The House Burger here:

Just under a cup of meat. Barely handled, rolled into a ball and salted. Then refrigerated. The metal spatula goes into the freezer. Hot cast iron pan. The meatball goes down and is smashed with the cold spatula. Three minutes for the first side. Flip. One round slice of brie goes down. Three more minutes.

A lightly toasted whole wheat bun is slightly gooed with mayo, then applied with fresh-cracked pepper. Burger goes down. Please note, I do not let burgers “rest.” Condiments include pickled red onions. Mustard. And a dollop of Crystal hot sauce in the center.

That would be the house burger in my restaurant. And my burgers would not be huge. Normal sized burgers. $3. Sides extra. I’d probably go out of business in a month.

Method notes:

Burgers should not rest. They should go right on the bun. The purpose of resting is to allow the meat to readjust its pressure so that juice doesn’t run all out when you carve. This is a burger. JUICE RUNNING OUT OF THE BURGER AND ALL OVER MY BEAUTIFUL BEARD IS THE ENTIRE POINT. I do not rest burgers. I bun and dress them immediately and gobble them.

I do not weigh the beef. Weighing means you have to handle the meat more. I measure by volume so I am handling it as little as possible.

Burger presses are delicous burger death. Burgers should be packed loosely with as little interaction with hands or tools as possible. I want the bites falling into my mouth, and I want the yummy juicy fat to be able to travel as it cooks. You do not get that effect by packing the meat tightly into a mold.

I want the meat cold and the things touching the meat to be cold. This is how you create a juicy juicy burger. Cold meat. Hot skillet. Do not allow the meat to get up to room temp. Warm meat means more of the the yummy fatty juicy leaves the burger. Cook it cold. You deserve it.

Palmer’s sells 75 – 25 meat. Can you believe it? If you can find that, buy it. I wouldn’t use it in chili, but for burgers, it’s beyond perfect. This debunks the notion that you have to grind your own. You sure don’t. Find a good product from a local provider you trust and buy that.

Hungry yet?