What? No hamburger thread.

Love 'em, the simpler the better.
My way; Ground chuck with a liberal splash of Worcestershire, medium rare, grilled onions on a toasted bun. NO stinking cheese!

 

yes there should be a hamburger thread
4 of my peeps & I go out for lunch once a month for a 'burger quest'
we've hit the bars, restaurants, etc.
only rule is no chain restaurants
so far we've had some amazing burgers......in spite of not visiting White Castle

 

I go 80/20 with just salt and pepper and smash on the hot flat top. Lots of crispy on the outside. Add raw onions and/or tomato/bacon jam my daughter makes with homemade pickles. Mayo and mustard, no ketchup.

 

10-12oz 80/20 in a cast iron pan, salt, ~120F, my aioli, with or without pimenton. That's it lately. (When I use cheese these days it's a mild, soft gorgonzola with a thin layer of deeply caramelized onion.)

 

Green chile cheeseburger with Hatch chile from San Antonio, New Mexico for a treat. National prizewinners several times.

 

Yes! Perhaps NM's greatest contribution to American cuisine?
Have not been to San Antonio (NM that is), but there was a place in Los Alamos, many, many moons ago that did a great green chile cheeseburger.

My favorite burger equation: flame-grilled ground Akaushi beef patty + big fat red tomato slice + a little S&P + toasted bun = burger heaven

T

 

Several things that I hate to see on a hamburger.

#1 - mustard. No self respecting hamburger should have to suffer with mustard.
#2 - Cheese - don't care what kind, American, Cheddar, Bleu, whatever. Keep your stinking cheese off my burger.
#3 - Fancy ass bread. Gimme a bun. Ok, if I'm feeling brave, give me a kaiser roll.
#4 - ANOTHER HAMBURGER -I don't need a double, or a triple, anything, much less a burger.
#5 - Avocado - If I want guacamole, I'll have it with chips.

What does belong?

MEAT lean, but not too lean, maybe onions (raw or cooked, your choice) pickles (or not, again, a personal thing) ketchup.

I think I can let lettuce, tomato and bacon onto the scene as well, although I do not generally add them myself.

What do you cook it with? Salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, on a griddle, on a spit, on charcoal grill, but not in a freaking pan with a lid on it.

Don't put stuff IN it when you cook it. Put stuff on it when you're done cooking it.

And finally, if I'm feeling lazy, and don't want to do it myself, I'll take a ****ty Burger King Burger over an even ****tier one from McDonalds. And I think Wendy's is overrated.

D

 

A good burger is a sadly under appreciated meal. There is no substitute for a really well done burger made with quality meat. It's so simple to make well, yet so many royally mess it up trying too hard.


Mark

 

Damn, now I'm hungry for a Burger.

I agree with dm_n-stuff about the mustard.

I do like cheese. And onions, lettuce, ketchup, pickles (or relish). On a plain hamburger bun. No fancy buns needed.

When I make em, 80% ground beef, some Worcestershire, and salt and pepper. I also have a rub that I like to add just before I put it on the grill (Dizzy Pig Cow Lick Steak Rub). Cooked on the Big Green Egg over lump charcoal.

If I'm eating out: 5 Guys=In-n-Out>Carls Jr>BK>McD

 

I prefer mayo on my burger, but sometimes I'll add mustard too.

Ketchup is the most overhyped condiment in the world. It's only needed for French fries or onion rings.

But damn,some snooty burger peeps around here.

 

Great idea! Homemade pickles are typically milder in flavor than commercially made ones, thus not overpowering the beef.
This is my go-to recipe:
Homemade Refrigerator Pickles Recipe - Allrecipes.com

The best of both worlds IMO is to use a cast iron griddle over a charcoal fire, so you get the sear of a flat top and some of the smokiness of fire.

+488 GTB! My vote for F-chat hamburger guru!

I don't know how other Texas F-chatters feel, but IMO I-n-O and CJ used to be a treat when you had to go to Cali to get them; now they're becoming as common as fleas on a junkyard dog here in DFW, and so have lost some of their appeal to me…T

 

any of you guys grind your own meat? I heard that way is the best way for burgers at home.

 

Only when I'm making tartar (or sausage if we're talking meats other than beef).


Mark

 

Unless you're close to a good butcher that's the way to go if you have the time and a good source of whatever you're cutting up.

Otherwise you never know what you'll get (if I told you the stuff I've seen tossed into chopped meat for either retail or wholesale . . .) or how much water there'll be per weight from one batch to the next, etc. (Water is why burgers made will supermarket meat often turn gray, why they get away from most people temp wise. There's more than enough moisture wet-aged meat is more than enough to assure a great, fresh-tasting burger. No need to add more, no need to add blood, etc.)

 

Burgers! My favorite. I've been making sliders as of late. Its a great way to try a number of different options without killing yourself. I tend to use 80/20, salt/pepper and some finely minced white onion which really helps keep things moist.

Also, for my fellow burger nuts, I share this hidden gem: PornBurger | Burger Perverts Welcome

 

So, for you folks grinding your own beef, what are you feeding into the grinder: chuck? Sirloin? Brisket? Something else?
T

 

Love Hamburgers ....

I love to make them like this:

2 LBS ground chuck
4 oz lb pork fat fine ground or / duck fat cold - cold
fresh ground pepper
ground sea salt
pinch of old bay
3 squirts of worchestshire
1 cup bread crumbs
1 egg yolk
1 small onion chopped very fine


mix all in a bowl and let sit coverd for about 20 min room temp - form into 2 inch think patties... and grill on VERY hot grill or in very lightly coated saute pan get a good crust serve med / med rare...

i like it with thin sliced red onions, thin tomato and mayo... served on Chala or brioche bun... or served on think slice of bread with a fried egg on top!!!!

for cheese - Kraft American... only thing its good for!

 

I love a good burger. As Mark said, really easy to cook; really hard to do well.
Most of mine made at home are 80% venison, 20% beef suet. I like cheese, light mayo, and pickles. Bacon or mushrooms if it gets fancy, but not much else.
Have tried the egg on a bacon burger, very interesting, actually enjoyed it more than I expected.

 

Wagyu beef burger...! Best I've had.

 

A friend used to work in a butcher shop. They were known far and wide for having the best tasting ground beef.

The secret?

The bought lean, tough meat from a Bull and then mixed in the fat trimmings from the Prime rib. of their regular meat.

All that prime fat added incredible flavor.

 

Wow! I'd have never dreamed I'd see a reco for shrink-wrapped "cheese" from spirot!
T

 

The sky's the limit.

I like chuck with some brisket in it, but it's not always easy to find a small piece of brisket.

Beef-pork blends work well but they're not for everyone. (Chuck-n-butt.)

I'm not big on cutting in fat. In my experience, unless the fat is in the muscle it tends to drip away during cooking.

Grinding up a nice shell steak yields a great burger but most consider that sacrilege. It's not that expensive if you buy the whole slab. All you have to do is trim away some of the thick outer fat, cube, and grind.

 

I like Bison bugers these days the only thing I eat and they need to be rare with lettuce tomato and onion, no bun,

 

Thanks for the recipe. Been experimenting quite a bit lately. Eventually want to make fried pickle chips with various sauces.

 

My pleasure. Similar recipe works well for pickling red onions. Want to experiment with pickling carrots (had some great ones in some hole-in-the-wall Mexican joint in PHX; have not seen here in DFW) and jalapenos. Good luck w/ the pickling...T