Cheeseburger

This is an extremely simple recipe for a cheeseburger, from GQ. Make sure to use ground beef with a minimum of 20% fat (it's what provides the flavor and also the juices in the pan that eventually toast the bun), and try to make your patty thin, otherwise the inside will be nearly raw. Also, I prefer to use cheddar cheese as I think American cheese is gross.

Ingredients

• Ground beef, with a fat content of at least 20 percent
• Salt and pepper
• Slice of cheddar cheese
  

Instructions

1. Bring the meat to room temperature. Take a chunk (six ounces or so) and form something the size and shape of a tennis ball. But don't work it too much.
2. In one motion, with the heel of your hand, press down on the ball to form a patty. Don't mess with it any more than that.
   
3. Sprinkle both sides with salt and freshly ground pepper.
4. Get your pan smoking hot. Lay the patty in and don't touch it for at least two minutes. You want a nice brown crust.
5. Flip it gently, place a slice of cheese on top, and allow a crust to develop on the other side.
6. How long you cook it is your call. If it's a thick burger and it needs to be cooked through, slide the pan (assuming it's ovenproof) into a 400-degree oven for a minute or two.
7. Once you've got that caramelized crust, place the burger on a cutting board. Grab that squishy burger bun, open it up, and toast it quickly in the greasy pan.
8. Combine bun and burger. Add fixings. Inhale.

Serves 1. Eat.