Recipes Umami Burgers with Port and Stilton 5.0 (226) Add your rating & review Resist the urge to pile on any of the usual toppings—lettuce, tomato, ketchup. "The port is your condiment," explains Umami Burger's Adam Fleischman.Tip: Burger purists handle ground meat as little as possible; over-working the beef can create a tight, meatloaf texture. Slideshow: More Great Burgers By Adam Fleischman Adam Fleischman Adam Fleischman is widely considered a maverick in the fast-dining industry. One of the early pioneers of the better-burger movement, he launched a gourmet burger chain built around the Japanese concept of umami, or the fifth dimension of taste. He is the co-author of Flavor Bombs: The Umami Ingredients That Make Taste Explode (2016).Experience: Adam Fleischman began his restaurant career by opening two of Los Angeles's first wine bars, BottleNeck (2006) and Vinoteque (2008). His passion for wine and food led Adam to delve further into his fascination with the "fifth taste" or umami. He founded the Umami Burger chain in 2009 based on recipes he painstakingly developed to heighten and accentuate the savory experience. The success of his restaurant group, which expanded to include 800 Degrees Pizza, played an important role in challenging the concept of what fast food and casual dining could be. Adam appeared in the food documentary Bite into the Future and television shows Hell's Kitchen and The Best Thing I Ever Ate. He shared his expertise with readers in the 2016 cookbook, Flavor Bombs: The Umami Ingredients That Make Taste Explode.Education: Adam earned a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts from the University of Maryland. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on December 22, 2021 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: © Marcus Nilsson Total Time: 40 mins Yield: 4 burgers Ingredients 1 cup ruby port 2 pounds mixed ground beef brisket, skirt steak and sirloin steak (20 percent fat) Salt and freshly ground pepper 1/2 cup Stilton cheese (3 ounces), softened Umami dust, for sprinkling (optional, see Note) 4 brioche hamburger buns, buttered and toasted Directions In a small saucepan, cook the port over moderate heat until reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 15 minutes. Heat a cast-iron griddle until very hot. Form the meat into four 4-by-1-inch patties without packing too tightly. Season generously with salt and pepper. Arrange the patties on the griddle, cover with a roasting pan and cook over moderately high heat for 4 minutes, until very crusty. Flip the patties and cook, covered, for 2 minutes longer; top with the Stilton and cook uncovered for 1 minute. Transfer the patties to a plate and sprinkle with the umami dust, let rest for 2 minutes and set on the buns. Drizzle with the reduced port, top with the buns and serve. Notes The Secret Seasoning To make simplified umami dust, use a spice grinder to pulse 3 tablespoons bonito flakes, 1/2 ounce crumbled dried kombu, and 1/2 ounce dried shitake mushrooms into a powder. Umami dust will soon be available at umamiburger.com. Suggested Pairing Beer Malty brown ale: Brooklyn Brewery Brown Ale. Wine Cherry-rich Washington Merlot. Rate it Print