Рецепт No Fuss Hamburger Recipe
We love a good burger. So, we spent a few days and did a little research to figure out our favorite way to make hamburgers. First, let me say that there are no “rules” to making burgers. There are lots of styles out there for how to make the best burger — most of what we mention below can be used across them all.
No Fuss Hamburger Recipe — Less Is More
Quality meat, salt and pepper. That’s all we add to our burger recipe. Simple.
We’ve tried adding extras — olive oil, cream, mustard and grated onion to name a few. While we liked some, none were as good as simply seasoned burger patties cooked in a little butter. Just in case you’re wondering what the extras did, here’s a quick summary:
Olive oil didn’t really add much and the texture went a little funny, they became a little grainy. Cream made the meat tender. We both really liked it, but not enough to specifically buy a whole carton of cream for a tablespoon (that’s all you needed to add). We loved the flavor of the mustard — we used Dijon and the onion was too strong for us.
So, even though we did like quite a few of the additions, in the end we came full circle and simple won.
Think about a great steak — it’s most likely only been seasoned with salt and pepper — quality meat, salt and pepper. For us, hamburgers are the same.
The Meat
For ease, we stick to ground chuck. You can get creative and use a combination of ground chuck and sirloin, though. (Some even grind up a little bacon and add it — that can’t be bad, right?). In a perfect world, we’d grind our own meat. This way, you always know it’s quality and freshness is high. If you have the time and equipment (KitchenAid has a ginder attachment) then go for it, you won’t be disappointed.
We usually go for the next best thing — we buy the highest quality ground meat we can.
Around us, that means a trip to the meat counter at Whole Foods, but if you have a butcher close by or another store you trust, go there. Choose meat with 15 to 20 percent fat. Any lower and you’ll loose some flavor and you risk the burgers becoming dry.
The Burgers
We’re a little OCD when it comes to shaping our burgers — we weigh them to make sure they’re the same size. We do that more for making sure the burgers cook evenly, not so much for looks. We like 5 to 6 ounce burgers — they’re big, but not overwhelming.
Here’s a trick — ever had a burger puff up in the middle while it was cooking? Before cooking, add a dimple to the middle of each burger. This stops it from puffing up in the middle and keeps things uniform.
One more thing, there’s no need to mix the salt and pepper into the meat. Just season the top and bottom (like a steak). The more you fuss hamburger meat, the tougher it will become once cooked.
By the way, we season our burgers liberally.
Cooking Burgers
Our favorite way to cook burgers is in a cast iron skillet. We heat it over medium heat, add some butter and cook the burgers 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Done.
If you’re partial to grilling, go for it. If you feel like it, we’ve taken our cast iron skillet to the grill with us — we just love the sear you get on the skillet compared to grates.
Just look at that — moist, juicy and not too packed. A perfect burger.
No-Guess Method for Burger Doneness
In the photo above, you’re looking at somewhere between medium-well and well. We really like to shoot for medium. A great way to do this is to use a meat thermometer. The table below should help you out in determining doneness:
Doneness
Color
Temperature
Rare
Red in the center
120 degrees F (50C) and below
Medium-Rare
Very Pink in the center
130 degrees F (55C)
Medium
Pink in the center
140 degrees F (60C)
Medium-Well
Grayish Pink in the center
150 degrees F (65C)
Well Done
Gray, No Pink in the center
160 degrees F (70C) and above
Note: The USDA suggests cooking ground beef to 160 degrees F, this is well-done. That’s just too done for us, which gives even more reason to buy the highest quality meat you can.
Do you have a favorite burger recipe or any tips to share? Please share in the comments below.
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No Fuss Hamburger Recipe
We like our hamburgers simple – Quality meat, salt and pepper. Use the highest quality meat you can find when making hamburgers — it makes all the difference.
Created By: Joanne and Adam Gallagher
Yield: 3 hamburgers
Ingredients
- 1 pound (450 g) ground beef chuck or round
- Salt and black pepper
- Butter, as needed
Method
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a cast iron pan over medium heat. Cook hamburger patties 3 to 4 minutes on each side, depending on how well done you like it.
Rest burgers covered loosely with aluminum foil for 5 minutes then serve on a buttered bun with lettuce, tomatoes and onion (or how you like it).
Notes
Burger Doneness:
Rare = 120 degrees F (50C)
Medium-Rare = 130 degrees F (55C)
Medium = 140 degrees F (60C)
Medium-Well = 150 degrees F (65C)
Well Done = 160 degrees F (70C)
3.2.2045
About the Author
Adam
I'm Adam Gallagher and alongside my wife, Joanne, I photograph and share favorite recipes from our kitchen. Sharing our recipes began as a hobby, turned into a dream and now has become our business. I just love that.
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