As befits a region of the U.S. that's home to a great deal of cows, the Midwest has made several vital contributions to our national hamburger culture.
In Michigan, a . Neighboring Wisconsin gave us the . The next state over from that, Minnesota, also serves up a delicious regional cheeseburger variation: the Juicy Lucy.
What makes the Juicy Lucy special? Rather than being served on top of or in between hamburger patties, the cheese in Juicy Lucy burgers is fully sealed inside the meat before it's cooked, yielding a burger that oozes molten goodness when you bite into it. The novelty of this clever burger has inspired yet further innovation — for example, some diners drizzle that melty cheese over the fries they've ordered with their burger. And while other variations on the basic formula have emerged since the Juicy Lucy's invention in the 20th century, traditionalists know that one cheese reigns supreme in this most American creation: That would be, of course, American cheese, which has melting qualities that exceed all others.
It's also as easily available at grocery stores as any other cheese, meaning that this burger is super straightforward to assemble — if you've read the above description, you basically know the drill. Melty American cheese makes the best Juicy Lucy Though many restaurants that serve the Juicy Lucy today offer various options, the classic cheese here is considered to be American. For a burger whose cheese-meltiness is its chief selling point, this.