The Surprisingly Complex Journey of Making a Cheeseburger from Scratch

A cheeseburger is one of the most desired and common foods in the world. It feels simple because it is deliciously familiar: melted cheese atop freshly grilled beef, crisp lettuce, ripe tomato slices, tangy pickles, all sandwiched in a fluffy bun. But is it really that simple?

In 2011, food enthusiast Waldo Jaquith set out to make a cheeseburger entirely from scratch. What started as a fun culinary experiment quickly became a logistical nightmare. He discovered that each ingredient had wildly different growing and harvesting timelines. Tomatoes ripened in late summer, lettuce thrived in the cooler months of spring or fall, and cows were typically slaughtered in early winter.

Faced with this reality, Jaquith concluded there was no practical way to make a cheeseburger from scratch without relying on vendors across seasons, or refrigeration. Others have tried similar stunts: YouTube creator Andy George famously spent six months and $1,500 to make a chicken sandwich from scratch. The result? A bland, forgettable meal.

Jaquith’s quirky experiment reveals how profoundly refrigeration has shaped our everyday diet. The humble cheeseburger, available on demand from nearly any corner of the globe, is only possible because of a complex web of agricultural timing and cold storage. Without refrigeration bridging seasonal gaps and preserving perishable ingredients, even this fast-food staple would remain a fantasy.

Craving more? Check out the source behind this Brain Snack!