What To Mix Into Ground Beef For Burgers

Here’s what to mix into ground beef for burgers. Your favorite burger can be elevated to a whole new level just by adding the right ingredients. These are the best types of ingredients to add to hamburger meat, and they can turn out juicy, flavorful burgers that you’re sure to love.

Easy homemade beef burger recipe

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The classic burger is an all time BBQ favourite! This super easy homemade beef burger recipe gives you delicious patties, packed with onions and herbs for extra flavour, that are perfect for topping with cheese, lettuce and tomato, and sandwiching between floury buns. See method

• Serves 4
• 20 mins to prepare and 17 mins to cook
• 472 calories / serving

Ingredients

• ½ tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 x 500g pack British Beef Steak Mince 15% fat
• 1 tsp mixed dried herbs
• 1 egg, beaten
• 4 slices mature Cheddar (optional)
• 4 white rolls
• few round lettuce leaves, torn
• 1 beef tomato, sliced
• ketchup, to serve (optional)

Perfect with:

Each serving contains

• Energy1970kj
  472kcal24%
• Fat26g38%
• Saturates10g50%
• Sugars4g5%
• Salt1g17%
• Carbohydrate 28.8g Protein 31.8g Fibre 2.2g

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan, add the onion and cook for 5 minutes until softened and starting to turn golden. Set aside.
2. In a bowl, combine the beef mince with the herbs and the egg. Season, add the onions and mix well. Using your hands, shape into 4 patties.
3. Cook the burgers on a preheated barbecue or griddle for 5-6 minutes on each side. While the second side is cooking, lay a slice of cheese on top to melt slightly (if using).
4. Meanwhile, lightly toast the cut-sides of the buns on the barbecue. Fill with the lettuce, burgers and tomato slices. Serve with ketchup, if you like.

Classic Juicy Hamburger Recipe

A classic, juicy Hamburger Recipe made with ground chuck, a simple burger seasoning, and all of the classic burger toppings. Plus, tips for preparing the meat and cooking the burgers to they are tender and juicy!

You can search the web and find all sorts of burger recipes, but when it comes to making a classic, no-frills, juicy hamburger, all you need is good quality meat, and a good burger seasoning. There’s no need for fillers like eggs or breadcrumbs. I’ll walk you through the simple steps to how to prepare, season, and cook the burgers, plus make-ahead and freezing instructions.

What type of meat is best?

The quality and fat content in the meat used in your burger will make all of the difference! When choosing the best kind of meat for hamburgers, choose ground chuck over ground beef. Ground chuck is the best type of meat for hamburgers and it’s different from ground beef as it comes from the beef shoulders, where ground beef is leftover pieces of beef from many different cuts. For an extra delicious burger try a combination of 60% ground chuck and 40% brisket.

You could use ground beef, but for best results and flavor be sure the meat is at least 20% fat (not lean). A 90/10  mix can result in a dry hamburger, but if it’s all you have on hand you could add chopped bacon, or a tablespoon of olive oil. 

Burger Seasoning:

Hopefully your pantry is already stocked with the spices you need to make this simple burger seasoning!

• 1 ½ teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• ½ teaspoon brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Mix all spices together and if not using immediately, store in an airtight container in a dark cool place for several months.

Toppings:

• Cheese: cheddar cheese, or your favorite kind.
• Lettuce leaves.
• Tomato: beefsteak tomatoes are preferred, but any will work.
• Onion: Red or white onion, thinly sliced.
• Pickle slices.
• Condiments: ketchup, mustard, BBQ sauce, Thousand island dressing, Ranch dressing, homemade Chick-fil A Sauce.

How to Make a Perfect Hamburger:

1. Prep seasoning.  Combine all spices in a bowl. Set aside.

2. Form patties. Divide ground chuck into 6 equal portions and gently form into ½ inch thick patties that are wider than the burger buns (as they will shrink).  Use your thumb to press an indentation into the center of each patty. Cover and set aside.

3. Grill. Just before cooking, sprinkle seasoning over the patties, then place on hot grill, indent-side up. Close grill lid and cook for 3-4 minutes, until the bottom of the burger is seared and juices are accumulating on top of the burger. Flip and cook an additional 3-4 minutes or until the beef reaches 160 degrees F. If adding cheese, place cheese slices on burgers during the last minute of cooking.

4. Serve. Remove patties to a plate and allow to rest for a few minutes before serving in a bun, with toppings.

To Cook Burgers on the stove:

Heat a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add enough oil to thinly coat the bottom of the pan. Once hot, add the burger patties and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side, or until 160 degrees F.

How to tell when your burger is done:

The cooking temperature recommendation for burgers of medium doneness is 160 degrees F. If you don’t want to use a thermometer, here’s a rough estimate for how long to cook burgers on each side.

• 2-3 minutes for medium rare
• 3-4 minutes for medium (preferred)
• 5-6 minutes for well done 

Pro Tips for Juicy Hamburgers:

• Handle the meat as little as possible. The more you handle it, the tougher it gets. Also avoid the urge to “flatten” the patties when forming them—just gently shape them.
• Press an indentation into the center of each patty with your thumb to prevent puffing up during cooking and to help them cook evenly.
• Don’t press down or move them around as they cook.
• Don’t over-cook! Use a thermometer, or when in doubt, err on the side of undercooked, as you can always throw them back on the grill.
• Ice cube trick: Some chefs will place an ice cube on top of the indentations on the patties until they’re ready to cook them, to keep them from drying out.
• Allow meat to rest after cooking.

Make Ahead And Freezing Instructions:

To make ahead:  Store prepared patties in the fridge for 1-2 days, placing pieces of parchment paper between them, and covering well with tinfoil or plastic wrap.

To freeze: Place pieces of parchment paper between the patties and place them in a freezer safe container or bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before cooking.

Honestly, What Could Be Better than Butter Burgers?

Say goodbye to the dry, boring, overcooked burgers you’re used to serving. Bid farewell to wondering which ground beef will give you legitimately tasty burgers. There’s a new burger in town, and it’s the one burger patty to rule them all. Behold, the butter burger.

That’s right — there’s grated butter in these burger patties. It still kind of blows my mind every time I think about it, but adding a little fat to the ground beef, forming them into patties, and seasoning with salt is our smart (and easy) new technique for better burgers at home. Those little streaks of butter will keep you from stressing over which beef to buy, and you don’t even have to be disappointed when your father in-law asks for his burger well-done (it will still be delicious). These burger patties have renewed my love for grilled burgers.

Yes, Add Butter to Your Beef for Better Burgers

Last fall I bought a local beef share, which left me with 37 pounds of ground beef. While incredibly flavorful, it isn’t labeled as sirloin or chuck (two types of ground beef prized for making burgers) — it’s just labeled “ground beef.” The type of beef you use for burgers matters, because sirloin has a beefy flavor, while ground chuck has plenty of fat to keep the burgers juicy.

But you know as well as I do that sometimes your butcher has one or not the other, or just has ground beef (especially if you’re looking for grass-fed beef). The workaround? Add the fat you seek directly to the meat. Butter is readily available, affordable, and adds moisture and fat to beef — making for a tender, juicy burger.

Key Steps for Juicy Burger Patties

• Use cold butter and grate it. The most important part about adding butter to your burgers is making sure it’s a similar shape and temperature to the ground beef. For example, cubed and sliced butter left deep pockets in the beef as it cooked out, but I found that cold, grated butter makes for the perfect buttery flavor and texture.
• Be gentle when mixing and shaping. Using cold butter and beef will make handling the beef a little bit easier, but you’ll still want to avoid over-mixing or being too rough while shaping the patties.
• Salt the burgers after shaping. Instead of incorporating the salt into the burger patties, which can draw out moisture and make the patties dry, season the outside of the patties before grilling.

Grilling and Serving Butter Burgers

Cook the burgers over medium heat (we found that high heat can cause flare ups). The butter on the surface of the patties causes the outside to form a deliciously crisp-tender crust, while still keeping them juicy on the inside. Serve these with all the classic fixings: toasted buns, sliced tomato, cheese, red onion, and lettuce.

How To Make the Juiciest Burger Patties

Just one ingredient will make your burgers infinitely juicier this summer, and it’s already in your kitchen: butter!

YIELDServes 8

PREP TIME25 minutes

COOK TIME15 minutesShow Nutrition

INGREDIENTS

• 2 sticks (8 ounces) cold unsalted butter
• 3 pounds ground beef, preferably sirloin
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 8 slices cheese, such as American, cheddar, or Swiss (optional)
• For serving: split hamburger buns, lettuce, sliced tomato, thinly sliced red onion

EQUIPMENT

• Outdoor grill
• Thin metal spatula, such as a fish spatula
• Plate or platter
• Box grater

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Grate the butter. Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the cold butter into large, thin pieces. (Use the wrapper from the butter to catch the butter shards and make moving them easier.)
2. Form the patties. Place the ground beef in a large bowl and sprinkle the butter on top. Using your hands, quickly and gently fold the butter into the beef. Shape the burgers into 8 (6-ounce) patties about 4 inches in diameter and 3/4-inch thick.
3. Season the patties. Place the patties on a rimmed baking sheet and season both sides with salt. Be generous, but you might not use all the salt called for. Set aside while you prepare the grill.
4. Prepare the grill for medium-high heat. Heat an outdoor grill to direct, medium-high heat. Scrape the grill grates clean if needed.
5. Grill for 4 minutes each side. Place the patties on the grill in a single layer. Grill the burgers for 4 minutes — expect a few flare-ups as the butter melts. Using a thin metal spatula, flip the burgers and grill until the burgers are browned and crisp on the outside, about 4 minutes more.
6. Serve the burgers. If using cheese, place a slice on each patty during the last minute of grilling. Serve immediately.

RECIPE NOTES

Stovetop directions: Heat a large cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Cook 3 burgers at a time for 4 minutes on the first side, then flip and cook for 3 minutes more. You may need to drain off the fat and wipe the pan between burger batches.

Storage: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.