Creating Better Burgers

July 26, 2010, By L.H. Owen 0 comments

Most people will eat even the driest beef patty if it’s smothered with ketchup and cheese, but the fact is that it’s just as easy to make a good burger as it is to make a bad one. Here are our tips, along with easy ways to dress ’em up.

Start With the Basics

First, there’s the meat. Fat means flavor and juiciness, so if great taste is your object, you don’t want to go too lean. For a classic beef burger, begin with ground chuck, which contains 15-20% fat. Of course, you can grind your own, but if you’re like most of us and you’re grabbing a package at the store, just check that it’s fresh, which doesn't necessarily mean bright red.

• Keep the meat in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
• While you’re firing up the grill (you want it medium hot), stick the meat in a bowl and sprinkle it with salt and pepper (about 1 teaspoon of each for 1½ pounds of chuck); toss the seasonings in lightly with your hands, making sure not to work the meat too much.
• Then form four patties, again, handling the meat as little as possible to keep your burgers juicy.
• Use your thumb to make an impression in the center of each burger. This will keep them from puffing up into those familiar “hockey pucks” while they cook.
• When you’ve got your patties ready, pop them on the grill—and pretty much leave them alone.

Remember, you want to keep that delicious fat in, not down the grill grates. So flip the burgers a maximum of four times, and don’t press them down with a spatula as they cook.

Obligatory warning: the USDA recommends cooking ground beef all the way through, to 160 degrees.

If you avoid manhandling your meat, the burgers should be juicy even if they’re not pink in the center. Once they’re off the grill, let them sit for a couple minutes (you want to lock those precious juices in). We bet you know how to serve them now: lettuce, tomato, ketchup, perfect.

Don’t Forget the Mayo

Dressed-up Hellman’s is an easy way to make burgers a little fancier.

• Add a bit of minced garlic and lime juice.
• Or meet your new kitchen pal, chipotles in adobo, available in the Latin section of almost all supermarkets. They’re jalapenos in spicy tomato sauce. Mince one up, along with a bit of the adobo sauce, and stir into mayo for a sauce with a kick.
• Finally, we can’t forget what Utahans call fry sauce. That’d be mayonnaise mixed with ketchup. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.

Check the Spice Aisle

The regular spice aisle at your supermarket contains a lot more than boring old cinnamon; it’s also where you’ll find spice blends and seasonings that can add a little something to your burgers. For example, many grillmasters swear by McCormick’s Montreal Steak Seasoning; mix it in with the raw meat in place of salt and pepper. Experiment and you might find something you like—just make sure to read the ingredients list. Many spice mixtures already contain salt, so you want to make sure not to add it twice.

Try Some Other Secret Ingredients

Okay, we’ve been pretty relentless about the fact that fat equals flavor and juiciness. But maybe you’re not a fan of red meat, or maybe ground turkey was on sale at the grocery store. In that case, no problem—you’ll just want to ensure that the meat doesn’t get too dry by serving time. When you season the ground turkey, add about half a cup of ricotta cheese along with the salt and pepper. You’ll find that this step makes turkey burgers about as succulent as they can be. You can’t taste the ricotta once they’re cooked, so there’s nothing stopping you from adding a few slices of cheddar on top. Or get creative and try these stuffed burger recipes.

Make Your Own Sauce

Like most ketchup lovers, we find Heinz pretty perfect just the way it is. But whipping up some homemade ketchup is an easy way to impress your BBQ guests. We like Saveur’s recipe, which requires a bit of cooking time but not much hands-on work. (Bonus: They reveal what they think is Heinz’s secret ingredient—clove oil). You can also try this easy bbq sauce on Tablespoon. 

L.H. Owen is a contributor to Six Apart Media.