By Published Aug. 31, 2023.
This is Technique #62 from our 100 Techniques Every Home Cook Can Master.
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“Superior burgers” means different things to different people. But for us, it all starts with the main ingredient. For truly ultimate burgers, let go of any notion of buying ground meat at the supermarket. To ensure the perfect grind that will deliver tender burgers, you need to control all the variables and do it yourself.
Store-ground meats are often over-processed to a fine pulp in a commercial meat grinder, so it can be challenging to keep them from cooking up tough. Grinding your own meat is easy and doesn’t require any specialty equipment. We found that a food processor is just as good a tool for grinding meat as a home-model meat grinder, with just 20 pulses producing a coarse grind that’s ideal for burgers.
Cutting the meat into 1⁄2-inch pieces and briefly freezing them before processing ensures ideal results for a loose and tender, not pulverized, texture. A great thing about grinding your own meat is that you can customize it and combine more than one cut to engineer your preferred mix of flavor and fat. Sirloin has a solidly beefy flavor that we love, but it's leaner than many other cuts, so we like to add a bit of butter; you could also incorporate short ribs for rich juiciness or skirt steak for texture and earthy flavor.
For leaner poultry burgers, grind a portion of the main ingredient to a paste and use that as a binder to hold together the patty; grind the rest to a chunkier texture. For these lean proteins, choose dark meat, which has more fat, and add a pinch of baking soda to keep the burgers tender and moist during cooking (this is achieved because baking soda raises the pH, which makes it more difficult for the proteins to form a pasty glue).
Be extra-gentle when it comes to shaping the patties, since less handling equals more tender burgers. And only season with salt on the outside, since incorporating salt into the meat mixture would toughen it. Freezing the tender patties briefly before grilling helps ensure they hold together while cooking.
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It may sound like a daunting task, but grinding your own meat is simpler than it seems, and only requires a few staple kitchen gadgets. Simply season your meat, gently freeze it and blend in a food processor. Spread the ground meat out on a baking sheet before forming and cooking the patties, and you have a superior burger.
Click here for the ingredients required for our Grind-Your-Own Sirloin Burger Blend, then follow the step-by-step instructions below.
Trim excess fat and cut meat into 1⁄2-inch pieces.
Arrange pieces in single layer on rimmed baking sheet and freeze until firm and starting to harden around edges but still pliable.
Working in batches, pulse meat in food processor until finely ground into 1⁄16-inch pieces, stopping to redistribute meat as needed.
Spread ground meat over baking sheet, discarding any gristle strands or fat chunks. Drizzle with melted butter, if directed, and gently toss with fork to combine.
Divide meat mixture into 4 lightly packed balls, then gently flatten into 3⁄4-inch-thick patties. With fingertips, press center of each patty down until about 1⁄2 inch thick, creating slight divot.
Cook patties until well browned on both sides and interior registers desired temperature.
Whether you’re out to make a beef or turkey burger, we have recipes that will help you make your own patties at home and experience the flavor and texture of a truly superior burger. Try them out below.
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