Juicy Lucy's

The Juicy Lucy hails from Minneapolis where there are two bars that both lay claim to the creation of this delightful burger. Both the 5-8 Club and Matt's Bar, located within 3 miles of one another, have long argued that they are the creators of the Juicy Lucy. In fact, both spots have staff in shirts that bash the opposition and claim the Lucy as their own. It's been a long-standing "feud", well known to the citizens of Minneapolis.

What is a Juicy Lucy you ask? Well, it's simply a burger that has been stuffed with cheese as opposed to having the cheese on top as a condiment. While Matt's Bar argues that American cheese is the original and only way to do it, the 5-8 Club offers  a variety of cheese options to choose from. While this may not be a revolutionary idea, it's one that Minneapolis claims as their own and they are quite patriotic about the Lucy.

Want to make this super simple burger at home? It's really quite simple, here's how to do it! You will need a package of Beyond Meat burgers (or your burger of choice). The traditional Lucy is two patties that are sealed around cheese. My version uses the meatball stuffing technique simply because I found it easier than trying to slice the thawed patties in half.

• ​​Cradle the patty in one hand and use the other hand to press a well into the center of the patty. Then, place desired amount of cheese into the well and reform the patty around the cheese. I used roughly 1/4 C of marble cheddar because I love the way marble cheddar melts. Once your patties are formed around the cheese, we are ready to fry them!

• Simply preheat a frying pan to medium, season your patties with sea salt and cracked pepper and fry them for roughly 4 minutes per side until nice and golden brown. Once cooked , slap on a soft bun and you're good to go! You can use whichever condiments your heart desires, it's a clean slate for you to play around with! 

My only request is that you make sure to slice that burger in half and gently pull it apart so that you can witness the magic that's happened inside of that delicious burger. There's nothing like a cheese-pull to ignite hunger, am I right y'all?

HAPPY VEG