Over the last 3 weeks, I've been on a burger kick like no other food kick I've had before. I've been trying to find that perfect burger right at my very own dinner table.
At this point, my favorite method so far is similar to the In-n-Out replica recipes out there. I know everyone has their own burger preferences, but I prefer a thinner (as opposed to a thick, gourmet style burger) burger that's not stuffed, nothing mixed into the meat, and with minimum ingredients and enhancers. I like the meat to speak for itself.
This method is:
80/20 ground chuck (vs ground beef), 75/25 if you can find it.
Patties gently formed into 1/2" patties with about a 4-5" diameter.
In a small skillet, I reduce extremely finely minced onions (pieces about the size of rice grains) over low heat (I'm not trying to carmelize them, only reduce them to almost what appears to be an onion paste)
When onions are close to being paste-like, I pre-heat a large skillet over high-medium-high heat.
With a metal spatula, I use the very tip to gently tap one side of the patty to create a dense checkerboard like surface. This allows the individual "squares" to obtain a nice crust when cooked and helps reduce shrinkage.
I liberally salt the checkerboard/grid side of the patty and place it salt-side down on my skillet.
Immediately, I checkerboard the opposite side.
After about 4 minutes (or once the patty has formed a light crust), I turn the patty 180 degrees to create an even crust across the entire surface.
After a couple of minutes I apply a liberal amount of yellow mustard on the uncooked side and then flip.
After a couple of minutes (once the mustard has browned and formed a light crust) I rotate the patty 180 degrees again.
I place one slice of American cheese (from the deli, not a Kraft single) on each patty
After 1 minute I remove the patties from the skillet and let sit.
While sitting, I brown (almost burn) hamburger buns in the same skillet, letting the fat from the patties act as the butter.
To build the burger:
On the bottom bun, I spread Thousand Island dressing.
One patty.
I spread a generous amount of onion paste on top of the bottom patty.
Place other patty.
Top with bun.
So far, this has been a burger that creates a crack-like addiction in me. Even my daughter exclaims, "Dad, you make the best burgers in the world!" My wife, who hates red meat (not because she's a hippy (she's not), but when she was young she was forced to eat tough steak and it's made her hate the texture of beef), tried a bite and said, "That's not bad. Actually, let me have another bite!"
So, any tips on improving this method? Any other methods you'd recommend me to try? I have some ground chuck left in the freezer (I prefer to do this with never-frozen beef, but we bought a bulk pack) and I can still smell last night's burgers and it's making me want another double cheeseburger for lunch today.
At this point, my favorite method so far is similar to the In-n-Out replica recipes out there. I know everyone has their own burger preferences, but I prefer a thinner (as opposed to a thick, gourmet style burger) burger that's not stuffed, nothing mixed into the meat, and with minimum ingredients and enhancers. I like the meat to speak for itself.
This method is:
80/20 ground chuck (vs ground beef), 75/25 if you can find it.
Patties gently formed into 1/2" patties with about a 4-5" diameter.
In a small skillet, I reduce extremely finely minced onions (pieces about the size of rice grains) over low heat (I'm not trying to carmelize them, only reduce them to almost what appears to be an onion paste)
When onions are close to being paste-like, I pre-heat a large skillet over high-medium-high heat.
With a metal spatula, I use the very tip to gently tap one side of the patty to create a dense checkerboard like surface. This allows the individual "squares" to obtain a nice crust when cooked and helps reduce shrinkage.
I liberally salt the checkerboard/grid side of the patty and place it salt-side down on my skillet.
Immediately, I checkerboard the opposite side.
After about 4 minutes (or once the patty has formed a light crust), I turn the patty 180 degrees to create an even crust across the entire surface.
After a couple of minutes I apply a liberal amount of yellow mustard on the uncooked side and then flip.
After a couple of minutes (once the mustard has browned and formed a light crust) I rotate the patty 180 degrees again.
I place one slice of American cheese (from the deli, not a Kraft single) on each patty
After 1 minute I remove the patties from the skillet and let sit.
While sitting, I brown (almost burn) hamburger buns in the same skillet, letting the fat from the patties act as the butter.
To build the burger:
On the bottom bun, I spread Thousand Island dressing.
One patty.
I spread a generous amount of onion paste on top of the bottom patty.
Place other patty.
Top with bun.
So far, this has been a burger that creates a crack-like addiction in me. Even my daughter exclaims, "Dad, you make the best burgers in the world!" My wife, who hates red meat (not because she's a hippy (she's not), but when she was young she was forced to eat tough steak and it's made her hate the texture of beef), tried a bite and said, "That's not bad. Actually, let me have another bite!"
So, any tips on improving this method? Any other methods you'd recommend me to try? I have some ground chuck left in the freezer (I prefer to do this with never-frozen beef, but we bought a bulk pack) and I can still smell last night's burgers and it's making me want another double cheeseburger for lunch today.