How To Make Your Burger's Lettuce The Most Flavorful Part Of Each Bite

We'll be the ones to say it: Lettuce isn't a great burger topping, especially compared to all of the other options out there. If you're lucky, it won't have steamed and gone limp by the time it reaches your table at a restaurant — if it was even crispy to begin with. If and when it's good lettuce, it can add a complementary crunch to a rich burger, but it does very little by way of flavor. 

Rather than ditch the lettuce entirely, give it a unique and flavorful upgrade by tossing the torn, chopped, or shredded leaves in a dressing or sauce before adding them to your burger. This will give your sandwich a double dose of saucy dressing — both on the lettuce and via any condiments you add to the bun — and will offer a more compelling bite than just subpar, watery iceberg. The one caveat to this hack is that you can't make your makeshift "lettuce slaw" too far in advance. Otherwise, your leafy greens will become limp, soggy, and unpleasant. 

Lettuce — and really, any greens you like adding to your burgers — will soak up sauce and dressing like a sponge. A lamb burger, for example, would be excellent with a creamy tzatziki dressing mixed with peppery arugula or chopped romaine. This sauce is creamy but perfectly balanced against the decadent burger, thanks to the tangy Greek yogurt and fresh dill. Alternatively, our ranch burger recipe, which has ranch seasoning mixed with the ground beef, could also benefit from extra ranch dressing tossed with the lettuce topping. 

That being said, you don't have to go wild or opt for unconventional sauces on your burgers. Even a plain-Jane burger could benefit from a punchy Dijon vinaigrette; instead of adding it to your patties, toss a bit with the leafy greens before serving. Something as basic as a homemade burger sauce (which we included in our easy smash burger recipe) would also cling to any sort of lettuce like green leaf or Bibb with ease, offering you an extra punch of moisture and flavor in addition to the swipe of sauce on the bun.