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The Burger Lover's Burger

Source of Recipe

From "The New Essentials Cookbook" by America's Test Kitchen


Recipe Introduction

"How come restaurant burgers are so much better than the ones you make at home? One big reason is that your favorite restaurants are probably grinding their own meat; and you can too. We started by partially freezing chunks of sirloin steak tips so that they'd grind up relatively coarse in the food processor. Adding melted butter to the meat improved the burgers' flavor and juiciness and boosted browning. To give our burgers a great crust and juicy interior, we seared them in a hot skillet on the stovetop before transferring them to the gentler heat of the oven to cook through evenly. Take care not to overwork the meat or the burgers will be dense. Sirloin steak tips are also sold as flap meat. You can substitute 85 percent lean ground beef for the steak tips; omit butter, skip steps 1 and 2, and proceed with the recipe as directed. For the best flavor, season the burgers aggressively just before cooking. Serve with Pub-Style Burger Sauce and your favorite toppings."

List of Ingredients

◦ 1 � pounds sirloin steak tips, trimmed and cut into �-inch chunks
◦ 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
◦ Salt and pepper
◦ 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
◦ 4 hamburger buns, toasted if desired


Recipe

Arrange beef chunks on rimmed baking sheet in single layer. Freeze until meat is very firm and starting to harden around edges but still pliable, about 35 minutes.

Place one-quarter of meat in food processor and pulse until finely ground into rice grain-size pieces (about �⁄₁₆ inch), about 20 pulses, stopping and redistributing meat as needed to ensure beef is evenly ground. Transfer meat to baking sheet. Repeat grinding with remaining meat in three batches. Spread meat over sheet and inspect carefully, discarding any long strands of gristle or large chunks of hard meat or fat.

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300� F. Drizzle meat with melted butter, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon pepper, and gently toss with fork to combine. Divide meat into four balls. Toss each between your hands until uniformly but lightly packed. Gently flatten into patties � inch thick and about 4 � inches in diameter. Refrigerate patties until ready to cook. (Patties can be refrigerated for up to 1 day.)

Season one side of patties liberally with salt and pepper. Using spatula, flip patties and season other side. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over high heat until just smoking. Using spatula, transfer burgers to skillet and cook without moving for 2 minutes. Using spatula, flip burgers and continue to cook for 2 minutes longer. Transfer burgers to clean rimmed baking sheet and bake until thermometer inserted into center of burger from top edge registers 125� F for medium-rare or 130� F for medium, 3 to 6 minutes.

Transfer burgers to plate and let rest for 5 minutes. Transfer burgers to buns and serve.

Serves 4







❧ Pub-Style Burger Sauce:

Whisk � cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon packed dark brown sugar, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon minced fresh chives, 1 minced garlic clove, and � teaspoon pepper together in bowl.

Sauce can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.

Makes about 1 cup