Hamburgers - Room for improvement


 
M

Michael Park

New member
My wife and I had a hankering for hamburgers, so we bought 3 pounds of ground beef at Publix and a Weber Burger Press at Ace Hardware.

We coated the ground beef liberally in Worcestershire sauce and Kinder's SPG blend before making the patties. The 3lbs of beef made 5 patties on the big side of the burger press. The burger press was moderately difficult to use for a first timer. The meat kept getting stuck inside. Next time, I'll get some appropriately sized parchment paper. If that doesn't work, I'll just go back to forming the patties freehand.

I lit a single lighter cube under 1/2 chimney of KBB and waited ~10 minutes until the coals looked good to me. I dumped the coals on the charcoal grate, put the cooking grate on, closed the lid, checked that all vents were 100% open, and let the cooker preheat for 15 minutes.

I planned on cooking the burgers over direct heat for 5 minutes per side or 10 minutes total cook time. After the 15 minute preheat, the lid thermometer only read 340. After 5 minutes, the burgers were extremely raw and borderline unflippable. I flipped them anyway. After 10 minutes, they were raw and barely flippable. After 15 minutes, they were undercooked, and I moved the most cooked ones to the coldest area of the grill and shuffled the least cooked ones to the hottest area of the grill. After 20 minutes, I took them off the cooker, and we ate the burgers.

The flavor was very good, but they were not charred on the outside like I wanted them. They were also medium well, and I would have preferred a medium center. I give them a 7/10.

I think the grill just wasn't hot enough for what I was trying to do. I don't think I used enough charcoal, and I may have dumped them on the charcoal grate before I should have. Next time, I'll use a full chimney of charcoal and make sure it is fully lit before dumping the coals on the grate.

I forgot to close the vents after the cook, and when I remembered, it had been 1 hour and 50 minutes since I dumped the charcoal on the grate and the lid temperature was still registering 270. This little grill may have more long slow cook capability than I realized.
 

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Those are big burgers. My typical burger is half that total weight and I cook for 11 to 12 minutes, so not surprising yours took longer than your original expectation. I generally use half a chimney of charcoal for the 14” Smokey joe, and do not use the lid during the cook. Coals and grate get really hot for a nice crust on the burgers. Never measured the temp at the grate but expect it comfortably exceeds 340 degrees.

I also have abandoned a burger press since I have better results forming Pattie’s by hand (don’t fall apart on the flip), and I’ve read one shouldn’t “over work” the beef.

Good luck on that next cook
 
You're doing this often enough that, soon, you'll achieve the consistent results that you want. When I do burgers I dump my coals from the chimney after they are well-ashed, or very close to it. With all due respect, I hold the opinion that you dumped yours too soon.

This pic (borrowed from the web) is a good example; you can choose on your own as to whether you want a two-zone pit such as what is depicted here, or a single zone. A two-zone setup is helpful if you experience a major flareup or if you simply need to move your meat from heat that's too intense.

1669763166815.png

You might find this helpful: https://www.kingsford.com/grill-guide/how-to-arrange-your-charcoal/

Or this: https://bbqviking.com/2012/06/07/te...-for-direct-indirect-and-rotisserie-grilling/

Good luck!
 
I agree with BFletcher that you dumped the coals too soon. You could have cracked your lid while letting it preheat and that would have gotten the charcoal fired up. Also, I don't think 1/2 chimney was enough charcoal for those burgers. 3 lb for 5 burgers....your talking 9+ ounces per burger. Thats a big burger. I do mine with the charcoal dumped as in the photo above. Gives plenty of heat for charring and a nice-sized safety zone. My final comment.....even a bad burger is a good burger and those don't look bad.
 
One other thing was adding liquid to the burger meat caused it to not char nicely. I learned that lesson a long time ago. So a tip. Get some very cold butter and add some chunks to the burger mix or some oil. If you want a neutral oil good quality avocado oil or olive oil if you like that.
 
3# beef, 5 patties, equals 9.6 oz patties. that's kinda ridiculous, IMO.

smash burgers, usually 2.5 to 3 oz each
regular, human burgers, 5-6 oz each
jumbo steakhouse style burger, 8 oz each.

i'd never go over an 8 oz burger as you're then eating a chopped steak burger which is a plated burger, not a bun burger.

reccos, buy a scale and measure each burger pre cook weight based on which type of burger you seek to cook. next, use grams and not oz for burgers so you can really dial in each burger to a consistent size.

consistent sized burgers equals consistent cooking results. the key to good food prep and serving is consistency.

coals - load up a lot of coals and make fire. you can always reuse unburned coals in your next cook by closing the vents (suffocating) your fire when done cooking. this way you'll never toss half used coals.

heat - you control heat by vent openings and closings. burgers, IMO are best cooked at very high temps (lots of coals) and set a sear and then move the burgers to indirect to reach temp. done temp on a medium burger, on indirect will be 145F. less than 145F will lend towards a rare, bloody middle. this can be kinda gross if you're not into eating warm and not fully cooked beef.

temp - you need a quality thermometer to see where your temps are. the temps don't like so if you want to serve safe and properly cooked food you'll need to invest in an instant read thermometer. i personally like, own and us Thermoworks products. The One, while it can appear expensive, is the gold standard for Thermoworks products and professional grade.

finally, thinner burgers cook quicker than larger, heavier burgers. i recco you experiment with all three sized burgers over time and also choose a beef blend you like. a 70/30 thin smashie tastes great. an 80/20 regular burger is a perfect blend for a hearty and steaky flavored burger. 90/10 is hard to cook with as there might not be enough fat to keep the burger together. but they taste great when using high quality steak as the ingredient. do a 75/25 or a 80/20 and you'll be fine for just about any burger you make.

and don't be afraid to experiment. it's the only way you'll find YOUR way around YOUR grill, comfortably. hope this post helps you on your quest. i've cooked a lot of burgers and using different meat mixes. my fave is 50/50 chuck and lamb cooked to 145F, 6 oz burgers or 8 oz if we have company as an 8 oz burger will fill one ordinary, normal human which means you'll spend less time cooking and more time with your friends/company.
 
BFletcher said:
You're doing this often enough that, soon, you'll achieve the consistent results that you want. When I do burgers I dump my coals from the chimney after they are well-ashed, or very close to it. With all due respect, I hold the opinion that you dumped yours too soon.

This pic (borrowed from the web) is a good example; you can choose on your own as to whether you want a two-zone pit such as what is depicted here, or a single zone. A two-zone setup is helpful if you experience a major flareup or if you simply need to move your meat from heat that's too intense.

View attachment 63415
Click to expand...
Lots of good advice from everyone here...
BFletcher said:
You might find this helpful: https://www.kingsford.com/grill-guide/how-to-arrange-your-charcoal/

Or this: https://bbqviking.com/2012/06/07/te...-for-direct-indirect-and-rotisserie-grilling/

Good luck!
Click to expand...
Lots of good advice from everyone. I wanted to add on to BFletcher's post here. The photo he's showing here shows coals that will work to cook a burger.... no doubt about it. When I was using the 22" Weber Kettle, I really liked using a Vortex for searing burgers, or the Slow n' Sear (SNS). Both of these accessories really get your lit coals closer to the grate, which will get a much better sear on any burger, steak, or chop. Weber's basket's are OK, but the top of the basket's don't get as close to the grate on the 22" kettle.

If you really like a hard sear, you should consider a Vortex or Slow n' Sear. Both accessories are very popular... I like the Vortex a little better (I've used both). The Vortex is GREAT at searing and making chicken wings or thighs when the Vortex is in the center of the 22" kettle, and you have the wings/thighs all around. You can probably get similar results with the SNS... but I never did. The SNS can help with lower temp cooks, the temperature control isn't really as good as setting up a fuse/snake, IMO.

If you do want to try the Vortex, you should also upgrade your grilling grate. The plated steel Weber Grates won't take the high heat that a Vortex will put out (especially if you put lump in the vortex). I think Killa Grilla is one of our preferred brands for upgrading cooking grates here on the forum.

Also... Brett-EDH is awesome but he's also cheating in his burger pics :geek: ! He's using the Weber Summit Kamado (WSK), and the WSK's charcoal grate in the upper position is closer to the cooking grate vs 22" kettle, so the Weber's charcoal baskets work a lot better in the WSK for searing.
 
John K BBQ said:
Lots of good advice from everyone here...

Lots of good advice from everyone. I wanted to add on to BFletcher's post here. The photo he's showing here shows coals that will work to cook a burger.... no doubt about it. When I was using the 22" Weber Kettle, I really liked using a Vortex for searing burgers, or the Slow n' Sear (SNS). Both of these accessories really get your lit coals closer to the grate, which will get a much better sear on any burger, steak, or chop. Weber's basket's are OK, but the top of the basket's don't get as close to the grate on the 22" kettle.

If you really like a hard sear, you should consider a Vortex or Slow n' Sear. Both accessories are very popular... I like the Vortex a little better (I've used both). The Vortex is GREAT at searing and making chicken wings or thighs when the Vortex is in the center of the 22" kettle, and you have the wings/thighs all around. You can probably get similar results with the SNS... but I never did. The SNS can help with lower temp cooks, the temperature control isn't really as good as setting up a fuse/snake, IMO.

If you do want to try the Vortex, you should also upgrade your grilling grate. The plated steel Weber Grates won't take the high heat that a Vortex will put out (especially if you put lump in the vortex). I think Killa Grilla is one of our preferred brands for upgrading cooking grates here on the forum.

Also... Brett-EDH is awesome but he's also cheating in his burger pics :geek: ! He's using the Weber Summit Kamado (WSK), and the WSK's charcoal grate in the upper position is closer to the cooking grate vs 22" kettle, so the Weber's charcoal baskets work a lot better in the WSK for searing.
Click to expand...
Or just save up and solve all problems by buying a WSK.
 
I used to use my Hunsaker disc plate griddle thing and the Weber baskets in my kettle with good results for smash burgers.
The Hunsaker is a pain but it does put out two good tasting smash paddies at a time.
It’s just not that good for dealing out burger meals that have onions/veggies and grilled buns because it’s small and has buttkiss for temp control.
Sorry my Yiddish is poor today :).
After getting a Blackstone everything else burger meal wise was lesser.
 
I reckon I'm ridiculous, I like burgers different ways and a big fat Steak burger is what I want sometimes, I am diabetic so 1 bun even if I might make another burger with only the veggis and eat with a fork. I hate snobs of any brand that think their way is the only way lol
 
Many times I make burgers sans buns. One thing, the taste of commercial hamburger rolls has changed to something I don't like much. The other is why do I want to waste my carb load on something I don't like the taste of?
 
I have never had a lamb burger and need to read up on the correct fat/lean ratio in order to try it, there is not a lot of lamb or mutton eaten in the area, I have tried the lamb breasts and they are good if lacking the meat ratio I prefer .
 
When we were kids my mom made them. They were ok. But this was in the 50s and she used it because it was cheaper than beef
 
I like to add a chunk or a few pieces of mesquite wood to the coals and use 85/15. I've found 80/20 has too much fat which causes flare ups and 90/10 is too dry.
 
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