Nowadays hamburgers have become an essential part of fast-food restaurant menus. People add different ingredients to hamburgers to make different kinds of hamburgers, for example, McDonald’s has Chicken&Egg Burgers, Double Cheeseburgers, Big Mac, and so on. But why do we call these burgers hamburgers? Some of them even have no ham! Don’t be in a hurry, I’ll tell you the reason.
Why Are Hamburgers Called Hamburgers?
Because they were first made in Hamburg, Germany, hamburgers are so named. Instead, it takes its name from where the hamburger was first created. Modern hamburgers are said to have originated in Hamburg, Germany. However, they were not the ones who had originally thought of the idea. By shredding their meat in a manner now known as beef tartare, the people of the Russian Baltic provinces were discovered by traders. They brought that idea back to Hamburg, Germany, where an unidentified chef chose to prepare the beef in this manner. The original hamburger was made by this chef. The recipe gets its name from the city of its origin instead of the chef, who is unknown to history and has never been credited with creating it.
Where Did Hamburgers Come From?
The Tartar people are where the earliest evidence of fake hamburgers first appeared. They were nomadic people who mostly inhabited eastern and central Europe. They preferred to shred their beef and eat it uncooked. They would ride around with the meat sandwiched between their saddles and their horse to make it more tender. German traders eventually came across the Tartars and began conducting business with them. The traders were first introduced to the food by the nomads. Shredded beef and some regional spices were served to them. The meat was broiled or fried before being served. The traders would take this dish and end up calling it a Hamburg steak. When they took it back to Germany, some of their own people became fans of it. German immigrants brought this recipe with them when they immigrated to the United States. As they were later known, hamburgers first appeared on menus in New York City in the 1880s.
It wasn’t until the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904 that it really took off. Louis, however, is when the burger’s modern incarnation first appeared. The meat was not served alone at the World’s Fair; it was sandwiched between two buns. The oldest burger franchise in the world is called White Castle. It made the decision to create a new kind of restaurant after realizing how popular the meal was. White Castle was able to sell hamburgers for low prices because of its low production costs. As a result, hamburgers became a restaurant-quality dish that people with low incomes could eat.
After World War II, the popularity of hamburgers also increased. Fast-food establishments began to multiply and gain popularity as there were more cars on the road. Their diners could now drive by and pick up their orders because they opened drive-thrus. Hamburgers, which are easy and fast to make, were a natural choice as a menu item. Around this time, California saw the opening of McDonald’s. When it first opened, it was a hamburger fast-food joint that promoted cleaner restrooms. These days, it’s hard to find a fast-food restaurant or table-service restaurant that doesn’t serve hamburgers.
What Are Hamburger Patties Made Out Of?
Because of the name, it’s simple to assume that a traditional hamburger patty contains ham or pork. Simply put, that is untrue. A traditional hamburger uses ground beef in its patty. That said, some chefs choose to add more ingredients to the patty besides ground beef. Some might throw in some herbs to give the patty some seasoning. Portobello mushrooms or black beans in the ground are the substitutes used when making vegan hamburgers. Others who want to stay away from beef might use ground pork or chicken to make their patty. There are even turkey burgers! A burger patty is conceptualized as an ingredient that is ground up and then smashed back together into a patty by the chef. Once it’s ready to eat, the patty is then grilled. A traditional hamburger, however, will always use beef.
Conclusion
The name “hamburger” has nothing to do with the ham inside the hamburger. It is called hamburger just because people from Hamburg, Germany created this type of food.
