no i won't mess with the way you eat your burger...my personal add-ons include swiss cheese, dijon mustard, a thick slice of tomato, crispy lettuce, heinz ketchup, sliced baby cornichons, lightly grilled onion...but i only want the pinoy patty to star in between the onion rolls.
during childhood our parents didn't go to the supermarket too often. there weren't very many around. but when they did we all tried to wrangle a seat in the car because invariably they'd go to "tropical hut" food mart on Quezon Boulevard (?, behind the TV studios? in Quezon City) where there was a little counter with high stools and all four of us kids would order the big burger. (i think our parents tried to sneak away without us many times). this was just about the only burger we ate, unless we stopped by the A&W Burger& Root Beer joint near the Luneta Park.
1992 i brought my husband and then-only child to Boracay and there it was, i encountered it again, at the Club Panoly beach resort: the juicy, rich, oniony tasty pinoy patty. i dissected and sliced and tasted it and came up with this: my attempt to duplicate that luscious flavorful slab of protein.
2 lbs. ground beef (up to 80% lean)
2 medium shallots, finely minced
2 tbsps. pinoy soy sauce (such as silver swan or lauriat or pinya)
ground pepper
mix well all above ingredients. let marinate at least 2 hours. form into patties and grill or broil. pile on to your favorite roll (kaiser, onion, Wonder, etc..) the kids love to top their own after i grill their burger and let the cheese melt in a warmed oven.
