American Burger Revival: Brazen Recipes to Electrify a Timeless Classic

When American Burger Revival finally arrived, it instantly became the most entertaining, engaging cookbook on our shelf. Check that -- it's actually become a coffee table staple in our house! You can tell that these guys aren't just trying to capitalize on a culinary trend, nor are they backyard home-cook hacks. Their profound love of burgers comes through on every page, and though these are serious, chef-grade recipes -- that can also require chef-grade equipment -- their approach to writing a cookbook is super approachable and just so damn fun! American Burger Revival is the perfect mix of practical education, mouth-watering inspiration and flat-out fun. Though the "centerfold" burgers can be a bit overwhelming to tackle on your own, they're really there to get your creative juices going and get you thinking outside the box about what you can do with a burger. You'll have a blast cooking your way through this book, your guests will get a kick out of perusing the pages -- and at the end don't be surprised if you find that you're a more versatile, inspired home cook to boot!

Chefs Chudy and Monsour take the humble hamburger to places it's never been with this cookbook. First of all, they start with burger basics, going through many different blend options and what to get if you're going with store-bought ground beef. They don't just say "don't buy pre-made patties," they explain what about them makes them bad options compared to getting the ground beef and forming your own patties. Plus, when you do that you get to use one of their wet seasoning blends, which are pretty fantastic. We started off with the Southeast Peppercorn Ranch seasoning blend, which gives the beef a tangy kick of acid that I really loved. All along the way the book delivers a mix of grill-honed expertise, humor, and practical wisdom. It also gives you an excuse, should you need one, to ensure you have a cold, adult beverage in hand while cooking. For example, the "White Trash Chevre" recipe mandates beer drinking as step one. The absolute first thing you should make is the Vidalia Jam, which is super-simple to make, but super-tasty as well, and pretty much goes with everything. In fact, to test that, we paired it with the aforementioned White Trash Chevre, with a side of Magic Rings (onion rings) and I couldn't have been happier with the result. The moral of this story is: Buying American Burger Revival will lead to you making delicious burgers, burger toppings, and sides for burgers.

Great Book. Well laid out. Great information

I own several cookbooks about burgers, grilling and this type of cuisine so I didn't think much of this book when I received it as a gift. I was pleasantly surprised. The authors provide tasteful new ideas that are mostly easy to make. They cover everything from meat bleads, techniques, equipment, to how to make your own bread and condiments. I've made several items with positive results. Only a few recipes call for equipment or ingredients that most people don't have or can find easily. One sauce requires a Thai lime leaf that I never heard of but was able to get on Amazon for a few dollars and was worth it because the sauce was excellent. Overall I think this book is very well written and easy to follow. Used it several times and plan to make more items from it.

Love this book, full of exciting ideas for making your burgers special but always straightforward and readable. A real pleasure. The photography is stunning, and really conveys the awesomeness of these two chef-writers.The sauce and pickle recipes are some of my favorites--I'm building a collection of sauces to splash on impromptu burgers, including Worcestershire and the Red Rooster sauce. So good!I should add that I live in Boston where Chefs Chudy and Monsour are both well known, and took a burger class with Richard and his wife Katie.