Food - Drink
The Humble Origins Of Oklahoma’s Onion Burger
By NICO DANILOVICH
Americans invented the modern burger and have endlessly modified the humble food, creating seemingly limitless variations from burgers between donuts to burgers topped with mac and cheese, ramen, or even spaghetti. While Oklahoma’s onion burger might not sound as unusual as others, this unique burger is fascinating in its own right.
A burger with onions doesn’t sound particularly special, but in the case of Oklahoma’s onion burger, you end up with a burger loaded with about half a bulb of onion shredded, fried, and grilled into the patty. The burger was the invention of Ross Davis who ran the Hamburger Inn and created the burger as a way to feed ravenous customers without increasing costs.
During the Great Depression, Davis began using onion to pad out the meat of his burger patties as a way to increase the volume of the food without raising prices. The result was a crunchy yet tender patty full of savory flavor that customers loved. The idea quickly spread throughout western Oklahoma and remains a regional favorite to this day.