Podcast Episode One Companion: Hamburgers, also, Uncle Nate explains the Rochester Quality Assortment

Hi everybody!  We've finally launched our podcast!  

It's currently available on Spotify, and we will continue to update as we figure out how to get it onto more and more platforms.  I should clarify here that we have absolutely no idea what we are doing.  

But anyway, one thing at a time, episode one is out!  Nate and Jesse discuss hamburgers.

Here's our time stamps, if you don't feel like listening to us for the whole 71 minutes.

1:30- The Panisse Story

5:25- Self-indulgent Opinion Poll

15:30- Thoughts on Burger Toppings

35:00- Thoughts on Burger-ish Dishes

42:45- The Great Debate: Thick Burgers vs. Smash Burgers

1:05:00- On the Juicy Lucy

Links:

The funny rules on the menu for the Vortex, the best burger joint in Atlanta

Felix, Jesse and Nate's favorite spot for a burger in Charleston (and also a great place to get blind drunk after a brunch shift, before eventually ending up leaving Graft like 8 hours later and falling fast asleep on your porch, and waking up at like 3am covered in bug bites, hungover as hell. Try the sidecar.

Bill Gray's, Nate's pick for hometown hero burger, and a fine spot to procure a Rochester Quality Assortment

We couldn't find a link to the food research lab in Holland that figured out the science of an ideal bite size that wouldn't get us a copyright strike.  It's entirely possible that we are being paranoid, but paranoia saves lives.  Anyway, here is a link to insider.com that will take you to an article on Heston Blumenthal, the chef we heard about this from.  Read his books, they are awesome, rad, cool, nifty, even moderately neato.  

Actual content:

Lastly, as promised, here is Nate's take on the Rochester Quality Assortment, AKA the Trash Plate, which is not exactly a burger, but it's not exactly not a burger, and it's among the greatest things you can do with a grilled puck of ground beef (or a hog dog, or a couple of chicken fingers, or all of the above...)

We've switched to Arial font, so you know it's Nate talking.

It's 2 am, and you're in a seedy neighborhood standing in line. It’s cold enough outside to make anyone question their life choices, but as luck would have it, you’re way past the point of caring, drunk as you are off of Genny Cream Ale. Suddenly you hear the large guido in a tracksuit holler out “Gimme a cheese plate - mac, home fries...KILL IT!"  You suddenly snap back into focus just long enough for your turn to order the evening's remedy. 

Yeah, that’s right, it's time for that bizarre speciality of Rochester New York, The garbage plate. Or as my pal Jesse so aptly named it, The Rochester Quality Assortment… ya know, for legal purposes. 

Anyways, for those of you that haven't heard me crow about these beauties, here’s the low down… 

First, you pick your starchy, carb-loaded sides (although they're technically bases), typically two. They usually consist of mac salad, baked beans and home fries. (Although nowadays there are many more options, but they are hardly traditional.). These are used to fill the bottom of the paper plate. Yes, always a paper plate. If it's not on a disposable plate, you, my friend, are enjoying a bougie facsimile, and ya got it all wrong. Eating a trash plate off an actual plate is like drinking King Cobra out of a Riedel Champagne flute.

Anyway, second, you select your proteins. Usually two, typically it's either a pair of cheeseburgers, hot dogs, or 1 & 1. The hotdogs are always Zweigle's Red or White (another Rochester Speciality). And again, nowadays there are many other protein options like eggs, chicken fingers, fried fish, and pork chops; not my thing, but why not? 

Next, the magic red ragu. It's tricky to describe. Locals commonly refer to it as “hot sauce,” but that’s not an accurate description. I mean, it's sauce, it's technically hot, but hot sauce sounds like what you put on your eggs in the morning, not an amazing, sweet-savory gravy/stew/bolognese hybrid so thick you can stand a spoon up in it. The best way that I’ve been able to describe it is that  it's kinda like hotdog chilli, or Skyline chilli with a touch of cinnamon.  This sauce is ladled on top of the proteins, which then runs into all the other ingredients. 

The plate is then topped with raw onion and yellow mustard and served with Italian bread to sop up the goodness, and a pat of butter for good measure.

And there you have it. That's the trash plate. You’ll either be in awe or utterly disgusted, there will be no middle ground.

   

There are numerous establishments in the area, all serving “their” version. Trash plate, Dumpster plate, hot plate, you get the idea… Hence the Rochester Quality Assortment monicker. Regardless of name, make no mistake, these all pay homage to the original Garbage Plate (whose name was trademarked in 1992).  Its origins date back to 1918, when Rochester was the end of the line stop for the rust belt railways. Workers craved something hot, fast and cheap. Enter Alexander Tahou, a greek immigrant with a solution to the problem. Originally called Hots and Po-Tots, because it featured white hots, served on top of hash browns. White hots are unsmoked dogs, a speciality of German extraction, which were, and still are, proudly made by local butcher Wihelm Zweigle and family since 1880. (These are discussed in detail in our upcoming Podcast episode 4, out next week.) The dish truly took hold during the great depression, where blue collar workers could fill up for just a few cents. However the “garbage plate” moniker didn't take shape until the 80’s, when college students would simply order the plate with all the garbage on it. 

At any rate, nearly all the components are easy to prepare (hit me up if you need a mac salad recipe) except the “secret hot sauce" which only takes a few hours of simmering. I don't have any insider trade secrets to share, but here's my version that’s been inspired by the original that native Rochestarians seem to approve of.  

{Unsurprisingly, Blogspot's spell-checker was baffled by the term 'Rochestarian,' but screw it, let's go with it.  -ed}

Rochester Quality Assortment Sauce

Inspired by Alexander & Nick Tahou

2 each red onion, minced

3 each cloves of garlic, minced

2# ground beef ; I usually get chuck around 70/30

2 Tablespoons of vegetable oil

Dry

1 ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

2 teaspoon chilli powder

1 Tablespoon sweet smoked paprika

1 Tablespoon kosher salt

1 ¼ teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground allspice

½ t ground cinnamon 

¼ teaspoon ground clove

• optional seasonings

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon Chinese 5 spice ( if using 5 spice omit the allspice)

Wet

1 Tablespoon Frank's Red Hot

1 Tablespoon Lee & Perrin's Worchestershire sauce

½ cup Heinz ketchup

2 each 6 oz Cans tomato paste

4 Cups water

__________________

1 stick of cold butter, cut into small pieces 

1. Scale all the dry ingredients; mix together and set aside.

2. Scale all the wet ingredients: mix together and set aside.

3. In a large pot, sweat the minced onions and garlic with the vegetable oil until translucent.

4. Add the ground beef; cook until lightly browned; continuously break the meat  apart while it cooks.  

5. Add the dry ingredients and mix until incorporated.

6. Add the wet ingredients (except the butter) and and mix until incorporated; then cover the pot with a lid.

7. Cook the sauce over low heat for a minimum of 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

8. While the sauce is cooking I usually skim most of the fat off the top as it cooks.

9. When 3 hours or more have passed, remove the pot from the heat and stir in the cold butter. Then adjust seasoning to taste. 

Yield = approx 10 cups 

This freezes great, and keep it around for your hot dogs.