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Q: When I make patties, I grab a piece of parchment paper and a bun. I use a Sharpie to draw a circle around the bun, an inch to an inch and a half out from the bun. If the bun has a 6-inch diameter, my circle will have an 8-inch diameter. Flip the paper, and there's my template for forming patties.
I've never had a patty smaller than the bun with this method.
A: What a fun tip.
Have you tried putting a dent in the middle of the burger to prevent it from shrinking? I tried that a couple of weekends ago and it seemed to work well.
- Ann Maloney
Q: I've made hamburger buns a couple times now and both times they've been tasty, but the texture is more biscuit-y rather than fluffy and bread-like. Do you have any thoughts on what I might be doing wrong?
A: I have a few theories. First, make sure your butter is at room temperature, as in soft. You want to be able to press a finger into it and have it hold the indentation. The fact that you said biscuit-y makes me think perhaps it needs to be softer, as biscuits are made with cold butter for a "shorter" texture. You may also need to knead a bit more and make sure you're letting the dough proof enough. Really make sure you're letting it double. I like to use a straight-sided container to make it very easy to track. Lastly, could be you just have to practice your shaping. It does take work! If you're not getting the dough smooth and taut enough, you may not get the best rise. One more theory, actually -- you could be overproofing at the last step. Cookbook author Cathy Barrow says not to let them go for too long -- no more than 45 minutes. Overproofed bread dough can actually bake up too flat and dense. If your kitchen runs warm, you may not even want them to rise that long.
That's a lot, but I hope that helps!
- Becky Krystal
Q: If aging a beef steak in the fridge for 48 hours makes it so much better (wrap it in cloth and let the enzymes do their thing) then why does ground beef go bad so much sooner even when in butcher paper? Oxidation/surface area of the ground?
A: What do you mean go bad? As in spoil or just oxidize? Ground beef will oxidize and turn gray as it's exposed to more air, even in a package. Ground beef in general needs to be used within two days of purchase, according to the USDA. And, yes, much has to do with processing and surface area, as there are more potential opportunities for bacterial contamination. Bacteria won't penetrate beyond the surface of a whole piece of meat, so at least when cooking, there's less risk there since that can be killed off fairly quickly and reliably.
- B.K.
Q: I don't tend to use a burger recipe, but make very good burgers. I find the key to be fat and seasoning. I'll use ground beef or bison and break it up with a fork in a large mixing bowl, trying to manipulate it as little as possible. Then gently mix in salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and some fat. Other good options are A.1. sauce, dijon, garlic and/or onion powder, or shredded cheddar. Form into 1/3 pound patties, again handling as little as possible, make a slight indent in the middle, and refrigerate on a baking sheet. Take out when ready to cook, salt and pepper the exterior, and grill while still cold - it helps prevent overcooking while allowing the outside to char. About three to three and a half minutes a side on a hot grill and then let them rest briefly. Enjoy.
A: Sounds delicious. Thanks for sharing.
-A.M.
Q: How well do grill pans, especially the lodge 10-and-a-half-inch-square one, work on an electric stove top? Is it good or bad or indifferent to get a non-stick grill pan?
A: Grill pans work just fine on an electric cooktop, which I have at home and in our Food Lab. As for nonstick, the ridges on nonstick pans are not as tall or distinct as those on cast iron, which is what the Lodge brand is. Personally, I found that I didn't like the cleanup on my old nonstick grill pan. I'd go with regular or enameled cast iron. Plus, you can crank the heat under a cast iron pan hotter than nonstick, to get you good grill marks.
- B.K.
Q: This is very important: Get a temperature reading on your burgers to be sure they're cooked to the desired temperature/doneness.
A: Good reminder. Beef "hamburgers should be cooked to a safe minimum internal temperature to destroy harmful bacteria that may be present. Use a food thermometer to be sure they have reached a safe minimum internal temperature of 160 degrees," according to the USDA.
- A.M.
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