Why are hamburgers called hamburgers when there is no sign of ham ???
This was the topic of conversation as we sat outside a hamburger joint in sleepy little down-town Merriwa this afternoon. So… after the four of us having our own guess (and making up some good stories), you guessed it, I decided to ‘google it’.
Surprised, and enlightened, I am happy to share a bunch of useless facts with you all.
I was surprised to read that it all started with the Tartars (nomadic people of Asia and Europe) back in the middle ages. 
These horse riding wanderers, tenderised their beef by sandwiching it between their saddle and their horses while they rode… mmm …yum.Later on, the Germans somehow got involved and mixed this tender meet with a few tasty flavours (I can imagine why) …and then broiled it and it became known as Hamburg steak.
When the Germans started to emigrate to the USA in the late 1800’s they took the recipe for this tasty morsel with them…. boom boom … Hamburger stores started to pop up ….and next thing, the world is over run with McDonalds. If you don’t believe me you can get the facts right here.
“making hamburgers the old way”
So there you have it in a nutshell … nothing to do with ham, everything to do with the Tartars …and the rest is history. Now aren’t you glad you asked ?
Wonder Years 
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