In-N-Out Experiment in 10 Steps

It’s the usual joke when I tell someone that I’m headed to SoCal for a visit…bring me back a double-double.  I usually just smile and nod, but when reminded that I could take pictures and make a blog post out of it, well then the wheels start turning.

In N Out on PCH/2nd in the LBC

Growing up in SoCal, for years In N Out was a real treat, limited to road trips or the occasional trip to a local walk-up-only one in a sketchy neighborhood. The chain, while still family-owned, has really grown in recent years.

double double with fries

Step One: Cut a hole in the box. Procure two double-doubles. Eat one while driving waiting for the other one to cool down.

frozen double-double

Step Two: Cool down completely and wrap well. I ordered the burger that was to be frozen with no produce and sauce on the side.

frozen burger

Step Three: Prepare to be laughed at by the TSA agent when getting your frozen burger through security at the airport.  Burger and fries and wrapped in foil, frozen and bagged in a gallon Ziploc surrounded by several ice packs (I am truly surprised that TSA didn’t take the gel ice packs away from me).

defrosting burger

Step Four: After spending a night in the fridge, the burger is defrosting and ready to be deconstructed.

burger seperated from bun

Step Five: Carefully pry the burger away from the bun. The bun is re-toasted and the meat is re-heated separately.  The grilled onions seem to have survived the trip.

reheating the burger

Step Six: While the buns toast, I tried reheating the burger in a skillet. It didn’t work because I realized I couldn’t flip it due to the cheese on the top and since it’s a double burger, it wasn’t going to get hot all the way through without flipping. I ended up putting it in the microwave.

in n out fries

Step Seven: Reheat the fries in the toaster oven. Truthfully, I don’t think their fries are all that great anyway (unless dipped in a chocolate shake).

in n out spread

Step Eight: Reassembling the burger. Add spread, fresh tomatoes and lettuce.

double-double

Step Nine: Re-wrap in fresh paper and re-bag along with hot fries.  The bun is looking a little worse for the wear, but otherwise OK.

happy in n out fan

Step Ten: Find a teenager willing to try anything, preferably the one who convinced you to try bringing back a burger in the first place.

satisfied in n out fan

I’d say it was a success!

What I learned:

  • The fries aren’t good enough to begin with to bother transporting.
  • It is worth the hassle just to have your house smell like In-N-Out for a few hours.

 

 

 

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