The sauces
ShackSauce
½ cup mayonnaise, 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 tsp ketchup, ¼ tsp dill pickle brine, a pinch of cayenne.
From: ShackBurger →Kenji’s Shack-style sauce
½ cup mayonnaise, 1 Tbsp each ketchup and yellow mustard, 4 slices finely chopped dill pickle, ¼ tsp each garlic powder and paprika, a pinch of cayenne. Blended smooth.
From: The Fake Shack →Weissman’s everyday burger sauce
½ cup ketchup, ½ cup yellow mustard, ¾ cup mayonnaise, 2 tsp Worcestershire, salt and pepper.
From: Lacy Edge Smash Burger →Caramelized onion burger sauce
¾ cup mayonnaise, ½ cup ketchup, ¼ cup Dijon, diced pickles, chives, grated garlic and Worcestershire, with half a sweet onion slowly caramelized in butter.
From: Joshua’s Perfect Burger →Animal-style spread
¾ cup mayonnaise, ½ cup ketchup, chives, Worcestershire and diced dill pickle, with two onions cooked down in butter for about 30 minutes.
From: Animal Style Burger →Sriracha mayo
¼ cup mayonnaise and 2 Tbsp sriracha, with a little salt.
From: Ramsay’s Ultimate Burger →Kimchi mayo
1 cup mayonnaise, ½ cup finely diced kimchi plus 2 Tbsp of its brine, sesame oil, sugar, garlic and scallions.
From: Korean-Style Bulgogi Burger →Toum (garlic) mayo
Garlic gently fried in oil, then blended with mustard, egg yolk, vinegar and the cooled garlic oil until thick.
From: Wendy’s Spicy Chicken But Better →The pattern
Nearly every sauce here is mayonnaise plus something sharp (mustard, pickle or brine) and something sweet or savoury (ketchup, Worcestershire, onion).
From: ShackBurger, The Fake Shack, Lacy Edge Smash Burger, Animal Style BurgerWeissman’s two richer sauces are built on slowly caramelized onion. It takes 20–30 minutes, so start it first.
From: Joshua’s Perfect Burger, Animal Style Burger
Make it ahead
Weissman’s onion sauce keeps in the fridge for up to 5 days, and Kenji’s Shack sauce for up to 5 days too.
From: Joshua’s Perfect Burger, The Fake Shack
Every tip above is taken from the recipe it links to. Where the experts disagree, we say so rather than picking one.