What makes a good burger? I would say, the right choice of ground beef makes and handling it as little as possible is the key to a juicy burger. Once you have the right ground beef and follow a few key rules then there is very little you can do to mess up.
For burgers always use ground beef with high-fat content. A good burger is juicy when you bite into it, and it’s not going to be succulent if you buy lean ground beef. Burgers are cooked at high heat to lock in the moisture that results in a juicy patty.
There are seven things you can do to make sure you don’t end up with dry and puffy burgers:
You need good quality ground beef with 20% fat. 80 to 20 ratio, is the best but 85 to 15 warks too.
Freshly ground beef is always the best, frozen works too but here we are talking about the best burger and that demands fresh meat, that hasn’t been sitting around and hasn’t been compressed in the process of packing.
Handle the meat as little as possible. Don’t form perfect patties just neatly divide the meat into portions. Do not overwork the meat and you will get a tender burger. Resist the temptation to make your patties look perfect, and use the palms of your hands to form rough patties.
To get flat patties make a shallow indentation, Meat shrinks when cooked, using back of a teaspoon or your thumb on one side. This would keep the patties from puffing up,
Season the patties generously, with salt and pepper. Don’t be afraid, you should see a thin layer of salt and pepper.
Heat the skillet properly, on medium-high heat. I use a cast iron grill pan. It should be very hot. Once you place the patties, indentation side up on the skillet, let it cook undisturbed for 4 minutes. Flip only when the edges are browned or you see grill marks (if using a grill pan)
Do not press the patties, that’s a big No No! you want a juicy burger and pressing down on the patty would squeeze all the juices out.
Cheese Burger
Ingredients
- For the burgers:
- 1 pound ground beef (20 percent fat content)
- ¼ cup Vegetable oil or melted butter, for oiling the grill
- 4 tablespoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 8 slices cheese, American or cheddar
- 4 hamburger buns, split For garnishes:
- Toppings: sliced tomatoes, sliced onions, lettuce, ketchup, mustard, BBQ sauce, pickles, relish, Ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard.
Directions
- Toast the split buns on the skillet over medium-low heat. To add more flavor and spread a thin layer of butter on the cut sides of the bun before toasting. Put the buns cut side down, remove from the pan when golden brown.
- Divide ground beef into 4 equal portions. Use the palms of your hands to make rough patties.
- Season the patties generously on both sides, so that you can see a thin layer of salt and pepper.
- Place the patties on the pan, indentation-side up. Cook undisturbed until grill marks appear on the bottom or the edges are browned. This should take about 3 to 4 minutes on medium-high heat. Using a spatula, flip and cook for about 2 minutes more.
- Place 2 slices of cheese on each patty, cover the grill, and continue cooking until the cheese melts, about 2 to 3 minutes more.3. Serve patties on rolls with ketchup, mayonnaise, lettuce, and pickles.
Freeze the patties for 20 minutes in the freezer, this will bring the temperature of the meat down and it will cook more evenly. Freezing the patties before cooking also keeps the fat from melting quickly once you start cooking.
