Canadian National Dishes

Winnipeg Fat Boy Burger

The Winnipeg Fat Boy is a diner-style burger built around a generous spoonful of loose, chili-style meat sauce. This home version pairs a spiced beef sauce with a griddled patty, cheddar, sesame bun, dill pickle, crisp lettuce, tomato and onion. Fat Boys are associated with Winnipeg's Greek-Canadian burger restaurants, whose menus and sauce recipes vary; this is one practical interpretation rather than a copy of a single shop's formula. Plan about 75 minutes, from start to serving.

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Wide diner-table view with a saucy sesame-bun Fat Boy burger and fries on the right, open table space on the left.
A Winnipeg-style Fat Boy burger topped with its signature loose beef sauce.
Prep 30 minutes
Cook 40 minutes
Total 75 minutes
Calories About 800 kcal per burger
Ingredients ↓
Overview

Winnipeg Fat Boy Burger

Travel Manitoba describes the Fat Boy as a Winnipeg burger with a beef patty, chili meat sauce and a familiar set of diner toppings. Contemporary versions vary. Greek immigrant restaurant networks helped shape Winnipeg's burger-shack culture after the Second World War, but the available accounts do not settle a single inventor or one canonical sauce. Here, cinnamon, allspice and a little clove season a loose beef sauce; no beans are used. The result is intentionally saucy, so a fork and napkins belong at the table.

Practical

Practical

  • Let the sauce reduce until it sits on a spoon. A thin sauce will run out of the bun.
  • Keep the spice mix restrained; cinnamon, allspice and clove should round out the tomato and beef, not make the sauce taste sweet.
  • Shape the patties gently and avoid pressing them while they cook. Check the centre with a digital thermometer.
  • Keep lettuce, tomato, onion and pickles away from the board and utensils used for raw beef.
  • Put cheese on the hot patty, then spoon sauce over it so the toppings stay in place.
Ingredients

Ingredients

Spiced beef meat sauce

  • 10 mL canola oil
  • 250 g lean ground beef
  • 100 g yellow onion, finely diced
  • 6 g garlic, minced
  • 30 g tomato paste
  • 1.5 g ground cinnamon
  • 1 g ground allspice
  • 0.3 g ground cloves
  • 2 g dried oregano
  • 2 g fine salt
  • 1 g black pepper
  • 400 mL low-sodium beef broth
  • 200 g crushed tomatoes
  • 5 mL Worcestershire sauce

Patties and assembly

  • 500 g ground chuck or lean ground beef, divided into four 125 g portions
  • 4 g fine salt
  • Up to 5 mL canola oil, for the pan as needed
  • 4 sesame seed burger buns, split
  • 60 mL mayonnaise
  • 30 mL yellow mustard
  • 4 dill pickle spears
  • 80 g iceberg lettuce, shredded
  • 160 g tomato, sliced
  • 80 g white onion, finely chopped
  • 80 g cheddar cheese, in 4 slices
Directions

Directions

Method

  1. Brown the sauce meatHeat 10 mL oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add 250 g ground beef and cook, breaking it into small crumbles, until no longer pink. Add the diced yellow onion and cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, oregano, 2 g salt and pepper; cook for 1 minute.

  2. Simmer until spoonablePour in the beef broth, crushed tomatoes and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a gentle simmer, then cook uncovered for 30–30 minutes, stirring from time to time, until thick enough to mound on a spoon. The sauce's ground beef must reach 71°C. Keep it hot while you cook the patties.

  3. Prepare the patties and toppingsDivide 500 g beef into four loose portions of 125 g each and shape into patties slightly wider than the buns. Refrigerate until the skillet is ready. Prepare the lettuce, tomato, white onion, pickle spears and cheese, keeping the ready-to-eat toppings separate from raw beef and its utensils.

  4. Cook the pattiesHeat a large skillet over medium-high heat and lightly oil it if needed. Season the patties with 4 g salt. Cook, turning once, until browned and the centre of each patty reaches 71°C, about 4–6 minutes per side depending on thickness. Place one cheddar slice on each patty during the last minute so it softens.

  5. Toast and dress the bunsToast the bun halves cut-side down in the skillet until warm and lightly golden. Spread mayonnaise on the bottom halves and mustard on the tops. Divide the lettuce, tomato, chopped onion and pickle spears among the bottom buns, then add the cheesy patties.

  6. Sauce and serveSpoon one-quarter of the hot meat sauce generously over each patty. Cap with the bun tops and serve at once with napkins and a fork.

Practical

Practical

Serving

Make ahead: The meat sauce can be made up to 2 days in advance. Cool it promptly in a shallow container, refrigerate, and reheat to 74°C, stirring, before serving. Prepare fresh toppings just before assembly.

Make-ahead

Storage: Refrigerate leftover sauce within 2 hours in a covered shallow container and use within 2–3 days. Reheat to 74°C. Refrigerate cooked patties separately within 2 hours, use within 2–3 days, and reheat to 74°C. Store toppings separately. Assembled burgers are best eaten immediately.

Storage and reheating

Serving: The defining feature is the loose meat sauce, not a fixed topping order. Keep the sauce generous and serve immediately. Fries, a crisp salad or coleslaw are suitable sides.

Control points

Control points

  • The sauce is runnySimmer it uncovered for a few more minutes, stirring, until it clings to a spoon.
  • The spices seem sharpGive the sauce more time at a gentle simmer; avoid adding extra clove, which can dominate quickly.
  • The patty is too small for the bunShape it slightly wider than the bun before cooking; it will shrink as it cooks.
  • The burger slides apartToast the bun, use a thin layer of sauce at first, and serve extra sauce at the side.
  • The cheese is not softPut the slice on the hot patty for the final minute and cover the skillet briefly.
Nutrition

Nutrition

  • Serving size1 burger with about one-quarter of the meat sauce
  • CaloriesAbout 800 kcal
  • CarbohydrateAbout 40 g
  • ProteinAbout 48 g
  • FatAbout 43 g
  • FibreAbout 3 g
  • SodiumAbout 1,250 mg

Values are rounded ingredient-based estimates per burger using generic values for 750 g lean ground beef, four sesame buns, cheddar, mayonnaise, broth and the listed toppings. Beef leanness, bun size, mayonnaise and broth brands, and Worcestershire products can materially change calories, fat and sodium. This is not a laboratory analysis or product-label information.

This recipe contains wheat and sesame in many buns, egg in many mayonnaise products, and milk in cheddar. Check bun, mayonnaise, broth and Worcestershire labels for additional allergens; some Worcestershire sauces contain fish, and packaged products can differ. Cook all ground beef to 71°C, measured in the centre with a clean digital thermometer. Wash hands and clean boards and utensils after raw beef; keep ready-to-eat toppings separate. Discard cooked food left at room temperature for more than 2 hours.

FAQ

FAQ

Is a Winnipeg Fat Boy the same as a chili burger?

It is a local diner-burger style distinguished by a loose meat sauce. This version uses beef and warm spices and contains no beans; restaurant formulas differ.

Does the sauce have to contain cinnamon?

No single formula is universal. Cinnamon, allspice and clove appear in some Winnipeg-style versions; this recipe uses them in small amounts for a warm, savoury sauce.

Can I make the sauce ahead?

Yes. Refrigerate it promptly and use it within 2–3 days. Reheat it to 74°C before spooning it over freshly cooked patties.

Finish

Finish

  • Put a fork and plenty of napkins at each place.
  • Keep extra sauce warm in a small bowl for anyone who wants more.