A Burger Buff on Grilling Perfection

Renowned home cook Erin Evenson remembers her parents foraging for watercress when she was young. She grew up thinking there was nothing better than that fresh watercress, until she moved to New York City, stumbled across a Thai restaurant in Queens with an unbelievable crispy watercress salad and fell in love with it. "It totally changed my perception of watercress," recalls Evenson.

The Brooklyn-based cook used these two experiences with watercress as inspiration in forming her caramelized green curry burger with crispy watercress salad, roasted cashews, and minted basil aioli that took top honors at this year's Sutter Home Build a Better Burger Recipe Contest. "I wanted something that paid homage to New York City and my family," says Evenson of the burger she created.

Her recipe (available here) takes two hours to create but, she assures, can be brought down to less than one hour by integrating some store-bought, premade ingredients. For instance, she advises cooks to buy a premade curry paste and simply add a bit of coconut milk and lime juice to replace her homemade curry component.

Check out the slideshow above to read Evenson's advice for creating unbelievable burgers at home.