Editing Hamburger (section)

==In the United States==
[[File:Flickr XP-ert 489502412--Cheeseburgers on grill.jpg|thumb|Hamburger preparation in a fast food establishment]] [[File:Fat "L" Half Pound Burger at home.jpg|thumb|A hamburger with fries bought as take-away, with the hamburger and the fries in separate containers]]
Hamburgers are often a feature of [[fast food]] [[restaurant]]s. In the United States, the hamburger patties served by major fast food chains are usually mass-produced in factories and frozen for delivery to the site.<ref>For references, see the literature review in William O. Giles "Method for preparing hamburger patties" {{US Patent|5484625}} issued January 16, 1996.</ref> These hamburgers are thin and of uniform thickness, differing from the traditional American hamburger prepared in homes and conventional restaurants, which is thicker and prepared by hand from [[ground beef]]. Most American hamburgers are round, but some fast-food chains, such as [[Wendy's]], sell square-cut hamburgers. Hamburgers in fast food restaurants are usually grilled on a flat top, but some firms, such as [[Burger King]], use a gas flame grilling process. At conventional American restaurants, hamburgers may be ordered "rare" but normally are served medium-well or well-done for food safety reasons. Fast food restaurants do not usually offer this option.

The McDonald's fast-food chain sells the [[Big Mac]], one of the world's top-selling hamburgers, with an estimated 550 million sold annually in the United States.<ref>[https://www.cbsnews.com/news/big-mac-hits-the-big-4-0/ Big Mac Hits The Big 4-0], [[CBS News]], February 11, 2009.</ref> Other major fast-food chains, including [[Burger King]] (also known as [[Hungry Jack's]] in Australia), [[A&W Restaurants|A&W]], [[Culver's]], [[Whataburger]], [[Carl's Jr.]]/[[Hardee's]] chain, [[Wendy's]] (known for their square patties), [[Jack in the Box]], [[Krystal (restaurant)|Krystal]], [[White Castle (restaurant)|White Castle]], [[Cook Out (restaurant)|Cook Out]], [[Harvey's]], [[Hesburger]], [[Supermac's]], [[Shake Shack]], [[In-N-Out Burger]], [[Five Guys]], [[Fatburger]], Vera's, [[Burgerville]], [[Back Yard Burgers]], [[Lick's Homeburger]], [[Roy Rogers Restaurants|Roy Rogers]], [[Smashburger]], and [[Sonic Drive-In|Sonic]] also rely heavily on hamburger sales. [[Fuddruckers]] and [[Red Robin]] are hamburger chains that specialize in the mid-tier "restaurant-style" variety of hamburgers.

Some restaurants offer elaborate hamburgers using expensive cuts of meat and various cheeses, toppings, and sauces. One example is the [[Bobby's Burger Palace]] chain founded by well-known chef and [[Food Network]] star [[Bobby Flay]].

Hamburgers are often served as a fast dinner, picnic, or party food and are often cooked outdoors on barbecue grills.

A high-quality hamburger patty is made entirely of ground (minced) beef and seasonings; these may be described as "all-beef hamburger" or "all-beef patties" to distinguish them from inexpensive hamburgers made with cost-savers like added [[flour]], [[textured vegetable protein]], [[Pink Slime|ammonia treated defatted beef trimmings]] (which the company [[Beef Products]] Inc, calls "lean finely textured beef"),<ref name="Anatomy of a Burger">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/10/04/us/20090917-meat.html |work=The New York Times |title=Anatomy of a Burger |date=October 4, 2009 |access-date=May 4, 2010}}</ref><ref name="Moss">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/health/04meat.html |work=The New York Times |title=The Burger That Shattered Her Life |first=Michael|last=Moss |date=October 3, 2009 |access-date=May 4, 2010}}</ref> [[advanced meat recovery]], or other [[meat extenders|fillers]]. In the 1930s, ground [[liver (food)|liver]] was sometimes added. Some cooks prepare their patties with binders like [[Egg (food)|eggs]] or [[breadcrumb]]s. Seasonings may include salt and pepper and others like [[parsley]], onions, [[soy sauce]], [[Thousand Island dressing]], [[French onion soup|onion soup]] mix, or [[Worcestershire sauce]]. Many name-brand [[seasoned salt]] products are also used.

=== Cost ===
According to [[Bloomberg News]], the average price of a fast-food restaurant burger in the United States increased by 16% between 2019 and 2024, reaching $8.41 in the second quarter of 2024. Specifically, the iconic Big Mac at McDonald's cost $5.29 during the same period, representing a 21% price increase over the same five-year span.<ref>{{cite web | last=Shanker | first=Deena | title=The End of the Cheap Burger | website=Bloomberg.com | date=2024-09-26 | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-09-26/mcdonald-s-faces-the-end-of-the-cheap-burger-era-as-prices-rise-sales-drop | access-date=2024-09-29}}</ref>

===Safety===
Raw hamburgers may contain harmful bacteria that can produce food-borne illnesses such as [[Escherichia coli O157:H7|''Escherichia coli'' O157:H7]], due to the occasional initial improper preparation of the meat, so caution is needed during handling and cooking. Because of the potential for food-borne illness, the [[USDA]], recommends hamburgers be cooked to an internal temperature of {{convert|160|F}}.<ref name=USDA>{{cite web |url=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/meat-preparation/ground-beef-and-food-safety/CT_Index |title=Ground Beef and Food Safety|access-date=July 26, 2016}}</ref> If cooked to this temperature, they are considered [[well-done]].<ref>[http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/news/1998/colorpr.htm USDA Urges Consumers To Use Food Thermometer When Cooking Ground Beef Patties] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090903093259/http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/news/1998/colorpr.htm |date=September 3, 2009 }}. United States Department of Agriculture Safety and Inspection Service Media Communications Office, August 11, 1998.</ref>