6 Hacks to Make a Better Burger - Adventures of Carlienne

It’s a big holiday this weekend in the US, our Independence day, July 4 weekend and your typical American celebration consists of family, friends, food and fireworks. Today we are concentrating on food for this wonderful celebration and one of the main dishes we like to make for our July 4th festivities are burgers! But how many times have you had an overcooked bland dry soul-less burger… countless, so today we’re sharing 6 hacks to make a better, juicier, more flavorful burger for your party.

#1 Make your own patties from scratch

Try different ratios of chuck and fat and pork and beef. There’s no wrong combo so long as it fits your preferences. If you like your burgers closer to well done, try a fattier mix, as leaner meat dries out more easily.

#2: Season to the max

Make your own season mixes from dry spices or grind your own from whole. Whole spices hold flavor better than ground, so this is the perfect time to lug out your mortar and pestle if you have one. Add the seasonings right into your patty mix, or directly on top of any pre-made patties.

#3 Do more for your buns!

Homemade buns are light years better than the store bought ones, but if that’s not your thing to make your own, at the very least butter, season and toast those buns!

#4: Consistent sizing

Use an ice cream scoop to get consistent portions. This ensures even cooking and simplifies cook time when dealing with lots of patties at once. A line cook trick is to use two sheet pans to hold and then smash down multiple patties all at the same time.

#6 Add some fluff

Adding milk, eggs and bread can help get the burger juicy and tender. This technique for combining starch and liquid with ground meats is called a panade. This is super handy for those who like well done burgers or find they tend to overcook theirs.

#6: Experiment

Make different types of burgers! Get Korean inspired and add kimchi or gochujang in the patty or as a spread. For a Mexican or south American inspired burger, make a chipotle mayo or a mole spread or as the liquid part in your panade. A Filipino inspired heart attack burger might have chopped longanisa or tocino in your patty mix. Stuff your burgers, try different cheeses, and do all you can to infuse as much flavor bombs into your burger.

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