Burger tips?

[MikeRocksTheRed]

Kind of surprised there aren't more replies on this...

My "$50 burgers" as I like to call them since adding a few of the ingredients makes it a little more expensive than a kind of plain burger.

I apologize on advance for not having measurements for the ingredients, but I generally don't measure when seasoning!

Ground beef needs to be 85/15 or preferably 80/20
Season beef with:
Garlic powder
Onion Powder
Seasoned Salt (can replace with koecher salt)
Black Pepper
Worcestershire Sauce (enough to moisten the meat, but not so much that the patty won't stay together)
Now mix in the expensive ingredients (not really that expensive):
chopped up bacon (raw)
blue cheese crumbles (can be replaced with any cheese really)

Don't over mix the ground beef, and form patties with out compacting them too much.

Grill over direct heat.  The bacon chunnks on the outside will get crispy, the bacon on the inside will keep it juicy.  Cook to your desired doneness!  Enjoy!

[feeshrman]

I've always loved burgers just like most all of you.  And Just like most here, I have tried the gamet of tricks, tips, rubs, and more. They are most all good solid advice that work very  well to enhance your burger experience. The newest/greatest thing I have done is to change my beef burger to a buffalo burger. WHAT a Difference it makes. Buffalo is naturally lean and has a very strong, but not over whelming beefy taste that sort of reminds me of the home-grown slaughtered beef we had when I was younger. I like simple seasonings such as salt, onions, pepper, and a dash worchester sauce. Dimple in the middle and grill medium/rare to medium, place cheese on the patties as they rest. Butter and grill the buns and dress them according to your taste.

[LaTuFu]

"Quick" burgers during the week or when I don't feel like spending a lot of time on prep:

80/20 Ground is my preference.

1/3-1/2 lb patties, patted out by hand, dimple in in the middle.  Light coating of Kosher Salt, Black Pepper, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder.

Before I came back to the kettle way of thinking, I would throw them on the gasser and cook them to med well (usually guessing by appearance, no thermometer), burning all the hair off my arms dealing with flare ups along the way.

Now, my preferred method has become reverse sear.  I cook on indirect until the internal temp is around 110, then sear both sides until the temp is around 130-135. 

If I have more time to prep, I mix the beef with:
Kosher Salt, Black Pepper, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Worchestershire Sauce, Panko, 1 apple freshly chopped, Baby Portabella mushrooms freshly chopped.  The mushrooms and apples will add a lot of moisture to the meat, so the breadcrumbs are a must.

I also substitute Ground Venison for the Ground Beef on this recipe with excellent results.  The mushrooms and apples really go well with the venison.  The Venison and Ground Beef can be completely swapped out, or blended together as desired.

I just got a "stuffed burger" press a week ago, first time around with the press we ended up with 2 lb burgers each.  Tasty, but huge.  I'm going to play around with it some more soon.

[AcrossFromHoss]

My secret to a great burger is a well toasted bun. A brushing of mayo works much better than butter because of the burning point of the oil. Grilled cheese makers use this technique to form a more consistent brown and crispy exterior. Works awesome on burger buns. Thanks for the tips fellas lots of great advise.

As for the patty itself I separate mine into patties right on the styrofoam salt and pepper both sides, thumb print and grill. No rounding the edges or squishing the meat down. I prefer the texture of the meat that way and love the crispy bits around the edges that get maroon and smokey

[Jon]

AFH, I'd like to add your well written advice with the real reason mayo works better than butter. Because MAYO IS GREAT!

But I have to confess, I usually don't anything to the buns, I just put 'em over the hot spot and toast them. The mayo goes on when the burgers are built. And home-made mayo is the best.

For the patty, I think that you are making a smash burger, kinda? With the crispy edges?

[AcrossFromHoss]

Jon, I checked out that smash burger place and it looks like they have a similar crunch. Carl's Jr is my usual burger destination while in the states but i definitely plan on giving them a try. My burgers always get a final high heat sear before pulling them off which gives the loose edges that crunch.

Haha and you're bang on about the mayo.

[Metal Mike]

Keep a couple freshly grilled cheese sandwiches in abeyance to substitute the standard bun

[MeatAndPotatos]

HRM.... OK I'll bite.
Just stumbled onto this forum from tapatalk... Love looking at pictures of other peoples cooks for ideas/inspiration/motivation....
AND I happen to be making a burger this morning (tbh not that big a coincidence  ). Soooo.... Hopefully its not bad form for me to blow this thread up with pictures? Figured this would be better then the standard into post since I just registered
   
I'm a fan of a fairly basic burger... I have to admit I cringe when I see 6inch thick patties with chunks of peppers hanging out. (I may not be the smartest, or most experianced cook... But what I lack I more then make up for with unsubstantiated and bias opinion:D )

I think when cooking its important to keep in mind the terroir... That is why I always cook in an alley on an old keg


Picked up the weber charcoal baskets for $7 at the begining of summer, They are a nice way to hold your coals together. Took that back one apart, and use it to brace coals against the back of the kettle during slow cooks.


Usually have leftover coal... I just pile fresh on top. Grab your blowtorch and light at both corners and in the middle.


To be honest... I am talking way too much here. The real answer to how to make a good hamburger is easy, 1 word. Bacon.
used to be a big fan of pan fried. But the truth is indirect bbq bacon is rediculous. I start the lump burning, and let it go enough to get hot and start burning off the initial fumes. I then drop it into the kettle, and cook bacon while the coal bed burns in and gets nice and even.

Why not add some hickory? I tend to just put wood above the coals... Move it to a slightly colder spot for less smoke, or directly over the coals for too much smoke.

NOW THE BURGER!
80/20 walmart beef
Not overly obsesed with buying the best beef... When I spend more I haven't noticed it being revolutionary... But not the plastic tube of ground beef... just say no to that.
I like 1/4lb for a small burger or 1/3 for normal... Not too much bigger, if you want more make a double. Never been a thick burger guy.
Salt & Pepper, light garlic and decent/med onion powder.

I find that ground beef tends to shrink in the direction of its... "strands"? for lack of a better word. I like to make sure they go in all directions so it does not football.
I also make my patties like I make a pizza. GENTLY flattening the meat in the middle out towards the outside putting  a rim on it, so the middle doesn't end up thicker.

I throw the pattie on when the bacon looks to be nearing done. One thing I have found is that I like the slow cooked BBQ 1 step above pan fried with reguards to doneness. What comes off the BBQ looking WAY to done, will be like crispy pan fried. If the bacon looks like normal pan fried, it will seem on the lower side of cooked coming off the grill.

I was worried this bacon may have been too far along when I was throwing the pattie on, so I pulled it to the very far side (the one piece that is not is REAL thick).
This pattie is about ready to be flipped. I look at the coloring of the beef on the circumfrence of the pattie, at the bottom as well as the juices forming on top and pay attention to the smell coming off the grill.


Not bad... I keep the lid down the whole time, obviously it just makes for better pictures up At this point I am running for the cheese and bun. I put the cheese on like... Half way through the second side.
   
Depending on the thickness of the burger, I'll pull it over for some indirect cooking to finish. Toasting the buns only takes ~30 seconds... keep em moving. Once they are OK I set them in the indirect area and let it all finish up



And thats that. Maybe coulda bumped it up over 1/3 lb by a little considering these bigger buns... but man it was good.
Sorry if too many pictures... but how can you have to much weber/food porn?
   

[Johnpv]

I don't have a recipe to add just that try substituting lamb for the beef some time.  Lamb burgers are sooo damn good.