Jan. 2002. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Restaurant Ground Beef Handling and Cooking." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 30 Nov. 2015. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.

Guinness World Records. "Largest Hamburger." Guinness World Records, 2 Sept. 2012.

Johnson, Lance. ‘World’s first test-tube grown hamburger served up in London restaurant." Natural News. 6 Aug. 2013. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.

McDonalds.com. Web. 24 April 2016.

Negin, Elliott. "‘Better’ Burgers Worse for Your Health, No Better for the Climate." Huffpost Green. Huffington Post, 3 Sept. 2014. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.

Stradley, Linda. "Hamburgers – History and Legends of Hamburgers," 2004. Web. 24 April 2016.

Wein, Harrison, PhD. "Risk in Red Meat?" NIH National Institutes of Health Research Matters. National Institutes of Health, 26 March. 2012. Web. 24 April 2016.