Patty Melt: What It Is, and How the Kosher Version Works
A patty melt is a classic American sandwich (beef patty, caramelized onions and melted cheese between two slices of griddled bread, no bun, no lettuce, no tomato). At Smash House Burgers we take the classic diner patty melt and give it a kosher friendly twist with double smashed patties, vegan cheese and garlic “butter” toast. The Smash House Patty Melt is on our in store menu.
What Is a Patty Melt?
A patty melt is somewhere between a cheeseburger and a grilled cheese sandwich. You’ve got the beef and onions of a burger, the bread is toasted on the griddle until it’s golden and crisp.
The Classic Diner Build
The classic patty melt has four ingredients: the patty (seasoned beef), the onions (slow cooked), the cheese (melted) and the rye (buttered).
The beef is generally cooked on a griddle or flat top and the onions are softened until they’re sweet and golden brown. Swiss is the traditional cheese but a lot of people will use cheddar or American instead.
Everything’s between two slices of bread, grilled until the outside is crisp and the cheese has melted around the patty.
It’s actually a sandwich rather than a burger and that’s more than just a matter of swapping the bun.
Rye Bread, Not a Bun
Traditional rye has that slightly earthy, tangy flavor which is absolutely perfect with the rich beef and sweet onions. It’s also a bread that will take the weight of the filling without collapsing.
Marble rye has a similar flavor, with its characteristic light and dark swirls. Sourdough is tangier and has a much more substantial crust which browns up beautifully on the griddle.
For something a bit more in the Smash House mold it’s thick cut garlic toast which brings a very different character to the sandwich. It’s all buttery crunch and a savory garlic finish rather than the tang of rye.
Where the Patty Melt Came From
The patty melt is very much an American diner food, the sort of thing a grill cook would make in a diner with basic ingredients.
The sandwich became a thing in the mid 20th century with diners and coffee shops being a regular place to go for a burger, a grilled sandwich and a cheap meal.
Its origins are still very much in dispute, with a number of people pointing to the proliferation of California coffee shops as the genesis of the sandwich.
What stuck was the combo: griddled bread, beef, melted cheese and onions cooked until they were sweet. Decades later it’s still a very recognizable American diner sandwich.
Patty Melt vs Burger: What Is the Difference?
Bread, Toppings & How It Is Griddled
| Feature | Patty Melt | Traditional Burger |
|---|---|---|
| Bread | Rye, sourdough, or thick-cut toast | Soft burger bun |
| Cheese | Typically Swiss or cheddar, with dairy-free alternatives for kosher meat versions | Optional, with several cheese choices |
| Onions | Usually caramelized | Raw, grilled, caramelized, or omitted |
| Cold toppings | Traditionally no lettuce or tomato | Often includes lettuce, tomato, and pickles |
| Cooking method | Beef is cooked, then the assembled sandwich is griddled | Patty is grilled or griddled, then placed in a bun |
| Serving style | Often sliced diagonally and served hot | Usually served whole in a bun |
Why It Eats Differently
A burger bun is typically soft and slightly sweet. It takes up the juices from the patty and gives you a softer bite.
A patty melt has a much crunchier texture (particularly around the edges where the bread meets the hot surface) than a regular burger. The onions are caramelised and add a touch of sweetness and the cheese melts and acts as a binder for the filling.
And if you’re using a smashed patty there’s another dimension to it.
Press the beef firmly against the hot flat top to maximize contact with the cooking surface and get that deeply browned Maillard crust. It’s the same principle that makes a smash patty different to a thicker, more traditional burger.
The end result is a sandwich with a crispy crust and loads of savory beef.
How the Kosher Version Works
Making a kosher-style patty melt is one that delivers the beef and cheese experience without the meat and dairy coming together. This requires modifications to the ingredients, not to the basic method of cooking.
The One Thing That Has to Change
The traditional version is of course the dairy version (Swiss or cheddar being the usual choices). Under kashrut you’re not allowed to cook or eat meat and dairy together.
A traditional cheeseburger style patty melt cannot be served as a kosher meat meal with regular dairy cheese.
The answer is to use a suitable dairy free cheese.
Not every vegan cheese is automatically kosher. Ingredients, processing and kosher certification all still matter, particularly when you’re dealing with people who are observing a strict kosher regime.
The same applies to the bread and the cooking fat. The butter has to be replaced with an appropriate dairy free alternative and the bread itself must be dairy free.
For a proper kosher preparation the beef, the other ingredients, the utensils and the cooking equipment all have to be in accordance with the relevant requirements.
What Goes On Instead
At Smash House Burgers our Patty Melt has the cheese with a vegan cheese.
Our current sandwich is double smashed beef patties, vegan cheese, caramelised onions and garlic “butter” toast. Kay sauce is on the side.
The combo works as the dairy free cheese adds a nice creamy element against the hot beef and the toast provides the crunch you’d expect from a proper melt.
This is Smash House’s meat based menu without any reliance on the normal dairy cheese.
Want to know what the dietary requirements are? Read more about our Glatt Kosher standard and how the kosher process informs our menu.
What Stays Exactly the Same
The best bits of the classic sandwich don’t have to go.
You still get the beef browned on a hot griddle, onions cooked until they’re tender and sweet and bread toasted until crisp.
A dairy free butter substitute gives the outside that lovely golden color without any of the milk ingredients. The melted vegan cheese is what binds the beef and onions together.
The classic rye and the Smash House garlic toast are very different in flavor, but both are based on the same fundamental principle of hot beef between slices of beautifully grilled bread.
Patty Melt Recipe
This patty melt recipe makes two double patty sandwiches at home using kosher beef, vegan cheese and a dairy free butter.
Inspired by the traditional diner approach with a smash burger twist. Classic version uses rye bread, garlic toast version uses thick cut dairy free bread.
Ingredients
| Ingredient | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 80/20 ground beef | 12 oz (340 g) | Use kosher-certified ground chuck or suitable ground beef |
| Rye bread | 4 slices | Check for kosher certification and dairy-free ingredients |
| Sweet onions | 2 medium (about 300 g) | Thinly sliced |
| Dairy-free cheese | 4 slices | Choose a suitable kosher-certified vegan cheese |
| Dairy-free butter substitute | 2 tbsp | Use a pareve product |
| Neutral cooking oil | 1 tbsp | For the onions |
| Kosher salt | ¾ tsp | Divided between beef and onions |
| Black pepper | ¼ tsp | For the beef |
| Garlic powder | ½ tsp | Optional for the garlic-toast variation |
Optional serving suggestion: a side of fries, a pickle spear or a dash of the Thousand Island style sauce (which is made with kosher certified, dairy free ingredients).
How to Make It, Step by Step
- Cook the onions: Heat the oil in a pan over medium-low heat, add the onions and 1/4 tsp salt and cook for 30-40 minutes until they’re golden and soft.
- Prepare the beef: divide the ground beef into four loose 3oz (85g) balls (don’t pack them tightly).
- Smash the patties: heat a flat top or heavy skillet until hot, add the beef and firmly smash each ball into a patty.
- Cook the beef: season with the remaining salt and pepper, cook until well browned, flip and finish cooking to 160°F (71°C).
- Build the sandwiches: spread the dairy free butter substitute on the outside of the bread, then add two patties, two cheese slices and half the onions in each sandwich.
- Griddle the bread: place the sandwiches in a skillet over medium heat and press them gently with a spatula for 2-3 minutes.
- Flip carefully, turn each one and cook for another 2-3 minutes until both sides are golden and the cheese has softened.
- Rest and serve: let the sandwiches rest for one minute, then cut diagonally and serve hot.
Caramelizing the Onions Properly
Good caramelized onions take patience. There’s no substitute for that.
Start on medium-low heat with a touch of oil. Spread the sliced onions out in the pan and stir from time to time, allowing the natural sugars in the onions to develop gradually.
Expect it to take about 30 to 40 minutes (depending on the pan and how much you’re cooking).
If the onions are browning too quickly then reduce the heat and add a little water to loosen the bits that have browned.
Rushed onions tend to be sharp and a bit raw. Burnt onions are distinctly bitter and that bitterness completely dominates the beef.
You’re after the soft, golden brown strands with a mild sweetness. That’s what gives the sandwich its very particular diner flavour.
Prep Time, Yield & Tips
| Recipe Detail | Time or Amount |
|---|---|
| Prep time | 10 minutes |
| Cook time | 45 minutes |
| Total time | 55 minutes |
| Yield | 2 double-patty melts |
| Patty weight | 3 oz (85 g) each |
| Serving size | 1 sandwich |
A few ways to get a better result:
- Make ahead: cook the onions up to three days in advance and store in a sealed container in the fridge.
- Heat the griddle properly as a properly heated surface will help the beef to get that crisp skin on before it overcooks.
- Choose a sturdy bread. Thin sandwich bread is going to tear under the weight of two patties.
- Keep the heat fairly moderate for toasting, the bread needs time to go a little brown without burning before the vegan cheese has a chance to warm through.
Common Mistakes
- Soggy rye bread: if it’s too fatty when you’re cooking it or you’ve used too many wet onions it can end up quite limp. Make sure you drain any excess moisture from the onions and apply the dairy free butter substitute very thinly to the outside of the bread.
- Rush the onions – high heat will burn them before they actually soften. Medium-low heat and let them caramelize.
- Making the patty too thick: a thick burger patty makes the sandwich very difficult to toast and very difficult to eat. Use thinner patties.
- Use bread that’s wider than the beef (the large, empty corners will result in bits of plain toast). Smash the patties wide enough to cover most of the bread, allowing for some shrinkage as they cook.
- Add the cheese last (it can take longer to soften than the dairy cheese). Put it up against the hot beef when you’re assembling and just let it warm through as the bread toasts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a Patty Melt Just a Burger on Rye?
Not at all. A patty melt is a rye bread sandwich with beef, caramelised onions and cheese. It’s assembled and then toasted on a griddle which gives it a crisp outside and a very different texture to a burger in a soft bun.
What Cheese Goes on a Patty Melt?
Swiss is the traditional cheese, though cheddar and American are also fairly common. For a kosher meat option you’d of course substitute the normal dairy cheese with a suitable kosher certified dairy free alternative. Smash House use a vegan cheese in their Patty Melt so they have the creaminess without the dairy.
Can You Make a Patty Melt Without Cheese?
Yes you can absolutely leave the cheese out and still have a lovely hot beef and onion sandwich on griddled bread. It’ll just be a bit less creamy and less rich. If you’re going dairy free then you can of course use a suitable vegan cheese.
What Bread Is Best for a Patty Melt?
Rye is the traditional favorite as its tang cuts through the richness of the beef and the sweetness of the onions. Marble rye and sourdough are both good alternatives. Thick cut garlic toast is a good option too, particularly if you’re using smashed patties. Whatever bread you go for, make sure it’s a good thick slice that can actually hold the filling.
Try the Kosher Patty Melt at Smash House
Not in the mood to have onions caramelizing for 40 minutes? We completely understand.
Drop into Smash House on 47th Street and check out the in store menu. The Patty Melt features double smashed beef, vegan cheese, caramelised onions, garlic “butter” toast and Kay sauce on the side. Come hungry!
