First, the sauce, basically a thousand island dressing like the kind my mom used to make. Mix up in a small bowl:
- 2½ Tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 Tbsp ketchup
- 2 tsp sweet pickle relish (and make sure you get a little pickle juice in with that)
- pinch of sugar, to taste
Did you know that many California schools have In-N-Out Burger days as fund raisers? Or that kids that make honor roll get a In-N-Out day as a reward for their good work?
Second, the onions, they need to be slow-cooked until they are soft and brown and caramelized. Dice a yellow onion and saute over low/medium heat in some oil in a skillet. When they start looking dry, add some water and return to the stove to keep cooking. Repeat the adding of water (will take maybe 4 times) whenever they look dry, and cook until they are soft and caramelized. Leftover grilled onions can be frozen.
Third, the buns. I used Honey Wheat hamburger buns from Trader Joes, lightly toasted in the oven or toaster oven. I know wheat buns are not strict In-N-Out style, but we don't use white bread if we can help it. These are one of the few wheat buns I can find without all those flaky wheat things on top. They have a few sesame seeds on them, but only a few.
Fourth, the meat patties. I have this burger press from Williams Sonoma that works great! Thanks to my BIL and his wife for giving this for Christmas! I used 85/15 ground beef. According to The Burger Lab guy, the fast food chain uses a much higher fat ratio - that's what makes restaurant burgers so juicy, after all. But in my experience, the greater the fat content, the more the burger shrinks down and I wanted a full size, and healthier, alternative. I measure out quarter pound portions and press into the mold. It's a pretty thin patty, but that's what the fast food burgers are like. For adults, a slightly bigger beef portion, like 1/3 lb. might be advisable, or just do a Double Double like at In-N-Out.
After the onions are cooked and removed from the skillet, just use the same to pan-grill the burgers on medium high heat until cooked thoroughly with a brown crust forming on the outside. Put cheese on them after they are flipped to the second side so it can melt while the burgers finish cooking.
Fifth, the fixins. Just slice up a tomato and some iceberg lettuce. With square white American cheese, for my group, I'm done. They're not into mustard so I ignored the whole mustard grilling section thing. If someone wants mustard (no one does here) they can just squirt it on afterward, thank you very much.
At this point the burgers can be assembled to the individual tastes of each person.
Last, the fries. Peel and cut up 6-8 "Gold" potatoes (about 2 lbs of potatoes), toss them in olive oil and sprinkle on some kosher salt. Oven fry them at 450°F on a baking pan lined with foil and sprayed with cooking spray. Turn/toss the fries around after they start browning. Keep baking until the edges are crispy and golden brown. Serve with plenty of ketchup.
I had to do a cost analysis for this meal of 4 burgers: $7.75 for cheeseburgers and fries.
- 8 buns, $2.49 so $1.25 for 4 buns
- 1 lb ground beef, $3.69 for 4 patties
- American cheese, $5.99/lb package says 22 slices per lb. so $1.09 for cheese
- Onions, $.50/lb, 1 onion weighed about 7 oz. so 22¢ for onion
- Gold potatoes, 5 lbs for $2.99 so $1.50 for potatoes
I didn't count the sauce ingredients because it's such a small amount and even I'm not that anal.
- Cost of one hamburger at In-N-Out, no fries or drink: $1.90
- Cost of single cheeseburger: $2.20
- Cost of fries: $1.50
- Cost of hamburger meal: $4.65
- Cost of cheeseburger meal: $5.15
