Make the Best Burger – BarbecueBible.com

Whether you’re cooking over charcoal, gas, or a live-fire griddle, great burgers come down to meat, heat, timing, temperature, and restraint.

12 Tips to Build the Best Burger!

Find your grind: Buy your meat at a top-notch butcher shop where it is ground in-house daily. I use equal parts of ground chuck and sirloin with a fat to lean ratio of 20/80. If you have a meat grinder at home, create your own burger blend with boneless short ribs, brisket, sirloin, etc.

Think outside the bun: While we might argue that nothing beats a classic American beef burger—thick, juicy, and expertly charred—other grilling cultures have invented their own ground meat marvels. From Bosnia, for example, come plate-burying disks of ground beef, pork, veal, and/or lamb called pljeskavica (discussed in Planet Barbecue!). Croatians are deservedly proud of their mixed meat, coriander-scented cevapcici (discussed in Barbecue! Bible). Cambodians grill ground pork burgers flavored with lemongrass and incendiary Asian chiles wrapped in banana leaves.

Keep it cold: Chill ground meat thoroughly before shaping into patties. It helps to run your hands under cold water first. Cover the patties with plastic wrap and re-chill before grilling.

Use a light touch: Always handle ground meat gently or your burgers will be dense and devoid of moist juice-trapping pockets. And remember that it’s an unpardonable sin to press down on a burger with a spatula as it cooks. You’ll press out the flavorful juices — you want them in the burger, not on the fire.

Size matters: If making conventional burgers, aim for patties that are about an inch larger than the diameter of the bun and no more than 1 inch thick. For sliders, form patties that are about 2 inches to 2-1/2 inches in diameter and 1/2 inch thick. Use your thumbs or a tablespoon to make a wide, slight depression in the top of each: This prevents “burger bloat” in the center of the cooked patty.

Season it right: Just before grilling on a grill preheated to high, generously season the tops of the burgers with coarse salt (kosher salt or flaky sea salt, such as Maldon) and freshly ground black pepper. Flip the burgers after 3 to 5 minutes, then season the cooked side.

Build it, and they will come: Set up a “DIY” burger bar for condiments and fresh toppings, sourced locally when possible. Make your own pickled onions, for example, or try chef Todd English’s tropically-inspired ketchup covered in the book Sauces, Rubs, and Marinades.

Smoking allowed: Use hardwood chunks, chips, or pellets to add flavor to your burgers. See How to Grill for detailed instructions. Or better yet, grill over a wood fire.

Don’t crowd your grill: Few things cause flare-ups faster than a grill loaded with rich, fatty meat. Do not crowd the burgers as they cook — if you need more room, borrow or rent an extra grill — and leave at least 30 percent of the grill grate fire-free as a “safety” zone. That way, when flare-ups occur — and they will — you can quickly transfer the burgers to the coolest part of the grill until the flames die down.

Toast your buns: For me, part of the textural thrill of a burger is biting into a buttered and toasted bun. (Replace butter with olive oil, if desired.) Transfer the burgers to a platter, and while they rest, put the buns on the grill grate, cut sides down. Grill for 1 to 2 minutes, or until they exhibit golden brown grill marks. Do not turn your back on them as bread can burn easily.

Play it safe: Ground meat needs special care because bacteria can be mixed throughout the meat during grinding. Use an instant-read thermometer and cook ground beef, pork, veal, and lamb to 160°F. Ground turkey and chicken should be cooked to 165°F. If you prefer your burgers less done, use freshly ground or carefully sourced meat and understand that you are making a personal food-safety decision.

Give it a rest: For noticeably juicier burgers, let the burgers “rest” on a warm platter for 1 minute before transferring to buns. (This redistributes the meat juices that were driven by the heat to the burger’s center.)

Burger Timing and Temperature

Most burgers cook best over direct medium-high to high heat. If your grill has a lid thermometer, aim for about 400°F to 450°F. You want enough heat to brown the outside quickly without burning the burger before the center is done. A two-zone fire is helpful, especially for thicker burgers, because you can sear over direct heat and move the burgers to a cooler zone if flare-ups get out of hand.

As a general rule, standard burgers take about 3 to 5 minutes per side, depending on thickness, heat, and how well done you like them. Thin burgers cook faster. Thick burgers may need more time and may benefit from a short finish over indirect heat.

Time is only a guide. Internal temperature is the more reliable way to know when a burger is done. The USDA recommends cooking ground beef to 160°F. Some cooks prefer burgers at lower temperatures for a juicier result, especially when using freshly ground or carefully sourced beef, but that is a personal food-safety decision.

For the juiciest burgers, don’t press them with a spatula, don’t flip them constantly, and don’t cook them past the point you actually want. Pull them from the grill, let them rest briefly, then serve on toasted buns.

What About Smash Burgers?

Smash burgers are a different animal. A classic grilled burger cooks on grill grates over direct heat, and you generally do not want to press it with a spatula because you’ll squeeze out the juices. A smash burger works the opposite way: you press a small ball of ground beef onto a ripping-hot griddle, plancha, or cast iron surface to create a thin patty with a crisp, browned crust.

In other words, smash burgers are really griddled burgers, not traditional grilled burgers. If that’s the style you’re after, use a flat cooking surface over the fire and press the meat hard right at the beginning. For thicker grilled burgers, keep your hands off the spatula and let the fire do the work.

For more on that technique, see our guide to smash burgers.

Burger Recipes to Try Next

Once you have the basics down, put the tips to work with these burger recipes.

Frequently Asked Questions