How to make a better home cooked hamburger ?

[70ChargerRT]

I find meat itself has no flavor - you can distinquish between chicken, turkey, beef and pork but without spices of some sort or other, they're all bland and tasteless. But in almost all cases, a bit of salt "wakes them up". That's the starting point. From that point on its rubs or sauces and toppings and the choices are endless as well as cooking methods.

Back to the question, when it comes to burgers I personally like them not too thick - a "quarter pouind" patty is almost too thick.
I like a medium ground beef. I like them fried - cooked right through but still juicy.
Buns get buttered on the OUTSIDE and fried in a seperate pan - don't understand why anyone would toast a bun on the inside !! I like the bun squashed down a bit while frying. Fried just enough to put a sear on it - not blackened!!
I like a cheesburger so the cheese goes on the burger when the A side is cooked and the burger flipped to cook the B side. A lid goes on to keep the heat in to melt the cheese.
Dressings are your option but I like:
mustard, relish, a thick slice of onion, a slice of tomato and a slab of banana pepper. Bacon is optional.

IMHO ketchup does not belong on a burger unless you're eating it plain.

If anything doesn’t belong on a burger it’s relish. That shits for hotdogs lol.

 

[Black_Sheep]

My buddy UF used to be a meat cutter, he made some patties for the club cook out at the Street Machine Nats that were amazing. He fried some bacon and ground it in with some top sirloin. The smell of them cooking caused passersby to stop in their tracks. The flavor was out of this world…

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

Throw 'em on the grill, 5
mins a side, 1 minute before
removal, pour a little melted
butter over the top and let
the resulting flames burn
(char) the edges a little.
You'll want them slightly
pink in the center.
I use the same method
when grilling a ribeye.
it's the sear that brings
out the flavor.
I've purchased grinds of
burger from many different
suppliers, and the quality
just ain't what it used to be.
Walmart doesn't care what
your hamburger tastes like
when it's cooked. They use
red dye to enhance the
meats' appearance which
may sit on the shelf for up
to a week. Buy your burger
from your local butcher, as
he'll add as much fat as to
enhance the flavors as
needed. (if he's worth his
weight as a butcher).
I buy 5lbs at a time and
make my own patties,
freezing until needed.

isn't slightly pink in the center risky for ground beef? I've always heard it's fine for steaks, but for ground beef to cook it well to kill any nasties since it's ground meat.

 

[70ChargerRT]

My buddy UF used to be a meat cutter, he made some patties for the club cook out at the Street Machine Nats that were amazing. He fried some bacon and ground it in with some top sirloin. The smell of them cooking caused passersby to stop in their tracks. The flavor was out of this world…

If you like peppers cut some jalepenos up and throw in that mix also. Amazing.

 

[1STMP]

isn't slightly pink in the center risky for ground beef? I've always heard it's fine for steaks, but for ground beef to cook it well to kill any nasties since it's ground meat.

Cooked to 145-165 deg in
the center. Even pork can
be cooked to this temp.
I've seen some order their
burgers rare and have not
reported any ill affects.
There again, it depends
on where you purchase
your hamburger.
I wouldn't order a medium
rare burger from Mickey-D's.

 

[440 4 speed]

Through the years we had Americans working with us.
One family moved here with their two young daughters, about 7 and 9. One of the biggest things they noticed about beef was the difference between corn fed and barley fed. They loved our beef.
An aside, they had come from Florida and couldn’t believe that grade school kids were allowed to walk to school without an adult. Or people let their kids go to the park and play.
They wanted to stay, but Larry’s wife previously had some medical issues and couldn’t get insurance. So they moved back to Kansas I believe.