+1. Pans are fantastic for burgers. In fact, most of the time, I prefer a griddled/pan fried burger to a grilled one. A few places around here offer both, and I almost always choose the former, for the reason you mentioned. Hell, the other day I fired up the grill and put the flattop iron over to make my burgers. :eek:
As is mine.
BACKSTORY: In high school, I dated a nice Jewish boy. I was utterly terrified of his mother, because my mother, the quintessential WASP, was sure his mother couldn’t stand me: “You know, she must be very angry that her son is dating a - what do they call it, a ‘shiksa.’ Jewish mothers only want their sons to date nice Jewish girls. I bet she can’t stand you.”
If that was true, she hid it well. In fact, she taught me how to make really yummy burgers - a lesson I still use four decades later.
Anyway, this was her secret: take fresh bread (most any kind works) and rip it into smallish pieces and add it to the burger, along with some water and any seasonings you like. Mix. The bread will absorb the water, resulting in a moist hamburger.
These days, I am a big fan of putting Penzey’s adobo seasoning into my burgers. I usually disdain spice mixes, but this one is a winner and is great for hamburgers.
I wonder if all this competing info is helping the OP at all.
It would be fascinating to have a cook off and taste test among the various contributors to this thread; both to see who would win, and whether people could recognize their own burgers.
Serious Eats is also always a good resource for all things cooking technique. (Link specifically goes to page on burgers, with a few more helpful hints.)
Dear Og, don’t make me eat another baconator! Not for a few more months at least.
A Filipina gastronome once in her show suggested adding some curry powder to the patty. I don’t think I’d like that. For meatballs with sauce, maybe. But if you want to spice up your burger, you could experiment with cayenne, paprika or cumin.
I want Aspenglow to cook for me. I’ll definitely try the olive oil trick.
I sucked ass at grilling burgers for the longest time. They came out dry. Now I have much better luck by cooking them on aluminum foil on the grill. I’m too tight to buy the aluminum pans meant for that, I just fold the sheet into a pan shape so that the juices don’t drip into the grill and catch fire. The burgers wallow in their own grease while they cook, which I think adds tremendously to the juiciness. Biggest plus- your grill stays clean.
Seasoning is definitely much better done with a light touch. Better none at all than to over season. You want to taste the meat with a bit of seasoning, not the other way around. I second the Montreal steak seasoning, I use that for steaks and love it.
I love meat loaf burgers, but what I do is when we make meat loaf, the leftovers become a burger for lunch the next day.
If you want a thick burger, slow is the key. If the pan or grill is too hot, you’ll burn the outside before the inside is done. You could do what Gracie Allen said she did for roasts- cook a thinner burger along with the thick ones. When the thin ones are burnt, the thick ones are done.
That’s a mistake, IMHO. Why settle for good, when great is easy?
For a great hamburger done exactly like you prefer, start off by getting a sous vide cooker. The rest is easy.
I’ll just throw my weight behind this answer.
You want a big thick burger that’s not raw in the middle, and is seared on the outside. This is tricky to do because it’s so easy to overcook the outside before the inside is done to your liking. I would suggest going lower heat to start, then sear at the end once the inside is almost cooked to where you want it.
I’d love to try one some time. Do you then finish in a pan to carmelize the outside?
Stop trying to sear them up front. Get them to the correct temperature, apply a sear if you want one, then get them on a plate.
There’s great advice in there. And not anything that suggests that meatloaf should be passed off as a hamburger!
Yep. Personally, I do 15 - 30 seconds in a roaring hot cast iron skillet (after blotting the burger) to sear the outside after the rest of the burger is cooked to rare.
And since the OP hasn’t returned to indicate they’ve drown in info…
**
Grilling burgers:**
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Form 80/20 ground beef into 1/3 lb balls
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Smoosh between two small plates until meat gives slight resistance
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Season liberally with ground pepper and steak rub
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Place on a hot charcoal grill (a few small chunks of mesquite next to the coals), in indirect heat
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Flip when juices are running clear on the top and the meat releases freely from the grates
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Remove at 140°
**
Pan cooking burgers:** -
Form 80/20 ground beef into 1/4 lb balls
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Smoosh between two small plates until meat gives slight resistance
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Season liberally with ground pepper and steak rub
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Place on a hot cast iron pan
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Flip when juices are running clear on the top and the meat releases freely from the grates
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Remove at 140°
I sometimes do a panade (the bread/breadcrumb and liquid thing) if I’m making chicken or turkey patties, which tend to be really dry otherwise. I also add gelatin to those to get them extra juicy. But those aren’t really burgers, anyway. Beef does not require anything additional to keep it juicy: just have it fatty enough, and cook it right. Anything else dilutes the beefy goodness of a hamburger.
Yes, I really think that’s the only way I will learn – people need to come to my house and cook me some burgers.
This is helping – especially your very specific directions.
I don’t have access to a grill but I am taking in all the info about pan and oven options. Thanks to all!
- Open your 1lb. package of lean ground beef and use a long knife to cut it into four eqal sized pieces.
- Gently roll those pieces into balls. Do not compress the meat.
- Sprinkle salt and fresh ground pepper into a dry teflon skillet.
- Heat the skillet over medium-high heat until you can smell the pepper strongly.
- Drop the meat balls in the skillet and gently press each one down ONCE with your spatula to form a patty.
- Cook the patty for a couple-three minutes until it has a nicely carmelized crust on that side.
- Flip the patty and cook it for an equal number of minutes on the other side.
- Cover the skillet and turn the heat off.
- Let everything sit like that for a few minutes while you set the table or butter and grill some buns in another skillet.
- The longer you let things sit, the more well done the center of the burger will be. I like them a little pink, so for or five minutes is plenty.
This method also produces awesome, juicy steaks.
Why bother with the grill and the foil? Why not just cook them in a pan on the stove?
(Or you can try again grilling them.)
Dry hamburgers means too lean meat, overworked meat, or too much heat. I am a grill person but I love a thick burger and if i was to do it on a pan I would buy 80-20 chuck, add salt, pepper, garlic, and MSG to patties, then start with a medium low heat and flip as often as I could and still have the meat hold together. Keep doing it until juices run clear and then crank up the heat for a quick sear.
I learned from my college roommate that the secret to good burgers is finely chopped onion. Some would call this a Salisbury steak rather than hamburger, but the end result is still delicious. I’ve also started to use a sous vide circulator for much greater control over doneness, convenience and food safety.
Firstly, avoid preground meat (if the hamburger meat comes in plastic tubes aka ‘chubs’ find a different store. Ignoring this risks STEC). Instead, pick out a nice looking chuck blade or chuck roast and have the butcher grind it for you. Much of the time this will be cheaper than preground, fresher and safer. Obviously, pick an appropriate, non-busy time and be prepared to wait a few minutes. I.e. don’t do this 15 minutes before closing time.
Next, chop some onion very very finely. You want it to become juicy and translucent. Then comes garlic. If you are sous-viding I strongly recommend granulated garlic because the sous-vide bath won’t get hot enough to denature the allicin-producing enzymes found in fresh garlic, which means the garlic flavors will continue to strengthen over time, even in the fridge. If not sous-viding, fresh garlic is preferred.
Then comes seasoning. Worcestershire is a popular choice, but if any of your diners have seafood allergies Chinkiang vinegar (aka Chinese Black Vinegar) has a very similar flavor profile whilst being completely vegan (alas not gluten free). I prefer to pre-salt my meats (between 0.5-0.75% salinity) but it does lead to more myosin cross-links and a slightly firmer texture. YMMV. Bread crumbs are another welcome addition as are finely chopped fresh herbs (basil is particularly tasty) but this ventures further into meatloaf territory.
On to mixing/forming the patties. Too much handling and the heat from your hands will ruin the texture so while its undeniably fun, try to avoid squishing it through your fingers. You’re trying to fold in the ingredients, not make a smooth paste. I like to weigh out 5oz portions first and then form the patties. It’s important to get any air pockets out so slap the ball of meat gently between your hands a few times before flattening into a 3/4 inch thick patty.
At this point I put the patties in a ziplock freezer bag and put it in my sous-vide circulator. Cook for 3 hours/131F for medium rare and then transfer directly to an ice bath. This will pasteurize the meat, making it safe to serve to immunocomprised people, pregnant women, the elderly, and children under 50 lbs. You can store the sealed bags in the fridge for up to a month or freeze it for up to a year. When its time to cook, pat the burgers dry with paper towel and put onto a medium hot grill and cook accordingly. Since it’s already fully cooked and cold from the fridge, it’s easy to put a beautiful sear on the outside without overcooking the inside.
Here’s the basic recipe
1 lb ground chuck blade
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tbsp minced garlic OR 1/2 tsp granulated garlic
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
Optional:
1 tsp Worcestershire OR 1 tsp Chinkiang vinegar (aka Chinese Black Vinegar)
1 tbsp bread crumbs
1 tbsp finely chopped herbs
Mix gently and form into 5oz patties. Put patties in ziploc freezer bag and use the displacement method to remove air. Sous-vide for 3 hours at 131F. Remove and immediately place in ice bath. To cook, remove patties from bag, pat dry with paper towels, and place on hot grill. Cook for 2-3 minutes per side to desired doneness.
If you skip the sous-vide, cook them until juices run clear and internal temp reaches 160F.
It does save on spatter in the kitchen. It also seems to me that you’re getting the searing from frying and the cooking within from roasting all at once.
Cooking in a pan on the grill, and cooking in a pan on the stove, are the same thing: Heat applied to the bottom of a pan. But you definitely have a point about the splattered mess in the kitchen.