As the title says; What is the secret of making a really juicy burger?
Best Answer
Use only good beef, salt and pepper. The beef should be a good fatty cut, with a ratio of 80% meat, 20% fat. Chuck is ideal. Any good butcher should grind it to order for you.
You need to keep the ground meat as cold as possible, to prevent the fat melting out of it before you cook it. Do not salt the beef prior to shaping, just use pepper. Shape your burgers, then put them in the fridge for a couple of hours.
Generously salt the outside of the burgers about 1 hour before cooking.
Get a good pan (preferably a cast iron griddle) really, really, really hot. Brush one side of the burger with vegetable oil, then slap it on the grill. DO NOT PRESS IT WITH THE SPATULA, EVER. You squeeze out all the juice.
Turn the burger and cook the other side. Timing will depend on how you like your burger. A good way of testing doneness is to insert a thin metal skewer into the centre of the burger from one side (not the top), leave it for a few seconds, then take it out and touch it carefully to your lip. If it's hot, it's just about done. Or if you have a good digital thermometer, use that.
This 'trick' is used by many a fine chef. Meat is salted, wrapped and refrigerated hours or even overnight, prior to cooking. Yes, salt will draw moisture from the meat initially, but over time that moisture will migrate back into the meat taking the salt with it! The salt also breaks down the protein structure in the muscle rendering a more tender steak.
The steak is rinsed and dried (a wet steak will steam not char), seasoned, and fired.
Ground beef can be handled in the same fashion. Using a medium or coarse salt and erring on the less salty side, you can find the right proportion to suit your taste. Season before forming or after. Some contend that the seasoning is made bitter by the heat and flame of the grill. Go figure.
Other tips: The meat should be mixed and formed with a gentle hand — use only as much pressure as it takes to hold the patties together. For almost foolproof rare or medium-rare meat, go right from fridge to grill.
The process is simple: Sear the patty on one side, and squirt some
mustard on it as it sizzles. Flip the patty over so that the mustard
cooks into the second side.
The patties are covered with the cheese, then the caramelized onions
are applied liberally to a single patty before topping it with the
second, fusing all the elements together into a single cheesy, beefy, sweet, oniony, gooey, salty, oozy, crispy, meaty, savory, melty, delicious mess.
He uses basic yellow mustard, btw.
In response to the question from comments about how long to cook, here is what the recipe says:
Add burger patties and cook without moving until well browned and
crusty on first side, about 2 1/2 minutes. While they are cooking,
spread 1 tablespoon mustard on raw side of each patty with a spoon.
Meanwhile, top each bottom bun with up half of spread, 4 slices
pickles, 1 slice tomato, and lettuce. Flip patties with a thin spatula
so mustard side is down and continue to cook for 1 minute
Best Answer
Use only good beef, salt and pepper. The beef should be a good fatty cut, with a ratio of 80% meat, 20% fat. Chuck is ideal. Any good butcher should grind it to order for you.
You need to keep the ground meat as cold as possible, to prevent the fat melting out of it before you cook it. Do not salt the beef prior to shaping, just use pepper. Shape your burgers, then put them in the fridge for a couple of hours.
Generously salt the outside of the burgers about 1 hour before cooking.
Get a good pan (preferably a cast iron griddle) really, really, really hot. Brush one side of the burger with vegetable oil, then slap it on the grill. DO NOT PRESS IT WITH THE SPATULA, EVER. You squeeze out all the juice.
Turn the burger and cook the other side. Timing will depend on how you like your burger. A good way of testing doneness is to insert a thin metal skewer into the centre of the burger from one side (not the top), leave it for a few seconds, then take it out and touch it carefully to your lip. If it's hot, it's just about done. Or if you have a good digital thermometer, use that.