Zuni Café’s Hamburger Recipe (2024)

In my experience, a good food processor grinds meat quite well. Cube meat into 3/4 - 1 in cubes and freeze until stiff but not frozen. About 30 min. Process in small batches - large handful? - dump out and pick out any undesirable bits. Focaccia is a very hydrated and somewhat sticky dough, but you can knead it with lightly greased hands. It was made that way long before appliances. Happy cooking!~

so for those of us without dough hooks to make the focaccia, and electric meat grinders, can you suggest some alternative prep advice? Not everyone has a fancy kitchen with expensive appliances. So many recipes look tempting but also daunting with the necessary gear

1987, sitting at the bar with a sublime margarita, watching Robin Williams and Christopher Reeve sweep through the room and mince up Zuni's dramatic staircase in matching jeans, to rapturous applause. Good times.

Zuni is my favorite restaurant of all time.

Italian bakery for the focaccia. And a good butcher for the ground meat! Easy peasy

I am a big fan of Zuni and have been eating there for over 30 years, and while it's my favorite restaurant, I have certainly had bad meals there. If you've only tried it once, go again a few more times and taste as much as you can. I think you'll come around to appreciating it. In addition to the food, it's the space and the clientele that make it so special. Zuni could only exist in San Francisco.

To Carol.When I started cooking,many, many years ago, I only had a wonderful hand cranked meat grinder, which I still own and use, it doesn't take up much space and is easier to chill when grinding meats. To replace the dough hook, try kneading by hand. It uses up the calories that you'll gain when eating focaccia! Bon appetit

I worked their years ago. The burger is AMAZING. Along with their Caesar and roast chicken. The restaurant itself is so special. I have made their caesar many times at home. The burger is next....I used to serve them to fancy ladies outside who bought them for their dogs. LOL.

Marinate the patties in beer (any old brand; don't splurge here; not worth it) in the fridge for an hour or two. Have been doing this, to rave reviews, for years.

If you don't have a meat grinder, but do have a KitchenAid mixer, look for the meat grinder attachment KitchenAid makes that bolts onto the front of the mixer. Doesn't cost much and works like a champ.

Manual meat grinder; not very expensive and easy enough to use if you're not cooking for a rugby team.

Zuni is one of the most overrated restaurants where I have eaten.

Like many former San Franciscans, I have many lovely memories of Zuni Cafe. Perfectly shucked oysters, handmade Caesar salad, legendary roast chicken, great co*cktails and wines, and on and on, all looking out those great big windows, among a cross-section of the city's creative people. The late Judy Rodgers was so dedicated to her craft, and was committed to simple things done extremely well. If you like this recipe, you should buy her cookbook, it's a classic.

I'm in hamburger heaven! The mix of zucchini & red onion pickles with the aioli was marvelous; wonderful condiments. Added a bit of lemon juice and freshly ground pepper to aioli. Had the hamburger on sour dough bread with red leaf lettuce. Next time, will try sour dough focaccia as I'm limited to gluten free or sour dough. The hamburger with condiments looks as colorful and delicious as it tastes. Real keeper. Can't wait to to make Zuni's chocolate Gateau Victoire & roast chicken.

Definitely the gift that keeps on giving! Used the leftover aioli in p/o mayo in tuna salad on sour dough bread topped with red oak lettuce, and leftover Zuni house pickles - sheer bliss! My husband's been using the pickles on cheese sandwiches. Made the Zuni café roast chicken Fab! Will try their famous Gateau Victoire on a special occasion. Another David Tanis winner!

Please? Please a video so I can make it??? Thank you! XO

Once I got the hang of mincing meat in a food processor, I stopped buying ground meat. The result is so much better, whatever you plan to cook with it. If the meat has been frozen, however, you will want to let the cubes dry on a rack in the refrigerator before proceeding. Otherwise, it will steam rather than sear in the pan. (Thank you, Kenji!) My ragu finally tastes like my mother's! She ground chuck in a manual grinder that she clamped to the kitchen table.

The pickles make an average burger great, and last a long time. Start by just making the pickles, to have on hand. Pickles pickles pickles. So good.

Like many former San Franciscans, I have many lovely memories of Zuni Cafe. Perfectly shucked oysters, handmade Caesar salad, legendary roast chicken, great co*cktails and wines, and on and on, all looking out those great big windows, among a cross-section of the city's creative people. The late Judy Rodgers was so dedicated to her craft, and was committed to simple things done extremely well. If you like this recipe, you should buy her cookbook, it's a classic.

A sizable segment of San Francisco’s population- residents or transients, take your pick, one can be as hard to abide as the other both all too often equally phony- is given to bashing longstanding and deserved reputations or traditions, in spite of their consistency, or trumpeting unfounded or even untried new ones. They can’t even say what they’ve tasted and care even less about consistency.

Other meals I've had at Zuni recently have been average but the burgers are consistently the best anywhere.

If you don't have a meat grinder, but do have a KitchenAid mixer, look for the meat grinder attachment KitchenAid makes that bolts onto the front of the mixer. Doesn't cost much and works like a champ.

"Assemble your meat grinder..."

I worked their years ago. The burger is AMAZING. Along with their Caesar and roast chicken. The restaurant itself is so special. I have made their caesar many times at home. The burger is next....I used to serve them to fancy ladies outside who bought them for their dogs. LOL.

The secret to the Zuni burger is the pickled onions and zucchini. Ignore the steps for the meat if you want, focus on those. They make a good burger great.

Marinate the patties in beer (any old brand; don't splurge here; not worth it) in the fridge for an hour or two. Have been doing this, to rave reviews, for years.

I'm in hamburger heaven! The mix of zucchini & red onion pickles with the aioli was marvelous; wonderful condiments. Added a bit of lemon juice and freshly ground pepper to aioli. Had the hamburger on sour dough bread with red leaf lettuce. Next time, will try sour dough focaccia as I'm limited to gluten free or sour dough. The hamburger with condiments looks as colorful and delicious as it tastes. Real keeper. Can't wait to to make Zuni's chocolate Gateau Victoire & roast chicken.

i must be missing something. it looks like bread dough with herbs and plain ground beef. the condiments must be terrific for this simple stuff to get such reviews.

Zuni is one of the most overrated restaurants where I have eaten.

1987, sitting at the bar with a sublime margarita, watching Robin Williams and Christopher Reeve sweep through the room and mince up Zuni's dramatic staircase in matching jeans, to rapturous applause. Good times.