How to make the almost perfect homemade burger

How to make a good hamburger .

Until not too long ago, when we referred to hamburgers, we immediately associated them with so-called junk food.

Thinking that they would be made, God knows with what meat and with what more than surely it was not.

Today there is a tendency to prepare this type of food while maintaining quality and good work.

It is common to find this type of meat recipes on the menu of any restaurant. Most of the time with a section dedicated to this type of food, you can find authentic gourmet burgers. 

Burgers have become such a versatile dish that, surprise , they do not even have to be meat , of course, they can be fish or, in this case, vegetarian .

Today’s recipe is one more, but delicious, the one that we have prepared at home for years and that a lot of guests have tried, saying that it is one of the best that has entered through their mouth.

So you have the opportunity to make it at home and nothing prevents us from preparing top-quality hamburgers at home.

Some burguers that will make us enjoy this type of food again, for this reason and as a sample, this  veal burger with candied onion .

Before starting with the hamburger. The meat

1. We ask our butcher to mince the meat we have chosen to prepare the burgers.
2. It is important not only to choose the meat but that the butcher shreds it at the moment. When you cut a meat, what you are doing is breaking the tissues and causing it to oxidize.
3. The best thing is that you ask for advice when choosing the type of meat, the more tender the better.
4. Buy just the right amount for the burgers you are going to cook. Otherwise you will be forced to freeze what is left and it will lose quality.
5. Before starting to cook, let’s not forget to take the meat out of the fridge. At least half an hour before and place it in a warm place to warm.
6. In a bowl we mix all the ingredients of the hamburger. On the one hand, the minced meat, the garlic, well chopped and the yolk of an egg previously beaten.
7. I learned this trick in a class with Jesús Almagro, the yolk beaten with meat will make it more spongy.
8. Basil leaves and grated Parmesan cheese will also go into the mixture. The latter is optional and must be taken into account when adding salt.

Preparation and shape of hamburgers

1. I usually try the meat as it is before going to the pan to test if it is to my liking, it is still almost a steak tartar .
2. We mix all the ingredients kneading with the hands until they are all well integrated.
3. I have chosen to include Parmesan cheese because it is powerful and it is one of my favorites. But it would go perfectly with a well-cured Manchego cheese or another strong cheese of your choice.
4. And of course if you do not like cheese or you are super purists with meat, eliminate this ingredient from the hamburger.
5. We should never marinate meat in acidic media such as vinegars or citrus juices. It is to prevent it from cooking and modifying its characteristics.

Preparation of our homemade hamburger

1. We divide the mixture into 4 parts that will correspond to the 4 hamburgers that we are going to form.
2. Each of the portions will be about 125 g.-150 g. and at room temperature. But if you prefer to make mini burgers the performance would be double.
3. If you have one of the plating rings, you can use it to give the burgers a more professional touch.
4. If not, we simply have to shape each portion of the meat with our hands.
5. Before putting in the pan it is time to add salt and freshly ground black pepper, to the taste of each one.
6. In a frying pan, heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. We can even brush the meat with a little oil and not add oil to the pan, it is your choice and incorporate the burgers.
7. The frying pan should be hot but without going over the top, we do not want the burgers to burn as we put them on the fire.

Final presentation of the hamburger. Meat point

1. We will cook them over medium high heat, on both sides leaving them a little to the taste of each one.
2. More or less cooked depending on how we like them. If the frying pan gives off a lot of smoke, lower the heat to avoid excessive caramelization on the surface and to leave the interior uncooked.
3. Although this must go by taste, remember that it can be done little, to the point or very done, according to your tastes.
4. The cooking time should be about 3 minutes on each side and always only one turn on each side.
5. If you see that it remains bland or is not seasoned to your liking, it is best to season with salt and pepper after cooking.
6. We assemble each hamburger with previously toasted bread on the inside. This way we prevent the bread from being destroyed by biting it, it gives it more consistency.
7. I recommend you do it with a little butter and I would put it on the pan. In the same one in which we have made the hamburger so that it is impregnated with the fat and flavor of the meat. It is a nice touch.
8. Add some arugula leaves washed before with a little water, two slices of goat cheese and a good amount of onion confit.

In a moment we can enjoy a totally homemade hamburger accompanied by quality products, a whole gourmet hamburger.

We will not need more than a very cold beer and good company to enjoy a delicious dinner.

You can see all the photos of the step by step in the next album.  

Tips for some yummy burgers. Choice of meat

• The secret to the success of delicious burgers is, without a doubt, getting quality meat. It is useless to season and marinate the meat with endless dressings if it is not first class. In the end the result of our hamburger will suffer.
• When we talk about quality product and especially meat, many questions come to our minds, what type of meat does this name deserve? What do we mean by gourmet hamburger? Ox from the Valles del Esla, Galician beef, Galician blonde, meat from Ávila, beef from the Basque Country …
• The theme of the meat to use depends on the area in which you are and the tastes of each one. What more or less everyone agrees on is that the basic ingredient of a hamburger, which must be chosen carefully.
• The best meat is usually lean beef, consult the master butcher, if he is trustworthy. He will tell you according to what you want to prepare what will be the best cut and will chop it on sight, without you taking God knows what.
• If you feel like it, we can make the burger even better if we prepare our own bread at home. On the blog you can find the bread recipe to make it at home and complete a round hamburger.
• If we use quality product I promise you that it will not take too many tricks to get one of those hamburgers that you want to repeat.
• If we also accompany it with a rich cheese, the one we like the most, a little confit onion   and bread to taste . We’ll get a hamburger worthy of the best restaurant.