If a burger isn't beef is it still a burger?

[purplepoppy]

When I think of a burger, I think of a ground beef patty in a bun with cheese, salad etc. However you can get pork patties, lamb patties, chicken patties, even vegetable patties etc. But are these actual burgers or something else?

Only beef is a burger

Any ground meat in a patty shape is a burger

Anything in a bun is a burger

[RandomGirl42]

This is like way too philosophical for me to answer with a hangover on the day after the Superbowl, so, I asked AI, but it just left me with more questions and now I am wondering, "Are hot dogs sandwiches?"

""Ah, the ancient burger philosophy question 🍔

Depends who you ask—and what you mean by burger.

Culinary / everyday use:
Yep, it’s still a burger. Most people use burger to mean the format: a patty (or patty-like thing) in a bun with toppings. That’s why turkey burgers, veggie burgers, bean burgers, and even Impossible burgers get a pass. Language evolved, and “burger” escaped beef jail.

Food-purist / traditionalist take:
Originally, hamburger = beef from Hamburg-style minced meat. By that logic, if it’s not beef, it’s technically a sandwich. This crowd will say things like “that’s a veggie patty on a bun” while adjusting their monocle.

Legal / menu labeling world:
Restaurants usually keep “burger” but add a qualifier: chicken burger, black bean burger, plant-based burger. That’s basically a truce between both sides.

Vibe check:
If you bite it and think “yeah, this is a burger moment,” it’s a burger. If you’re arguing about it online at 2 a. m., it’s also definitely a burger.

So: linguistically and culturally? Yes.
Historically and pedantically? Ehhhh.

Now the real question—are hot dogs sandwiches? 😏""

[FreyaRed]

I'm not sure but even McDonald's calls their pork and chicken products "Sandwiches". MCD doesn't make better hamburgers than I do but they sell millions of them, I guess they will have some kind of competency in this matter.

[OneViewpoint]

I'm easy. Any ground meat in a patty shape on a bun is a burger for me.

A legit competitor for a beef burger is a Buffalo (American Bison) burger. Leaner and good taste.

Lamb is also a home run.

Never tried it as ground meat but I'm betting goat would work too.

Likewise woodchuck would probably work as ground meat for a burger.

DO NOT try to make a burger with ground moose meat. It tastes like shit. And it won't hang together because the fat content is too low.

Never tried it with venison but I assume it would end up the same as moose meat.

Never tried elk either. Filed under moose and venison.

Bear meat would probably do OK as far as fat content goes but it's gamey as hell.

[Lliam]

A hamburger is called a hamburger because it originates from the German city of Hamburg, where "Hamburg-style" chopped, seasoned beef steaks were popular before being brought to the United States in the 19th century. It has no ham; the "-er" suffix denotes someone or something from that city, similar to a frankfurter coming from Frankfurt.

Americans shortened the word to "burger" but it still referred to the original hamburger.
It still does, but there are now variations with prefixes like veggie-burger and chicken burger. I suppose you could use anything as long as you specified what it was.

[AI Opinion]

I get you. When I hear “burger,” I also picture a juicy beef patty in a bun, classic cheeseburger style 🍔

Traditionally, yes, a “hamburger” is minced beef. But in modern use, “burger” describes the format: a ground or formed patty served in a bun with toppings. So beef is the default, but chicken burgers, veggie burgers, lamb burgers are still considered burgers, just with the qualifier added.

[zagor]

Wow AI actually said something appropriate.

[AviatorTom]

Anything in a round patty in a bun is a burger. The name is possibly a shortened for of hamburger, since Hamburg Germany is reportedly where it was first invented, though that can also be a myth.

It may sound disgusting to some, but take soy (tofu), pound it into a patty shape (round or square, it doesn't matter) and put it in a bun, and you have a burger.

[ohsheeT]

Of course , anything in a bun is a burger chicken pork turkey

And some animals become two types of mills because you have chicken wings , you have buffalo , rings , turkey , rings , squirrel , wings , pig wings , penguin wings you have bee wings and fly wings you have telephone wings all the same

[MrOracle]

In the US, only beef patties or things pretending to be beef patties (veggie burgers) are considered burgers. Anything else is just a sandwich. A chicken sandwich, a sloppy Joe sandwich, a pulled pork sandwich, etc.

We take our burgers seriously over here.

[Chazmatazz269]

“Burger” is short for hamburger, which is and always has been ground beef.
Ground chicken is ground chicken.
Ground pork is ground pork.
Ground bison is ground bison.
You can call it a patty, or put cheese on it and call it a melt. You can call it a regrub or a moose fart for all i care. Calling anything but a hamburger a “burger” is just lazy and ignorant. That is, however, the American way. So it is what it is.

[exitseven]

only ground beef is a burger. If it is made of turkey it is a turkey burger, if it is made of vegetables it is a veggie burger if it is made from excrement it is a turd burger.

[MontBlanc]

Yes , if it keeps the core idea.

A burger is more about the format (patty in a bun with fillings) than the meat itself. Chicken burger, veggie burger, fish burger , they’re still burgers.

Beef is classic, not the definition.

[Iron_Man]

It has to be a beef burger to be officially called a hamburger? If not, it turns into a barbecue beef sandwich or pulled pork sandwhich

[NathanDavis]

Yes.

even for the Brits... who like to clear their caché and biscuits...

[molonski2]

In Thai they say " chicken steak "
Anything between a bun in my mind.

[Anonymous]

i don't eat beef burgers , only have chicken sandwiches , i don't really consider it to be a burger in the sense but is a term chicken burger that some places use

[douride2]

What I could never figure out is why do the call it a hamburger. It's made out of beef not ham?

[Anonymous]

Only a big Mac is a big Mac

Am I right folks

Crickets

Am I right cricket 🦗

[queenofcardio]

Lol 😅

[beefcakebradybatson]

Gays wouldn't try to kill me;as a black man, I know Nazis would !!!

[Nikki1989]

Anything can be a burger.

[CuriousMufuxka]

No just an overpriced waste of money.

[888theGreat]

I make Bison Burgers