The top secret ingredients behind Australia's best burgers

It’s here. The most beloved and widely celebrated day of the year is finally here. Happy International Burger Day everyone!

Whilst an array of operators celebrate this sacred day with some incredible discounts and free burger offerings we thought we’d take you behind the burger and reveal the top secret ingredients behind the best burgers in Australia.

Royal Stacks
Since emerging on the scene 3 years ago, Melbourne burger chain Royal Stacks have melted minds and an exuberant amount of cheese with their double and triple stacked beef, chicken, and veggie burgers. What sets Royal Stacks apart – and what has earned the brand an army of avid admirers – is that despite the large size of the burgers, you never seem to feel that sickly I’ve-just-eaten-a-mammoth-burgers-and-need-to-nap feeling after. Royal Stacks offer gluttonous burgers without the glut, and it’s due to two key ingredients: their buns, and their patties.

Got buns hun?
Owner Dani Zeini spent months working with a baker in order to get the recipe down pat for his juicy buns. Whilst we can’t share the recipe, we can tell you that they contain far less gluten than traditional buns which helps reduce that sickly full feeling. Another thing you may have noticed about Royal Stacks buns is how evenly and perfectly browned each burger bun is – every single bun is cooked with the exact same amount of browning, no matter what store or time of day you visit. The secret? Dani uses the Antunes Vertical Contact Toaster.

“It toasts the bun perfectly every single time in such a short period of time and gives you this golden texture,” says Dani. “The first time we used it literally my mind was blown… it had the right texture, the right colour with a minimal input from staff. I could almost say it changed my life.”

Video: Dani Zeini talks about his favourite toaster.

Grilled to perfection
You can’t bite into a single, double or triple stack Royal Stacks burger without commenting on how perfectly cooked and juicy the beef is. This is again the result of perfect produce and production. All of Dani’s beef patties are minced fresh daily and is sourced from rural Australia, is 100% Australian, pasture fed, GMO free with no hormones or antibiotics. In addition, Dani cooks each patty on a Mareno 90 Series Chome Grill which unlike more commonly used iron grills aren’t porous, meaning they do not absorb and transfer flavours resulting in a clean, fresh taste no mater how many times the grill has been used.

“As soon as I put that first patty on the grill I knew straight away,” Dani said. “It cooked it perfectly, the heat penetrated the meat, seared it on the outside with some good caramelisation”. You can watch our interview with Dani on his Mareno grills below!

Carl's Jr.
When news of the Carl’s Jr. Australian expansion was released, the anticipation was palpable. The controversial burger chain known for its raunchy advertising in America (remember that Daisy Duke ad?) opted for a different strategy down under, quietly launching its now 17 stores and focusing on quality, fresh food rather than risque advertising. And its paid off, tenfold. Not only are all Carl’s Jr. burgers cooked fresh to order, but are prepared with the freshest of ingredients, giving you that overwhelming burst of flavour from first bite. The secret?

The storage story
What sets Carl’s Jr. apart from other burger chains is their incredible attention to detail when it comes to storing their produce. Where other burger chains offer a soggy piece of lettuce and a pink coloured slice of what we assume was once tomato, Carl’s Jr. produce is incredibly fresh and the unsung hero of their burgers. To achieve this, Carl’s Jr. rely on Cambro for all their food storage needs, from the moment produce hits the loading dock to being stored in the coolroom and sliced, shredded and ready to be added during service. In particular, Carl’s Jr. find utilising drain shelves in their food boxes helps keep the produce fresher for longer. You can watch our interview with Carl’s Jr. General Manager Rodney Moran below!

Huxtaburger
Since 2012, Huxtaburger has been at the forefront of the great burger revival, largely pioneering the brioche bun and wagyu patties trend not only in Melbourne, but throughout Australia. Huxtaburger has managed to find the perfect balance between premium ingredients and an accessible burger for everyone to enjoy. They are fast food created by chefs, and adored by the industry as a whole. With minimal footprint stores, the franchise relies heavily on pumping out their menu quickly and consistently in order to maintain its top tier reputation as a premium takeaway burger joint. The speed with which Huxtaburger serves its ever growing line of customers both in store and online is certainly the secret to their success. But how can they achieve such volume in such a small footprint?

Double or nothing
The secret is in their double sided grills from Garland which cooks burger patties up to 50% faster than traditional grills. The XPress Grill not only allows Huxtaburger to serve customers nearly twice as fast as their competitors, but precise temperature controls and push button operation means each patty is cooked to perfection each and every time, with no staff intervention required whatsoever. You can learn more by watching the short product video below.