Shroom and Beef Burger Shake Shack

Photo by Bobbi Lin

Author Notes

My childhood was fueled by Dr. Praeger's Purely Sensible Foods' frozen veggie burgers—thin discs with real vegetable pieces (hey, is that a corn kernel?) that I would eat, alongside the rest of meal, with a fork and knife.

I enjoyed (even loved) Dr. Praeger's, but I did not think of them as burgers at all—neither "juicy" nor "satisfying," neither a treat to look forward to nor a complete meal. A Dr. Praeger's patty would have been eclipsed by a bun on either side and never posed a fair match to a meat burger. They were, as named, "purely sensible."

It wasn't until I tried the Shake Shack's 'Shroom Burger that I realized veggie burgers needn't be sensible. Why coax vegetables (and, for most recipes, grains and binders and starches, too) into the shape of a patty? Vegetarian burgers can be entirely nonsensical and untraditional and just as messily delicious as any meat burger on the menu.

The 'Shroom Burger forgoes the constraints of the patty form to present a mushroom in its most dignified state—breaded, fried, full of cheese. It's insanity! When you eat the sandwich, you work your way through the roasted mushroom barrier to hit the cheese geyser at its center. ("Geyser" is not an exaggeration: When you receive your 'Shroom Burger at the restaurant, you should let the burger cool for a few minutes lest you risk a cheese eruption.)

Whenever I've ordered a Shroom Burger—which, not to get too emotional over a sandwich or anything, but these have been my hungriest, grumpiest, and most celebratory moments (3 PM after turning in my last college final; 10 PM after moving a two-hundred-pound dresser into a fifth-floor walk-up)—the how of the matter has become a subject of conversation. Just how do they get the cheese in there? Is it with a giant syringe? A peculiarly-hollow mushroom? An elaborate song and dance?

It turns out that you needn't purchase a specialty cheese syringe (oh yes, these exist). The recipe, which is published in the new book Shake Shack: Recipes & Stories is fairly simple to make at home if you don't mind a bit of deep-frying.

Simply roast the mushrooms, slice them in half through their bellies, then hide a ball of the filling—a mixture of grated cheese, onion, garlic, flour, egg yolk, and cayenne—in between the top and bottom. Coat the reconfigured mushrooms in flour, beaten eggs, and panko, then get them into the hot oil.

The panko will crisp, the cheese will melt, and you'll have a vegetable burger that can hold its own snuggled up next to a slice of tomato and between two buns. All you need now is a cold milkshake.

Reprinted from Shake Shack. Copyright © 2022 by Shake Shack Enterprises, LLC. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC. —Sarah Jampel

• Test Kitchen-Approved

Watch This Recipe

Shake Shack's 'Shroom Burger

• Prep time 30 minutes
• Cook time 1 hour
• Makes 4

Ingredients

• For the mushroom caps and filling:
• 4 4-inch portobello mushroom caps
  
• ¹/₄ cup canola oil, plus more for deep-frying
  
• ¹/₂ teaspoon kosher salt
  
• ¹/₈ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  
• 1 ¹/₂ cups plus 1/4 teaspoon flour, divided
  
• 3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk, divided
  
• 2 cups panko breadcrumbs
  
• 1 ¹/₂ cups grated Muenster
  
• ¹/₂ cup grated cheddar
  
• ¹/₂ teaspoon minced onion
  
• ¹/₈ teaspoon minced garlic
  
• 1 dash Kosher salt
  
• 4 tablespoons ShackSauce (below)
  
• 4 hamburger potato buns, toasted
  
• 4 pieces green leaf lettuce
  
• 8 1/4-inch slices ripe plum tomatoes
  

• For the ShackSauce:
• ¹/₂ cup Hellman's mayonnaise
  
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  
• ³/₄ teaspoon Heinz ketchup
  
• ¹/₄ teaspoon kosher dill pickling brine
  
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
  

Directions

1. For the mushroom caps and filling:
2. For the mushroom caps, preheat the oven to 375° F. Put mushroom caps on a medium baking pan. Rub caps all over with 1/4 cup of canola oil, then season both sides with the salt and pepper. Arrange mushrooms gill side down in a single layer and roast until tender, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Slice mushrooms in half horizontally (through their bellies, like you're slicing a hamburger bun).
3. Put the 1 1/2 cups flour in a wide dish, beat 3 eggs in another wide dish, and put the panko in a third wide dish and set aside.
4. For the filling, mix together the Muenster and cheddar cheeses, onion, garlic, remaining 1/4 teaspoon flour, remaining egg yolk, and cayenne pepper in a medium mixing bowl. Set aside.
5. Shape the filling into 4 equal disks, 1/2 inch smaller in diameter than the mushroom caps. Place cheese disks on gill side of each mushroom cap, cover with other half of cap, cut side down, and gently press together to secure the filling.
6. Dredge the stuffed mushroom caps in the flour, then dip in the beaten egg, coating them completely, then dredge in the panko. Set prepared mushrooms on a plate and refrigerate while heating the oil to deep-fry them.
7. To cook the mushroom burgers, pour the oil into a deep, wide pot to a depth of 3 inches. Heat over medium heat until the oil reaches a temperature of 350° F on a candy thermometer. Deep-fry the prepared mushrooms, one or two at a time, until golden brown and crisp all over, about 3 or 4 minutes. Transfer mushrooms with a slotted spoon to drain on paper towels. Season with salt.
8. Spoon the ShackSauce onto the top bun. Add a piece of lettuce and two slices of tomato. Transfer the mushroom burgers to the prepared buns. Enjoy!

1. For the ShackSauce:
2. Whisk together all ingredients to combine.

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Source: https://food52.com/recipes/71249-shake-shack-s-shroom-burger

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