They call it a Royale with Cheese

September 3, 2023 11:08 AM

Hit me with your favorite hamburger recipes.

We got a grill this summer. When we've made burgers so far, we've just bought the pre-made patties from the store. I want to step up our burger game and identify our go-to recipe.

My requirements are as follows:

• I'm interested in recipes for beef hamburgers.
• I'd prefer recipes you've actually tried and enjoyed. Bonus points for your go-to, use every time recipes.
• Can be fancy, unusual, or straight up the middle. I want them all!
• Must be an actual recipe, with measurements. I'm terrible at improv/guesstimate cooking.

posted by bluloo to Food & Drink (24 answers total)

Best answer: Kenji's thinner (nyt writeup) and thicker (related article) burgers for the grill. Tried and true, works for me every time (and also great in the air fryer!).
posted by Lyn Never at 11:15 AM on September 3, 2023 [4 favorites]

Beef, minced (ground), gently shaped (thin or thick - I usually make them really thin, then layer them with 'plastic' cheese in the bun). Add salt and pepper after they're on the grill. Not convinced that you'd need anything else in the recipe.
posted by pipeski at 11:31 AM on September 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I use hamburger, maybe with some A1 or Worcestershire in it (3 tsp. of A1 or Worcestershire in 1lb of ground beef). Handmade patties, a bit thicker than commercial ones (2/3 in thick). 1/2 of a burger fits perfectly in a warm corn tortilla with arugula, some avocado slices, and salsa. This is my favorite way to have hamburgers. I don't generally eat dairy, but a slice of pepper jack cheese would not go amiss.
posted by theora55 at 11:40 AM on September 3, 2023

I don’t use recipes; they’re just hamburgers. But two things I like for grilling burgers specifically are Worcestershire sauce and Weber brand Gourmet Burger seasoning blend. Pour some Worcestershire sauce on, enough to cover each side of the patty, about a half hour before they go on the grill. It’ll keep them juicy and give a nice flavor boost. Then just before, sprinkle the seasoning on. I’ve tried a bunch and I like the Weber the best. It’s widely available - most grocery stores and Walmart have it.

My secret burger sauce is equal parts ranch and Catalina dressing with a shake of garlic powder. A little more flavor than traditional ketchup and mayo/thousand island. A-1 is also really good on grilled burgers.

For thicker burgers on the grill, Kaiser rolls or pretzel buns are best. I generally prefer martin’s potato rolls for thinner (“smash”) burgers, but they’re not very substantial, so I like the bigger buns for bigger burgers.

Try grilling some potatoes alongside the burgers. Microwave some red potatoes for about three minutes to soften them up, then quarter and skewer them. Drizzle some butter (or, even better, ghee) and your seasoning of choice (I think an onion-y blend like Montreal steak works best), then put them on the grill. They should take about the same time as the burgers. You can also put frozen fries or tater tots in a foil pan and grill them (although the payoff on those isn’t great, tbh).
posted by kevinbelt at 11:42 AM on September 3, 2023

Best answer: 50:50 chuck:brisket
form into 2 oz balls for smashburgers
when smashing season each side with salt&pepper

entire smashing time shouldn't really exceed 2 mins (but stovetop heat does vary)

chop onions and microwave them on "low" for approx. 10 mins (gets rid of harshness)

american cheese or monterey jack on a potato roll.
posted by alchemist at 12:03 PM on September 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks for the responses so far! As a reminder, I'm asking for recipes. It's fine if they're simple, as long as any ingredients have either measurements (approximate are okay; just need a ballpark figure) or ratios (e.g. alchemist's 50:50 chuck:brisket).

If you think burger recipes require nothing beyond meat, salt, and pepper, great! We've got that suggestion covered.
posted by bluloo at 12:28 PM on September 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

there's always the classic of mixing your pound of ground beef with a packet of onion soup mix.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:33 PM on September 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I love using Quebec Beef seasoning from Penzeys. I use 2-3 tsp of it per pound of beef. I like 80/20 beef. Mix the beef with the seasoning. Form into 2-3 patties per pound of meat. Make them larger than you think you'll need, as they shrink a lot. I make mine pretty thin. But still dimple out the middle of the patty so it doesn't pop up much during cooking.

I put each patty on a square of wax paper and freeze them. Cook on the grill directly from frozen, which keeps them from falling apart while cooking.
posted by hydra77 at 1:23 PM on September 3, 2023

Best answer: For an entire book full of fascinating and unexpected hamburger recipes, The Bob's Burgers Burger Book has some good ones. They might have it at your local library. I haven't tried a ton of recipes from it, but the ones that I have tried have been delicious.
posted by bananana at 1:39 PM on September 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Not a recipe per se, but the type of beef you use can make a huge difference to flavor and texture. It's worth experimenting with with different levels of fat, for example, to see what you like. Ground sirloin will taste different to ground chuck and ground round. I've even tried ground round with some added heart, in the spirit of using more of the off-cuts. Higher fat content will be juicier and hold together better than leaner meats. I like higher fat on the grill because it smokes a lot and adds a smoky flavor. And then there's grass fed and organic vs. the conventional factory meat. My preferred beef burger is an organic grass fed beef, topped with fried onions and lots of freshly ground pepper. I like when the focus of the burger is the taste of the meat itself, as opposed to seasonings and toppings. But of course, additions like cheese and bacon can help dress up a lower grade of meat. If you have a supermarket with a good butcher, they will grind any cut or combination of cuts for you.
posted by amusebuche at 3:32 PM on September 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

My secret to great burgers is to use English Muffins in lieu of a bun. Toast them on the grill or under the broiler. They give unexpected mouth appeal and they hold the cheese, ketchup, mayo, etc. within the nooks and crannies.
posted by carmicha at 4:03 PM on September 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

I am obsessed with Oklahoma onion burgers. You do need a mandoline to get razor-thin onion slices, however.

Take your standard puck of meat for a smashed burger. Pile an ungodly amount of sliced onions on top - seriously, almost the same amount as the meat. Sprinkle on salt and smash both together hard into a very hot pan. Flip at your desired doneness, add American cheese if you want and a lid to help melt it. Maybe a couple of minutes? I never time it. Toasted bun, special sauce is nice but not strictly necessary.

If you want a video guide look up George Motz on YouTube
posted by O9scar at 5:12 PM on September 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

It should be noted that, while smash burgers and Oklahoma onion burgers are delicious, they’re not burgers you can make on a grill with grates. The OP is specifically asking about burgers to make on a grill, not in a pan or on a griddle.
posted by kevinbelt at 5:26 PM on September 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

When it comes to the meat itself, the tip from kenji's thicker burger article are key. Don't massage the meat because it breaks down the proteins and turns it into meatloaf consistency. Which means I don't add anything to the burgers except for salt and pepper right before cooking and I pack them gently.

As for things to put on burgers, caramelizing onions goes way faster if you add water and cover: Add water to your onions vid link

I also like using sliced sourdough bread from a local bakery if you have it, with mustard, caramelized onions, and cheddar. Similar to the nooks and crannies from the english muffins mentioned above.
posted by just.good.enough at 8:07 PM on September 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Two 4oz beef patties. Smash them onto some diced white or yellow onion.
Make the sauce: 1 c Mayo, 2 T ketchup, 1 T diced dill pickles, 1/2 t Worcestershire, 1/2 t sugar, 1/2 t of sambal (or other hot sauce, but sambal is best… hot sauce to your liking), a dash of paprika, salt, pepper, and squeeze of lemon— whisk together.
Also, pickle some red onions— red onion, red wine vinegar, sugar, salt. Google it— any recipe is fine.
Grill the burgers. 1 slice American cheese per patty. 2 patties, cheeses, on a white bread bun, with the sauce, iceberg lettuce, and pickled red onions.

If you’re too lazy to pickle red onions, just throw some dill pickles and some red onions on that burger, and you’ll be almost as happy.
posted by Grandysaur at 10:05 PM on September 3, 2023

I found home made burger buns and ketchup far superior to the store bought stuff and they are not difficult to make.
Especially ketchup made from fresh tomatoes is worth it.

For the patties, just salt and pepper, nothing fancy needed there.
posted by SweetLiesOfBokonon at 12:28 AM on September 4, 2023

so far, we've just bought the pre-made patties from the store.

Good luck. I was a grill cook at university and there's not much to do with pre-made patties other than toppings. How thick and or frozen are they? You could say let them get to room temperature while you caramelize some chopped onions and take two patties and fill the middle with the onions and some shredded chese and any other fun stuff and make a stuffed burger.

My favorite is to take plain old ground beef like it just came out the grinder, break it up into the little worms of beef and douse it with curry powder, toss to mix it all up. Recipe wise it's like sorta like maybe 1/4 of an actual tablespoon (the front part) dipping into a tin of S&B curry powder. Enough that when you toss around the worms everything is covered with a thin layer.

While you've been doing all of that, onions are caramelizing. I like mine thin and quick and square to fit on sandwich bread, more patty melt like. Probably not best for grilling.

Cook however desired. Some salt/pepper, cheese, toasted buns....

It's the curry powder all throughout that makes it yummy. Maybe you can do this with pre-made patties, I've never tried.

The grill might be the hard part. Burgers are best made in a skillet. And better when you can manage to put something inside the meat.

I'd probably go for letting them thaw enough to stuff them and have twice the meat. Depends on how thick your patties are.

Curry Burger!
posted by zengargoyle at 3:36 AM on September 4, 2023

Don't overcook it.

That's 99% of it.
posted by Dashy at 7:07 AM on September 4, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I add a tablespoon each of New Mexico red chile and minced chives to 2 lb. ground beef. Shape into our patties and grill until a thermometer in the center hits 135.
posted by Just the one swan, actually at 9:11 AM on September 4, 2023

Don't overcook it.

That's 99% of it.

And 0.5% of the remaining 1% is salt immediate before cooking. (the idea is that salt draws out moisture so you want to minimize that).
posted by mmascolino at 9:22 AM on September 4, 2023 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Good luck. I was a grill cook at university and there's not much to do with pre-made patties other than toppings.

To clarify, I’m looking for recipes to make my own patties. Recipes for toppings/serving are also welcome, but the idea was to step up our game from the pre-made patties.
posted by bluloo at 9:44 AM on September 4, 2023

I get consistently good results from the burger recipe in the "Perfect" series by Felicity Cloake. It always worth playing around with the breadcrumb or substitute (I grew up bashing cornflakes with a rolling pin to add to my Dad's burgers) and I do end up using an egg. I made them with a Cinder Toffee Stout recently which was slightly weird but ultimately delicious.
posted by patricio at 10:43 AM on September 4, 2023

Heston Blumenthal, who owns restaurants that have 3 michellin stars, spent a lot of time and effort to find the perfect cheeseburger.
You can read about his results here or watch the 30 minute BBC episode on You tube

I don't think anyone would attempt it , but it's interesting as he attempts to find out what makes the perfect burger.
posted by yyz at 10:57 AM on September 4, 2023

The idea was to step up our game from the pre-made patties.

Two things. First, having your own meat grinder at home is the game-changer.

If you've already got a decent stand mixer, meat-grinder attachments are pretty affordable. If you don't have a good stand mixer - by which I mean, "the best Kitchenaid stand mixer you can afford on Black Friday" - fix that. That's the play that lets you buy big (and affordable) cuts of the kinds of meats you want and mix them in the amounts you want. Chuck, sirloin, whatever, it turns out that basically anything you do at this point will be so much better than anything you can buy frozen from the store that most of the above recipes will seem, at a minimum, like gilding the proverbial lily.

Another way to say this is, once you've started by grinding your own meat you cannot screw this up. Everything you do, from this moment on, will be better than anything you can buy frozen in any store. Throwing in some scraps of spare whatever - that last porkchop or chicken thigh, that one extra sausage you've uncased, some scraps of lamb, that spoonful of duck fat, whatever. It doesn't matter. Put some salt and pepper on it and you're going to come out so far ahead that you won't even recognize the hamburgers people have sold you in your previous life as food.

The second key point is: don't cook burgers on a grill. "Grill" I think means different things to different people, but if your cooking surface is a slotted grate, that's what I mean, and don't. Get a "griddle" insert or a sheet of cast iron, and cook your hamburgers on that. Don't cook them on anything that lets the juice drip down into the bbq and carbonize into nothingness, get a flat sheet of cast iron and cook directly on that. All those drips that just drop into the bottom of the bbq, that's just flavor you're throwing away. Get a "griddle press", one of those flat pieces of cast iron with a handle that lets you mash a burger down into that griddle, and use it.

After that, go ahead, play with the recipes upthread if you like, but you won't need to. The difference between ground-at-home-moments-ago-ground-beef and store bought frozen patties is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug. Once you've done that, everything else is details. Those details matter, sure. They do. But this is the foundation of the hamburger you want.
posted by mhoye at 7:59 PM on September 4, 2023