Tastes Like Home: In-N-Out Burger Copycat Recipe

They say you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone, and I think that statement can definitely be applied to culinary treats that remind you of home. Last week I kicked off my Tastes Like Home series with a copycat recipe from my favorite NYC sub shop, Jersey Mikes. And in the comments, I got challenged by my sister who lives in Los Angeles to make an In-N-Out burger in my Oxford kitchen. This is one of my favorite burgers in America, so naturally I accepted.

What's in the original (full recipe found at yourhomebasedmom.com):

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 large onions finely chopped
salt, pepper
1/4 C mayo
2 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp sweet pickle relish
1/2 tsp white vinegar
2 lbs. ground chuck (60%)
4 hamburger buns pickles
1 C shredded iceberg lettuce
4-8 slices of tomato
8 slices of American cheese

What I found at the British grocery store instead:

• Pickle relish doesn't exist here. It's my new favorite game to ask the grocery store employees where items are because I'm guaranteed at least one "what is that?" a visit. The poor stock boy spent five minutes looking around for this and researching it on the computer before telling me they didn't have it.
• American cheese obviously doesn't exist here either. So I just used cheddar and it worked out just fine.

Step 1: Caramelize onions

Step 2: Make the secret sauce by mixing mayo, ketchup, vinegar, and relish (if you're lucky enough to have that).

The picture of the sauce didn't come out, so instead, check out these cute dancing ketchup bottles.

Tastes Like Home! Recreating a Fast Food Favorite

They say food reminds you of home, so in between all the bangers and mash and cottage pies we've been consuming, I've been trying to incorporate our favorite meals from home into the rotation each week (ie., my Ritz Cracker Chicken challenge...)

On Monday, I got an insane craving for Jersey Mike's--a chain sub shop that we used to go probably once a week because it was next door to my apartment in Manhattan. I'm a creature of habit and always ordered the same thing: the Original Italian, Mike's Way (their version of the "special sauce," served with onions, lettuce, tomatoes, olive oil blend, red wine vinegar, and spices.) So, I decided to re-create it--it's just a sub after all... it can't be that hard.

Newsflash: it's actually not that hard--if you're in America. But I soon discovered even the most simple ingredients were hard to come by in England.

What's in the original:

What I found at the grocery store:

• Provolone doesn't exist here. Basically the only deli cheese here is Mild, Medium, and Strong English Cheddar. We decided to try the medium. 
• I gave up on prosciuttini and cappacuolo. They looked at me funny when I asked for cilantro last week so I didn't want to make an even bigger fool out of myself this time.
• Pepperoni also doesn't exist here either. It's called salami. How was I supposed to get salami and pepperoni if they were the same thing? So I got salami and chorizo, crossing my fingers it wouldn't be weird.

Step 1: Chop up red onion and lettuce

4 Unexpected Setbacks Cooking an American Dinner in England

We are finally settled in our apartment, which to me, calls for a celebration. Back home, my favorite dinner to cook (because it's so easy) and Christopher's favorite to eat (because it's so yummy) is Ritz Cracker Chicken--a recipe my college roommate and I used to make in our apartment senior year.

For such a simple dish, I had some unexpected hiccups while preparing it in our new galley kitchen (which may or may not have been the inspiration for the tile mosaics in the NYC subway stations.)

Here are the challenges I faced (PS- the recipe is at the bottom of this post--make it! I promise you'll love it!)

1. Everything is smaller here. Check out this teeny weeny little parmesan cheese container I got (the biggest one I could find) compared to a measuring cup. Granted, we had used a little of the cheese the night before, but the amount left over didn't even equal half a cup. #fail

2.  Just because it's a brand-name doesn't mean it's exactly like the kind back at home. The recipe calls for a sleeve of Ritz Crackers, but guess what, they don't come in sleeves here! And upon a traditional taste test of the first cracker, I noticed they're less salty, so it makes the overall recipe taste a little different. And again with the itty-bitty-ness...

3. The temperature conversion is still confusing. My oven only goes to 250 but I have to remember it's celsius over fahrenheit. I found this neat app called Units Plus (it's free!) which converts everything from temp to length to currency--a must for anyone living or traveling abroad. It will help prevent this: