How Hot Should The Grill Be For Burgers
For burgers the optimal grilling temperature rule is the hotter the better. Heat your grill to medium high heat . For a charcoal grill, arrange the coals on one side to create a high heat zone which will also lead to you having a low heat zone as well . Having a high and low heat helps to ensure you dont burn the burgers if there are flare ups.
How To Grill Burgers On Gas Grill
If youre grilling with gas or propane, all the same rules on patty selection, shaping, and seasoning apply. Your temperatures, times, and flavors are going to vary, though.
For medium-rare burgers on a gas grill, youll need to cook for around five minutes each side to get that nice, red inside. Medium burgers will take six minutes per side, and medium-well needs seven minutes. If youre measuring by internal temperature, you can still reference our fancy table internal temperatures stay the same no matter how youre cooking.
Just like a Traeger, youll need your gas grill setting as high as you can make it but unlike a Traeger, even heat distribution might be an issue, and youll need to look out for hot spots .
If youre wondering what to expect flavor-wise, a gas or propane-powered grill is going to give you something very different than you might produce with pellets. You wont get that amazing smokiness cooking with gas, but you will get a fiery taste thats a bit more neutral. Most grill masters will try to add liquid smoke to their gas grilled burgers to try and mimic the effect normally in the marinade or by adding the right sauce after taking them off the grill.
If youre cooking with gas, you should always grill burgers with the lid closed. This will prevent flare ups, cook your burgers faster, and deliver a lot more consistency.
Divide And Shape Burgers
Now its time to divide and shape into patties. Grilled burgers use roughly 4 to 6 ounces of meat before accounting for shrinkage during cooking.
If you started with a pound of meat, simply cut your mixture into quarters.
For precision, use a kitchen scale to weigh out your meat.
Roll the meat into a ball, then flatten it out onto a cutting board with the back of your hand.
To account for shrinkage from grilling, keep flattening until the patty is bigger than your bun.
Ideally, your burger patty is an inch thick or very close to it. Use your fingers to create a slight depression in the center of the patty so the burger doesnt end up thicker in the middle after cooking.
Bun-buying tip: Keep in mind that the burger patty size should complement the buns you bought.
No one wants a dinky patty that disappears beneath the bread!
We recommend sticking with standard, whole-wheat burger buns, no more than 3-3.5 inches diameter.
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Why Do My Burgers Smoke So Much
There could be a few reasons why your burger is causing so much smoke. Thats because your burger will produce a decent amount of its own fat to fry in. Season your burger with a little salt and pepper. If youve been using horrible meat, its gonna burn and taste awful and just not be a good time.
How To Prepare Ground Elk The Right Way
Unlike ground beef that is filled with fat, ground elk is lean.
You need extra equipment to make ground elk. The best option, in my opinion, is a meat grinder. I cant recommend any model as meat grinders come in various sizes and price tags. Furthermore, I dont know how much meat you want to process. If you dont have a meat grinder or dont wish to spend money at this moment, you can still make hamburgers using a food processor. The one thing that you will find different is the texture. The chopping with food processors is not fine. If you are a huge fan of grinding your own burger, then a meat grinder is a must.
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Understanding The Levels Of Doneness For Hamburger Patties
- Rare has an internal temperature of 125°F and is completely pink throughout the burger.
- Medium-rare has an internal temperature of 135°F and is just slight brown inside near the crust of the burger.
- Medium has an internal temperature of 145°F and a center that is slightly pink while the rest of the meat inside is brown
- Well-done has an internal temperature of 160 °F and is completely browned throughout the inside.
The USDA recommends cooking ground beef to an internal temperature of 160 °F to ensure youve killed any harmful bacteria.
How Long Should Burgers Be Grilled
That depends on how you like them done. The United States Department of Agriculture safe internal cooking temperature for ground beef is 160 degrees. That means its well done. And the cooking time will depend on the thickness of the burger but generally at least 5 minutes per side. If you like it at less done than that and depending on the thickness, figure about 3 minutes per side for medium-rare or 130-135 degrees and 150-155 degrees for medium-well.
Here are a few recipes to help you out:
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Finally How Long To Grill Turkey Burgers
Place your turkey burgers on a cooler part of the grill and have your trusty meat thermometer close at hand, recommends McKee-Clark.
165° F is the safe temperature for eating turkey, and this is no place for medium-rare. You want to pull those bad boys off at 164.99° F, as right on the money to 165° F as you can get theyll continue to cook and rise in temperature by about 5° F as they rest, she adds.
Dry Tasteless Burgers Chuck That
All kinds of non-government food experts and enthusiasts swear up and down that the risk of contracting a food-borne illness from tainted beef is so low, its not worth worrying about.
Television food personality and chef Anthony Bourdain thinks the whole thing is ridiculous and once went on an obscenity-laden rant about the issue. I cant reprint that here, but I can offer this quote from Mr. Bourdain on the subject:
Anyone who refuses to let you eat your burger at a temperature less than medium is on the side of the terrorists.
You have to admire his passion.
Anyway, if youre still undecided about whether or not grilling burgers to a lower temperature is safe, but you want a flavorful, juicy burger, heres the burger hack for you.
You can buy ground beef made from just about any of the primal cuts. And while a burger made from a premium cut of beef sounds enticing, the truth is that pretty much the best burger meat comes from the chuck.
Ground chuck meat has good fat content not too chewy, and not too lean which means it will stay moist when cooked, even to a higher well done. Other cuts work well, too, so long as the fat content is 20 to 25 percent.
Less than that, and itll dry right up and be no better than a low-grade fast food drive-through beefburger if you take it to the recommended 160 F.
So aim for a good 20% as a ball park figure, and tweak up or down to your liking.
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Buy An 80/20 Mix Of Ground Beef
A burger can be seasoned a hundred ways to Sunday, but it means nothing without a solid foundation. For a juicy, flavorful burger, skip the extra-lean ground beef patty blends and use ground beef with a higher fat content.
Ground beef with an 80/20 mix is the best for grilled burgersthis means a mix 80 percent lean beef and 20 percent fat. The 80/20 ground beef you would buy in the supermarket is usually ground chuck, which is great for burgers.
Raichlen actually prefers mixing ground chuck and ground sirloin to create his own mix of 80 to 83 percent beef and 17 to 20 percent fat
I opted for 80/20 ground chuck because its easily available in most supermarkets, but dont be afraid to ask your butcher to grind your own blend or grind a higher fat-to-beef ratio.
How To Grill Burgers
Learn how to grill burgers perfectly every single time with my handy tips! Tips include hamburger grill time, the best beef for burgers, and burger temperature.
Grilling season is the very best season. Truthfully, I grill year round, so its always grilling season for me.
Im the most comfortable in front of my grill. Its always relaxing, and I love being outside, unless the temps are freezing.
In my opinion, food is always better when its grilled. The grill marks are appetizing, you cant beat the smoky flavor, and the biggest bonus is that there are less dishes to wash!
My life changed when I learned how to grill, and now I grill everything from chicken, steak, vegetables of all kinds, and of course, hamburgers.
Theres nothing better to me than a classic, all-American burger. This grilled hamburger could be considered an In-n-Out Burger copycat as its slathered with homemade Thousand Island sauce and topped with classic toppings.
As much as I love In-n-Out burgers, homemade is always best.
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Season And Mix Burgers
For grilled burgers made with higher fat ground beef, simply add seasoning and work it in with your hands.
Be very careful not to overdo the mixing since it can result in a burger that crumbles and falls apart when eaten. Less is more here.
Common seasonings for grilled burgers include:
- Salt
- Garlic or onion powder
- Dried herbs
If you chose to go the leaner route with 93/7 ground beef or turkey, McKee Clark recommends a few additional add-ins:
Add an egg for binding and moisture. Then, add ¼ cup reduced-fat shredded mozzarella along with 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce and other spices of your choice.
Consider adding a few tablespoons of breadcrumbs to keep the burger from falling apart. This will make the burger of your dreams. One that you wont feel bad while eating, she adds.
For more tips, check out How to Make a Healthier Burger.
The Best Ground Beef To Buy
taste of hometaste of home
You cant make a great grilled burger without tasty beef. Sure, you can dress-up ground beef with Worcestershire and garlic powder, but the seasonings arent the star of the burger: The beef is. So skip the bargain-bin and buy the best quality beef you can afford. That might be grass-fed beef if you prefer meatier, pastoral flavors, or grain-finished options if you like a sweeter, richer taste.
When it comes to fat content, youll also want to take a pass on lean offerings. The best-grilled burgers weve had are juicy and rich, and that comes from fat. Ground beef with 20 to 25% fat is just about perfect, so look for an 80/20 blend. More fat and the burger can fall apart. Less fat and the burger will turn out dry. If your butcher will grind beef to order, ask for a coarsely ground chuck roast, or a mixture of brisket and sirloin.
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What Is The Best Wood Pellet For Cooking Burgers
The Pellet Grill is the perfect choice for cooking an intuitive burger. This owes to the fact that Pellets burn hotter and slower than the usual wood chips ensuring consistency in heat flow.
The other advantage of cooking burgers with pellets lies in the production of less waste or ash.
Now when it comes to picking the best wood pellet for cooking burgers, you do need to consider the seasoning being used. You see, it is the right pellet that delivers consistent heat and infuses to generate a pleasant aroma from a seasoned burger. There are two types of wood pellets best suited for cooking burgers.
Mesquite Pellets:
The Mesquite Pellets is the type that impacts a hearty and bold flavor profile to any BBQ. Such flavor comes in a steak-like quality. This pellet pairs well with beef, pork, and seafood.
Hickory Pellets:
The Hickory Pellets give a strong woodsy flavor that only goes well with burgers already seasoned with garlic and other assortments. It goes well with cheese, beef, and pork.
Ask An Expert: Steven Raichlen
Steven Raichlen, author of more than 30 books, founder of BBQ University, and television host to multiple shows on the subject of grilling and smoking, including the recently released Project Fire, generously took time out of his day to teach me a few things about how to grill the perfect burger. We discussed charcoal verses gas grills, the best fat to meat ratio, and one mistake newbies make when tackling the all-beef patty.
Armed with information from Raichlen, a mountain of research, my own experiences, and emails from friends and family members, I set out to make my version of a Classic Backyard Burger.
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Can You Grill A Great Burger On A Gas Grill Yes
Those of us who identify as carnivorous are particular about our grilled burgers. They have to be perfectly seasoned and seared on the outsideeven a little crustywith a juicy interior, and served on a well-chosen bun with our favorite condiments and embellishments.
Can you cook a righteous burger on a gas grill? Absolutely. In fact, when you need high but predictable heat to grill food directly, theres nothing like a gas grill to deliver it.
How Long To Grill Burgers
In general, follow these total grilling times:
- For rare burgers, cook for 4 minutes total
- For medium-rare burgers, cook for 5 minutes total
- For medium burgers, cook for 6 to 7 minutes total
- For well-done burgers, cook for 8 to 9 minutes total
Please note that the USDA recommends cooking ground meats to an internal temperature of at least 160°F, which is well done without any pink in the center. Cooking burgers to other degrees of doneness should be done at the cook’s discretion.
All this said, ultimately, the time it takes for a hamburger to reach a certain temperature depends on how hot your grill is and how thick your patty is. In my tests, my 1-inch thick, 4-inch diameter patties were medium done at 5 minutes total , and well done at 6 minutes total .
Raichlen suggests checking the temperature of the burger by inserting the meat thermometer through the side, not through the top this gives you a more accurate reading. You can also use Elises handy dandy finger-test guide.
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How To Cook Burgers On A Gas Grill
There are several methods on how to cook burgers on a gas grill. When the weather is prime for cooking on the grill you want to make sure you have everything you need to get that perfect grilled burger. We are going to talk about how to prepare your burger patties, what should the temperature of the grill be and the length of time to cook the burgers. Do you keep the grill lid open or closed and why, how do you know when the burgers are done on a gas grill, and other tips you should know for how to cook burgers on a gas grill.
When you cook burgers on a gas grill you get heat into the burger just from it touching the grill grates and also from the heat below going in between the grill grates. The advantage of cooking on a gas grill is that fat can drip down from the burger onto the flavor bars below. When the fat burns off it creates a mist-like occurrence coming up through the grill, and this is what makes the burger have the charbroiled taste.
When cooking burgers on a flat surface you get more directheat transfer and the moisture from the fat in the meat stays with the burger.This can prevent browning, but if your heat is high enough that wouldnt be aproblem! Also, the burger cooks in its own fat letting the flavors from the renderedfat distribute throughout the burger.
You can also use a cast-iron skillet put directly on the grill. You will still get that outdoor grilled flavor but not lose any of the fat through the grill grates.
Turning Things Inside Out
So why does ground meat have its own set of rules? Because ground meat is basically turned inside out.
The exterior of the cut gets mixed in with the interior until theres no telling which was which. This means that any bacteria that was once confined to the outside could now be anywhere in the meat.
For that reason, many people believe its necessary to cook ground meat until the internal temperature is high enough to kill any bacteria that may be present anywhere in the meat.
But, what if it wasnt there in the first place?
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How Long Does A Burger Take To Cook
You may read elsewhere that you should cook your burgers for 3 minutes, or 4 minutes, or even just 2 minutes per side, but the fact is thatespecially when it comes to handmade burger pattiesthese are just estimations.
In truth, a burger can take anywhere from just a couple minutes to 10 or even 15 minutes to fully cook through. It depends on three main variables: how hot the grill or pan is, how thick the burger is, and whether you want it rare, medium rare, medium, medium well, or well done.
The thicker the burger, the longer it takes to cook. It will also take more time if your grill or pan isn’t as hot. Lower temperatures also mean that the burger will take longer to get that crispy crust on the outside and will be more likely to dry out, because it takes so long to cook. For this reason, we recommend cooking at as high a temperature as you safely can. Not only does this reduce cooking times, but it is more likely to result in a juicier burger, with lots of flavor. And all you have to do is flip it when it’s ready, and take it off the heat when it’s done.
