Zucchini Burger

Zucchini - the delectable summer squash. All my life I have desecrated this beautiful vegetable by tossing it into stir-fry, letting it get all soft and soggy... The secret to unlocking its true potential is to grill it!
Zucchini has a wonderfully subtle, sweet flavor and is loaded with water. Like mushrooms, you might have noticed that it releases a lot of liquid when heated. The key is to cook out those juices in order to intensify their flavor.

Zucchini Burger - grilled in the pan!

1 Zucchini
1 Red Onion
dry thyme
1 tsp extra Virgin Olive Oil or Butter (or a mix of both)
Your choice of salt - I recommend Kosher or Pink
1 Tomato, ripe
1 Head of Iceberg Lettuce
Mayonnaise - I recommend Kyuupi Mayonnaise
(You can find this at most Asian food stores)

CUT full-length slices of zucchini 1/4 inch thick, same with the red onion and tomatoes. Set aside the tomatoes for assembly later.

HEAT your pan with either olive oil or butter over medium/low heat. Lay out the zucchini and onion slices (intact like they do at In&Out) and sprinkle over a pinch of salt. The salt will draw out the liquid from the vegetables. The key here is low and slow - if it's too hot, the food will burn. You'll know when it's ready to flip them over by the sweet smell. The sugars in the vegetables will start to caramelize and give the veggies a beautiful color and aroma. When they're gorgeous on both sides, sprinkle a bit of thyme, and give both sides an extra 30 sec to 1 minute to allow the herbs to open up in the oils left in the pan. Set the veggies aside on a plate for assembly.

TOAST your favorite bun or roll in the same pan. Add a bit of butter or oil to the pan if you need - there is usually enough residual oils left so I don't bother. When it's got that golden crispy crust, turn off the heat.

Start assembly from the bottom bun.

Step 1: Spread the mayo on the bottom bun - this acts as a fatty shield to keep your crispy bun from getting soggy.

Step 2: Lay out your zucchini first, then your red onion. I add a smidgen of a sprinkling of salt here. The key point is to bring out the sweetness in the vegetables - do not go overboard and make this into a salty mess.

Step 3: Tomatoes. I think that's pretty self-explanatory.

Step 4: Iceberg lettuce... lots of it! It is in my opinion that a heaping of iceberg lettuce is most harmonious for this recipe. Its crispy and refreshing - and it won't fight the wonderful flavors that come with the grilled zucchini and onion. Go ahead and try your romaine, alfalfa, or even arugula... but once, just once try it with the iceberg.

Enjoy!