2025 Packers Opponent Burger Series- Week 6- Cincinnati Bengals

Hello again from Japan! It is my last full day before coming back to the US. I apologize for posting this in the evening (US time). This is the last of the burgers that I made before I left for Japan. For Cincinnati I made a burger inspired by Skyline Chili!

Inspired by the viral hit ramen burger from a decade ago, I made spaghetti buns. For the buns, I cooked half of a small package of spaghetti. Once slightly undercooked, I ran it under cold water while straining. I combined the spaghetti with two beaten eggs, and then put a quarter of the spaghetti egg mixture into four deli cups, and put an empty deli cup in on top to press it down. Those were all stacked up and weighed down overnight. When I was ready to use them I fried them on both sides to toast them.

After trying to do the Coney Island burger last season, I took a different approach to the sauce. For the Coney Island Burger I just made the chili without meat or beans, and cooked it down to a ketchup consistency, but I found it to be very bitter. For this one I started with a bottle of Heinz Chili Sauce in a saucepan where I added a quarter of a square of unsweetened baking chocolate, a tiny dash (like 1/8-1/4 tsp) of ground clove and allspice, about 1/4 tsp of cinnamon, garlic powder, cumin, and chili powder, and a splash of apple cider vinegar. I cooked that down until the chocolate was melted, and it was back to a ketchup-like consistency.

The toppings were Tillamook sharp cheddar, diced onions, and canned beans.

Overall I was VERY pleased with the outcome of this burger. The spaghetti buns were a bit dense, so I'd either make those slightly smaller for future attempts or cut one in half. The sauce worked well. It didn't get too bitter, but it still had the essence of Cincinnati Chili. Starting with a tomato base that has more sugar in it seems to have solved my issue of how to turn different types of chili into a condiment. I'm guessing you could probably achieve similar results using ketchup, but just doctor it a bit more. I was very happy with how things turned out.