Burger seasoning

[ZAndy]

What amounts of S+P are people adding to their home-made burgers? Lets say you have one pound of mince...

[Output Flange]

It's annoying, but the answer is "to taste". Really depends on how you like them.

[Type R Tom]

I've read not to add salt till cooking and sprinkle on top as the salt can effect the meat and cause it to go tough if mixed in before (i.e. if you made them in advance)

[Type R Tom]

I like to add Oyster sauce, make the mix then take a small amount (like a mini meat ball) and cook it. Taste it and check it for seasoning then add more if required. Just be careful not to eat it all!

[grumbledoak]

None, normally, for me. I often to add other flavours which will have salt in them, but I don't season the meat itself.

[21TonyK]

Table salt and white pepper mixed 9:1 then added at 2% of meat weight.

Edit: to be more helpful, make up your mix a few hours ahead before shaping. This allows the salt to break down some of the proteins which glue the burgers together. Then allow to rest in the fridge overnight.

[Wild Rumpus]

I do mine with half a very finely chopped onion and 1tbsp of tomato puree in each 500g of mince. I then coat each burger in dry jerk seasoning (Tex's, preferably). This chars on cooking to give a great taste.

[zygalski]

Type R Tom said:

I've read not to add salt till cooking and sprinkle on top as the salt can effect the meat and cause it to go tough if mixed in before (i.e. if you made them in advance)

Burgers have salt added at the seasoning/mixing stage.
Decent mince should be used (ironically with a fairly high fat content) and the burgers should be cooked pink in the middle, not all the way through.
That's the secret to a juicy burger.
I've never heard of sprinkling salt on top of the patty either just before cooking or after.

[Type R Tom]

zygalski said:

Burgers have salt added at the seasoning/mixing stage.
Decent mince should be used (ironically with a fairly high fat content) and the burgers should be cooked pink in the middle, not all the way through.
That's the secret to a juicy burger.
I've never heard of sprinkling salt on top of the patty either just before cooking or after.

It was something about drawing the moisture out of the meat before cooking, typical I can find the article now but I’ve definitely seen a couple of recipes that suggest that. I’d start here http://amazingribs.com/, it’s a pretty epic website for BBQ fans, I used his recipes to feed 25 at my birthday party the other year with no complaints.

There are thousands of recipes out there but it all comes down to personal preference, next time I might make a batch up with the seasoning added in the mix and some without. Think that’s my Friday night sorted!

[Mobile Chicane]

To 500g of 20% beef mince I add the following for a 'plain' burger:

- 1 finely chopped onion
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Dunn's River all-purpose seasoning
- 'around' 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, since there's pepper in the Dunn's River mix

No breadcrumbs or egg.

The secret of getting the above mix to keep together when cooking is to use a presentation ring to press the meat into burger shapes on a foil covered board, and refrigerate for 30 mins before cooking.

Use a burger grill if BBQing.

[CommanderJameson]

Wild Rumpus said:

I do mine with half a very finely chopped onion and 1tbsp of tomato puree in each 500g of mince. I then coat each burger in dry jerk seasoning (Tex's, preferably). This chars on cooking to give a great taste.

I soften my finely-chopped onion until it's just taking a bit of colour, allow it to cool, then add it to the mince.

[GCH]

1lb local ground beef from the butcher
A couple of fresh shallots, finely chopped
10x jacobs cream crackers, pounded to very fine dust
1 large free range egg
A little fresh sea salt (unprocessed sticky stuff)
A tiny bit of pepper
A splash of spanish olive oil
umami paste

Once formed, leave to set in the fridge for at least 24hrs


Been doing the above receipe for years for meatballs and burgers.
Adding umami paste started after spending a few months in LA and discovering umami burger

[mattdaniels]

Just meat and salt. No egg, crackers, breadcrumb or any other nonsense. The trick is to refrigerate the burgers overnight. They bind properly then. If you cook them straight away they fall apart.

[dazco]

mattdaniels said:

Just meat and salt. No egg, crackers, breadcrumb or any other nonsense. The trick is to refrigerate the burgers overnight. They bind properly then. If you cook them straight away they fall apart.

This is what Heston thingybobs said. The salt acts as a binding agent if left a few hours in the mince.

[miniman]

Can't say I've had any issues going straight from mix to BBQ. They only break up if you try to turn them too soon.

[insurance_jon]

Sorry for the thread hijack, but have any of you tried the Heston method of making burgers where you lay the strands of mince out?

http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/chefs/heston...

[dazco]

insurance_jon said:

Sorry for the thread hijack, but have any of you tried the Heston method of making burgers where you lay the strands of mince out?

http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/chefs/heston...

I think it's a lot easier if you see it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPGiGxkbSp8 from 11 minutes.

I cook burgers using the smash burger method http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8g4Kkc0jXWk

[big_treacle]

I used to do the whole burger mix thing with meat, salt, pepper, egg/breadcrumbs & sticking them in the fridge to stop them falling apart.
Then I was given a burger press as a joke present. Now I just mash up some fatty mince, press a 1/4 pound per burger & give each one a quick grind of salt & pepper before chucking them under the grill. They're amazing They don't fall apart and they taste great. And it's super easy and super quick

Edited by big_treacle on Monday 24th September 10:56

[Wild Rumpus]

CommanderJameson said:

Wild Rumpus said:

I do mine with half a very finely chopped onion and 1tbsp of tomato puree in each 500g of mince. I then coat each burger in dry jerk seasoning (Tex's, preferably). This chars on cooking to give a great taste.

I soften my finely-chopped onion until it's just taking a bit of colour, allow it to cool, then add it to the mince.

Sounds like a decent idea, I'll give it a try the next time.

[dazco]

big_treacle said:

I used to do the whole burger mix thing with meat, salt, pepper, egg/breadcrumbs & sticking them in the fridge to stop them falling apart.
Then I was given a burger press as a joke present. Now I just mash up some fatty mince, press a 1/4 pound per burger & give each one a quick grind of salt & pepper before chucking them under the grill. They're amazing They don't fall apart and they taste great. And it's super easy and super quick

Edited by big_treacle on Monday 24th September 10:56

I don't understand people who put the likes of onion, breadcrumbs , egg, cheese and god knows what else into their burgers.

Fortunes, vast fortunes, have been made from making good burgers and on the whole they all say the same thing.

100% meat.