Yes, he's the self proclaimed grill master, but I don't do bad for myself. Especially considering that 4 years ago I didn't grill. At all. My dad did. My husband did. I didn't have to. But as time went on and Adam worked longer hours, I got tired of either waiting on him to get home to do it and starving, or only planning grilled items for the weekends. So I pulled on my big girl pants and decided to do it myself. And wouldn't you know...it's not that hard! Now I still prefer Adam to do it when he can, but if I'm here and he's not, I mange just fine. Except burgers. For years now I've watched Rachael Ray preach about putting an indentation in the middle of her hamburger patties to allow for even cooking. Well, even when I did that mine still came smaller, and "puffier" than what I made them. Of course I decided Rachael didn't know what she was talking about. Then for my birthday I got a hamburger press and it came w/ an insert to allow for such indentation making. Huh? Seriously, she did know what she was doing?? I love my press. It makes them even, round and just the right "bun size". I've been reading over Internet sources to see exactly what the perfect burger takes, and I've compiled what I think will be the key!
How To Grill Burgers
1. Make patties 1/2-3/4 inch thick, making sure they are even on all sides. Make 1/2 inch bigger than the bun, in diameter, to allow for shrinkage. Make a small indentation in the center of the patty. (Thank you burger press)
2. Season both sides w/ salt and pepper.
3. Heat grill until hot. Then turn down to medium. Using tongs, rub clean grates w/ a paper towel covered in oil. (Or spray w/ cooking spray)
4. Place burgers directly over heat, indentation side down. DO NOT press. This will cause juices to flow and make burgers dry.
5. Cook 3-4 minutes on each side, depending on how well done you like them.
Oiling the grills is a great idea and most of us have gas grills so either using a towel/brush with oil or cooking spray is a great idea. Just a reminder to all those grillers out there though that use charcoal and have a chance of an open flame to avoid cooking spray while the grate is on the grill. Removing the grate to spray it would be fine, but to spray a grate over an open fire with cooking spray could result in a flash back fire up the stream of the spray and result in an explosion of the can and a nasty burn to the grilling chef...not exactly what the chef had in mind for excitement.
ReplyDeleteAnother tip for the charcoal users, a chimney helps a lot. Gets high temps w/o having to use lighter fluid--who likes that flavor? They can be found at most hardware stores, or in the camping section of some stores.
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