Burgers are a food item that almost everyone loves. I’ve been cooking a lot of burgers lately because they are an affordable and healthy way (in my opinion) to eat beef.
Burgers are made by grinding up the scrap trimmings of meat when it is butchered. The best meat-to-fat ratio for burgers is 80% meat and 20% fat. This gives the burgers good flavor and juiciness from the fat.
The flavor and juiciness of meat come from the fat. Which I wrote about in my post about what makes steak taste better. I encourage you to check it out!
The fat in meat also makes meat less likely to overcook and dry. I also wrote a post on this about how to not overcook steak. I recommend that you check it out!
Most of the ground beef for burgers that is an 80/20 ratio is from the chuck cut. You can also get ground beef in 85/15 and 90/10 which are usually round trimmings and sirloin trimmings respectively.
How were burgers invented?
According to the United States Library of Congress, Louis Lassen created the first hamburger and ran a small lunch wagon selling steak sandwiches to local factory workers.
The United States Library of Congress says that he:
didn’t like to waste the excess beef from his daily lunch rush, he ground it up, grilled it, and served it between two slices of bread.
https://www.americaslibrary.gov/
The first burger was sold in New Haven, Connecticut and the luncheonette is still owned and operated by the Lassen family. It is called Louis’ Lunch.
How to make burger patties
With your hands is the simplest way to make a burger patty. The least you work the meat together the better the burger will be. Make the ground beef into somewhat of a ball and put it down on a flat surface and flatten the beef into desired thickness for your burger.
There are also a ton of tools that you can use to shape your burger patties. Just type in hamburger shaper on Amazon and a plethora of shaping tools will pop up.
If you are wondering when you are using your ground beef to make your burger patty if you need an egg so the burger won’t fall apart while cooking, then know that you don’t need an egg.
Burgers should hold together on their own because of the fat in them. So, if you are using burgers that are higher in fat like 80/20 then not only will they be juicy and taste better but they will also hold together better as well.
Seasoning may be another concern. You can put whatever seasoning on a burger that tickles your fancy and sounds good but I definitely recommend adding enough salt. Salt is very important for the best-tasting burgers. I recommend you check out my post about the importance of salt on beef so that you can learn more.
Thick vs thin burger patties
This is a personal preference, both thick and thin burger patties can be delicious. A thin patty is usually called a Smashburger because it is smashed until it becomes a thin patty. With thin patties you can’t cook to the desired doneness, they will most likely all get well done but with a thick patty, you can.
Why do you put a dimple in burgers?
As a burger cooks it shrinks and puffs up in the middle because of the heat shrinking the protein. To counter this you put a small dimple into the center of the burger which should prevent this and help you to have a nice uniform burger.
How long should burgers sit before flipping?
On average, burgers should sit for 5 minutes before cooking. The time may not be different depending on how hot the heat source is and how thick the burgers are.
Should I squish my burgers?
You should squish your burger if you want a Smashburger. When creating a Smashburger you can do this one of two ways, by squishing the burger before cooking or by doing it as you begin cooking the burger.
The Smashburger is a thin burger with a nice crispy crust because as you squish it more surface area of the burger comes into contact with the heat source.
Do burgers have to be well done?
Burger should be cooked well because bacteria can get on burger meat before it is ground up causing it to be on the inside. In other words, burgers are more likely to cause food poisoning if they are undercooked.
Do burgers need to rest?
Burgers have more flavor when they rest. You can season them and rest them beforehand to do a dry brine, which will allow the salt to get absorbed into the meat. The flavor from the salt will then be also on the inside. You can also let them rest after they are cooked, giving the burger a chance to reabsorb the juices.
When meat cooks it contracts because the heat causes the muscle fibers to contract and squeeze out a lot of juice. This is why you see a lot of juice come out of the burger while you cook it. When the meat cools the muscle fibers relax and can absorb back some of the juice.
While the burger is resting, it is still cooking inside because it is still so warm. This is a reason to not pull your burgers off the heat too late to prevent them from being overcooked. I recommend checking out my other post about how to not overcook steak.
Salt is what gives meat its flavor and I recommend you also read my post on how salt gives meat flavor.
Conclusion
Burgers are a very popular and highly consumed food because they are delicious and affordable. When is the last time you buy into a burger and thought it was tough? It doesn’t happen.
They are usually always tender because the meat is ground and breaks down the collagen that is in the tough cuts of beef. This collagen is really good for you, I encourage you to check out my post where I talk about the benefits of collagen.
The amount of collagen in burgers is usually high if they are made of chuck because chuck is a tough cut of meat from the high amount of connective tissue or collagen. So, yes there is a health benefit to eating burgers. Enjoy them!