If you want to make the best burger, grind your own meat. It allows you to control the cuts and quality of the meat used, as well as the texture, taste and fat content.
I have been on a quest to make the best burger at home for many years. I like a good, old fashioned, basic burger with lettuce, tomato, onion, dressing and real American cheese. Oh, and I like my burger medium-rare to medium, not well done.
I have made burgers using just about every type of store-bought meat available, from regular ground beef to Wagyu ground beef, and brisket to buffalo. l have tried them all and I was always a bit disappointed with both the taste and the texture. Then I saw an episode of Good Eats with Alton Brown where he talked about the virtues of grinding your own meat. I was hooked!
Try my recipes for Grilled Brisket Burgers on Texas Toast with Sriracha Mayo, Wagyu Smash Burger Cooked in Beef Tallow and Homemade Patty Melt - A Classic Burger From the Past.
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Two Reasons to Grind Your Own Meat
The simple process of grinding your own meat will significantly elevate the quality of your burgers. Here is why:
Reason #1 – Food Safety
We have all heard the recommendation that ground beef must be cooked to an internal temperature of 160˚F. That's because commercial ground beef can have impurities like organs and intestines that can add a bunch of bad bacteria to meat, and food poisoning is no fun. You can avoid that nastiness by grinding specific cuts of meat from a trusted butcher.
Most cuts of beef can be cooked medium rare with absolutely no health risk.
Reason #2 – You Can Mix Different Cuts of Meat
By selecting the cuts of beef, you can control the fat content and flavor of your burgers. I also like to include prime beef or Wagyu beef when I can find it.
Four Steps to Burger Bliss
Step #1: Invest in a Meat Grinder
If you are going grind your own meat, invest in a dedicated meat grinder. I have owned several that attached to another appliance, like a mixer, and have been disappointed. They were under powered and poorly designed. The biggest problem with many of these low-end attachments is the area where the shaft goes through the grinding plate. Little bits of metal wear off and mix in with meat creating grey gunk around the spindle. That is not something you want to ingest.
A mixer is not a meat grinder. The motor is under-powered.
The meat grinder accessory attaches here.
I bought a small commercial-grade grinder for a few hundred bucks at on online restaurant supply company. It's does a great job, is easy to clean, and there is no gray gunk.
The grinding plate of a low-quality meat grinding attachment rubs on the spindle and adds grey gunk to the meat.
A low-cost commercial meat grinder.
Step #2: Pick Your Meat
A good quality chuck roast and a top sirloin are a good place to start. The chuck adds fat and the top sirloin adds texture and beefy flavor. A whole packer brisket also makes a good burger. The higher the fat content the better so always look for a chuck roast with a little more marbling.
Choice chuck roast.
Top sirloin.
Packer brisket.
Wagyu chuck roast.
Step #3: Cut the Meat and Cool it Down
Meat that is nearly frozen is a lot easier to grind than meat that is cool or room temperature. After cutting the meat into cubes, put it in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Also put the parts of the grinder that will contact the meat into the freezer. The meat will be much easier to grind and will be less likely to clog the grinder.
Place the meat grinder head in the freezer for 30 minutes prior to grinding.
You need two different grinding plates. a ⅜" plate is on the left and a ¼" plate is on the right.
Step #4: Grind it Twice
You need to have two grinding plates for your grinder. Grind the meat once with a course, ⅜” grinding plate. Then grind it again with a medium, ¼” plate. It will improve the texture and consistency of the ground meat.
Grind the meat using a ⅜" grinding plate.
Then grind it again using a ¼ grinding plate.
Step #5: Form Patties
Weigh out an 8-ounce portion of meat and form it into a ball. Handle it as little as possible or the burger will be dense. Place the ball on a piece of parchment paper, and form it into a patty with a burger press.
Weigh out one-half pound of meat and form it into a loose ball.
Press the ball of meat into a 6" patty with a burger press.
For a Special Treat: Cook the Burgers on a Griddle with Beef Tallow
For something truly special, add two tablespoons of beef tallow to a hot cast-iron griddle inside your charcoal or gas grill and cook the burger patty in there. The extra fat from the beef tallow helps sear the meat and create wonderfully juicy burgers. The burger in the photo below is cooking on a cast-iron griddle plate inside my Kamado Joe.
Clean-Up
Be sure to take the grinder apart and clean it well with hot soapy water. A large bottle brush is particularly helpful for cleaning the inside of the grinder attachment. Be careful, because many grinder attachments are made of aluminum and cannot go in the dishwasher.
Top Tip
If you are going to add American cheese, by all means buy REAL American cheese, not cheese food. There is a big difference in how it melts and how it tastes. Read the label carefully because most American cheese on the market is cheese food.
Final Thoughts
Grinding your own meat is the secret to making great burgers at home. The small investment in a good, entry-level, commercial meat grinder is well worth it. You will never make a burger with store-bought ground beef again.
Related
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Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with burgers.
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