I tried Guy Fieri and Gordon Ramsay's quick burger recipes, and the best one was easier to make

Gordon Ramsay and Guy Fieri Burgers
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  • I made both Gordon Ramsay and Guy Fieri's 10-minute burger recipes.

  • Fieri's is simpler than Ramsay's recipe, which features way more ingredients and steps.

  • I loved both burgers, but Fieri's took the top spot in my celebrity-chef showdown.

The holiday weekend is here, which means it's the perfect time to fire up the grill — or griddle — and make some delicious burgers.

Anneta with Gordon Ramsay's Burger
I love trying new burger recipes.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Whether I'm trying Obama's favorite or a Brooklyn classic, I love sampling different restaurant burgers.

But I also love whipping them up at home, and I've turned to two legendary celebrity chefs to give me guidance on how to make the perfect burger.

Guy Fieri and Gordon Ramsay both have 10-minute burger recipes, so I decided it was time for a little showdown.

Gordon Ramsay, Guy Fieri
Gordon Ramsay and Guy Fieri both have popular burger recipes.Ethan Miller/Getty Images for Vegas Uncork'd by Bon Appetit/Gerardo Mora/Getty Images for Planet Hollywood Observatory

I discovered Ramsay's bacon cheeseburger recipe in his newest cookbook, "Ramsay in 10," which includes 100 recipes that only take 10 minutes. The "MasterChef" star calls this recipe his "quickest burger ever."

Meanwhile, it was Fieri himself who gave me this recipe when I asked him for his top burger tips.

"This may be a more complicated answer than you bargained for, because it's not just about a burger recipe," Fieri told me. "It's about the execution of the whole deal. You can get down with whatever toppings you want, but the basics have to be covered."

I whipped up both Ramsay and Fieri's recipes at home to decide who truly had the best — and quickest — burger. Here's how it all went down.

Fieri's burger is all about the classic ingredients.

Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger ingredients
Fieri's burger includes brioche buns, pickles, and American cheese.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

To make Fieri's perfect burger at home, you'll need:

  • Ground beef (Fieri recommends 80% lean, 20% fat)

  • American cheese slices

  • Brioche buns

  • Lettuce

  • Tomato

  • Onion

  • Pickles

And there's very little prep.

Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger prep
First I cut my tomatoes and onion.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

All you have to do is get the veggies ready. Fieri told me it's important to shred the lettuce, slice your tomato, and "cut those white onions so thin that they only have one side."

Per Fieri's recommendation, I also buttered the buns and popped them into the oven so they could get nice and toasty.

Then I made my patties.

Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger prep
I seasoned my patties with salt and pepper.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

I seasoned my ground beef with salt and pepper, then shaped it into balls.

Once my patties were ready, I threw one on the griddle and smashed it with a spatula.

Smashing Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger
Fieri recommends smashing the patties to half an inch thick.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Fieri said it was essential that I cook my burgers "on the hottest griddle or cast iron pan you can get."

"You smash it down hard, we're talking a half-inch thick," he added.

The Mayor of Flavortown also told me it was important to let my patty crisp up to "get all that delicious caramelization going." I waited until the sides of my patty got crunchy before I flipped it over.

After flipping my patty, I added the cheese.

Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger with cheese
Fieri told me American cheese melts really well on patties.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Fieri loves using American cheese slices on burgers because "they melt really well," he told me.

Then it was time for Fieri's special cheese-melting trick.

Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger melting trick
I used a pie tin to help melt the cheese without overcooking my burger.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

First, I sprayed some water around my burger. Then, per Fieri's instructions, I had to place "some sort of dome or metal bowl" over my patty.

"That steam will melt your cheese before you overcook your burger," he told me.

I didn't have a metal bowl on hand, so I used an old Marie Callender's pie tin I found in my parents' kitchen.

My cheese looked perfect.

Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger with melted cheese
The cheese melted perfectly.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Less than 10 minutes had gone by and it was already time to build my burger.

Constructing my burger was super easy.

Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger with burger and veggies
I placed my patty in the bottom bun, then added all the veggies.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

I placed my patty on the bottom bun, then added the tomato, onion slices, and pickles. I placed the shredded lettuce on the top bun and voilà — I was done!

Fieri's burger tasted just as good as it looked.

Guy Fieri's perfect burger
I couldn't believe how juicy Fieri's burger tasted.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

What impressed me most about Fieri's burger was how juicy it tasted, even without a single condiment. The patty — which was perfectly cooked — truly stood on its own. It had just the right amount of crispiness and was packed with flavor.

The brioche bun added a nice hint of sweetness to the overall taste, and the beautifully-melted cheese tasted almost buttery. The burger was pure perfection.

Read my full review of Guy Fieri's perfect burger here. 

Ramsay's burger has quite a few more ingredients than Fieri's.

Ingredients for Gordon Ramsay's Burger
Ramsay's burger includes bacon, cheddar cheese, and red chili.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

To make Ramsay's cheeseburgers at home, you'll need:

  • Ground beef

  • Brioche buns

  • Bacon

  • Cheddar cheese

  • Egg yolks

  • Frozen red chili

  • Tomato

  • Onion

  • Little Gem lettuce

  • Mayonnaise

  • Sriracha

First I prepped my burgers.

Making the patties for Gordon Ramsay's Burger
I added two egg yolks to my patty, plus the chili.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

I added 16 ounces of ground beef into a bowl — enough to make four burgers — along with two egg yolks. I then sprinkled salt and freshly ground black pepper on top, along with one grated frozen chili.

I used my hands to mix everything together and made four patties that were each around 1-inch thick.

"Remember that the thicker you make the patties, the longer they will take to cook," Ramsay writes in his book. "So if you want these on the table in under 10, press your burgers until they are a little thinner for a quicker cooking time."

I drizzled some vegetable oil on my griddle and threw my patties on top.

Making patties and toppings for Gordon Ramsay's Burger
I cooked my patties with the bacon and onion slices.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

I let my patties cook for four minutes over medium-high heat, seasoning them with some more salt and pepper.

Then I added my bacon and onion slices, increased the heat to high, and let everything cook together.

As my burgers cooked, I prepped Ramsay's special sauce.

Making sauce for Gordon Ramsay's Burger
I quickly whipped up Ramsay's sriracha mayonnaise sauce.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

I simply mixed four tablespoons of mayonnaise with two teaspoons of sriracha in a small bowl, along with some salt and pepper.

I also toasted my buns and prepped my veggies.

Cutting veggies for Gordon Ramsay's Burger
Prepping my veggies was also simple.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

I sliced one tomato and washed some Gem Lettuce leaves for the bottom of my burgers. I also toasted my buns in the oven for about two minutes.

Then I flipped the burgers, bacon, and onions.

Cooking patties and toppings for Gordon Ramsay's Burger
I let my bacon, onion, and patties cook for another five minutes.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

I let them cook for another five minutes. Since my bacon and onion slices were ready before my burgers, I took them off the griddle and placed them on a plate lined with a paper towel.

It was time to add the cheese — and Ramsay uses the same trick as Fieri.

Melting cheese for Gordon Ramsay's Burger
Ramsay uses the same trick as Fieri to melt the cheese.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Ramsay also recommends covering the patties with something to help the cheese melt. But, unlike the Mayor of Flavortown, he doesn't spray the burger with water first.

Instead, Ramsay's recipe instructed me to first add some butter to the griddle and place the cheese slices on top of my burgers. Then he recommends covering the patties with a lid or upturned saucepan. I used a metal bowl, which perfectly covered two of my patties.

The cheese looked absolutely beautiful.

Melting cheese for Gordon Ramsay's Burger
The cheese once again came out perfect.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

This is such an easy trick, and clearly worked really well for both Fieri and Ramsay's burgers. I now consider it an essential part of making a great cheeseburger at home.

Once my patties were ready, I built my burgers.

Building Gordon Ramsay's Burger
First I added the veggies before placing my burger on the bun, along with the bacon.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

First I spread some of Ramsay's sriracha mayonnaise on my bottom buns. Then I added the Gem Lettuce, tomato, and onion slices, plus my cheeseburger and bacon.

After I threw a few more onion slices on top and spread more sauce on my top buns, my burger was ready to go.

Ramsay's burger looked straight out of a restaurant.

Gordon Ramsay's Burger
Ramsay's burger looked super impressive.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

There's no denying how impressive this burger looks, and it tasted great, too. The patty was plump and juicy, and I loved the kick of heat from the sriracha mayonnaise and grated chili.

The bacon and onion also gave some nice crunch and savoriness, while the tomato and lettuce added a dose of freshness.

Read my full review of Gordon Ramsay's perfect burger here.

Both Fieri and Ramsay have fantastic burgers, but it's the Mayor of Flavortown who takes my top spot.

Anneta with Guy Fieri's Perfect Burger
Me with Guy Fieri's burger.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Fieri pulls off his incredible flavor with far less work and prep than Ramsay's recipe. While you've got to keep track of quite a few different steps to make Ramsay's burger happen in 10 minutes, Fieri's recipe is far simpler — and still delivers fantastic results.

Plus, I couldn't believe Fieri's burger tasted so good without any sauce or condiments. I've found his burger to outshine those I've had from places like Five Guys, and it's comparable to the gourmet burgers I've tried all over New York — for a fraction of the cost.

But at the end of the day, you really can't go wrong with Ramsay or Fieri. Either way, you're going to have one very delicious burger.

Read the original article on Insider