Making the perfect burger is not as easy as it seems at first glance. In today’s roundup, we’re sharing some cool tips to turn you into a true burger expert. Take on arms!
- Of course, the temptation is great on the way home to buy ready-made minced meat in the supermarket so as not to waste time cooking it. But in this case, it is better to immediately give up the idea of making a burger – in 9 cases out of 10 it will turn out to be dry and tasteless. To make the burger cutlet perfect, do not be too lazy to cook the minced meat yourself from fresh meat. Bonus tip: To make the cutlet juicy, cut the meat across the fibers and scroll through the large attachment of the meat grinder.
- More, more fat. The burger is by no means a dietary meal. Therefore, do not spare fat: ideally, the ratio of meat to fat in minced meat should be 80 to 20 (80% meat and 20% fat) or even 75 to 25 (75% meat and 25% fat). For example, minced meat made from 2/3 lean beef (shoulder) and 1/3 fatty beef is perfect for a burger.
- Only salt and pepper. The perfect cutlet requires no additional ingredients other than salt and pepper. No onions, garlic, and even more so bread, potatoes, and eggs, which housewives like to add to ordinary cutlets.
- The ideal cutlet must be perfect in shape. If you cook burgers often enough, buy a special press, but if you don’t, a regular cooking ring will do. Do not forget that during cooking your cutlet will fry, so make it a little larger than you want to end up.
- Chill the minced meat before shaping the burger patties. Otherwise, the fat included in its composition will stick to the mold and work surface. But not only the minced meat itself should be cold, but also the hands and the tools that you use. Therefore, keep the culinary ring or press in the freezer, and wipe your hands periodically with an ice cube while forming cutlets.
- Once the cutlet is formed, forget about it until the very moment of frying: the less you touch the cutlet, the more chances that it will not fall apart on the grill or pan.
- Fry burgers in a well-heated skillet or grill with a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil.
- The approximate frying time is 5-8 minutes on each side. Remember that the longer you fry the cutlet, the less juicy and flavorful it will be.
- Choose the right bun. It’s simple: now in every supermarket, you can buy a special burger bun sprinkled with sesame seeds. But if you haven’t found any, then any will do, the main thing is that there are no additives in its composition that distract from the taste of the meat.
- Don’t forget vegetables, cheese, and gravy. Any cheese you like will work for a burger. The main thing is its location: so that the cheese does not get too wet from the meat juice, put it on the bottom bun. Ideal burger vegetables: onions, pickles, lettuce (iceberg, lettuce, or romano), tomatoes. Traditionally, ketchup and mustard are used for the hamburger. But barbecue sauces, chili, and others are also great.
