Juicy Pub-Style Burgers

So last week was a pretty bad week for me and there was one thing that was pushing me to the end of Friday.  I was looking forward to a burger date with my boyfriend.  When things go wrong a good tasty burger has a way of filling that void that a salad cannot.  I admit that I ended up eating a Five Guys burger last Friday which was undeniably satisfying but if I had to make one myself I'd definitely go to this recipe.  This is one of those recipes that changed the way I make homemade burgers.  I always use to make my burgers on the grill with store bought ground meat.  Mistake number one.  Don't get me wrong, there's obviously a certain convenience in packaged ground meat but the taste and texture compared to home ground meat is day and night.  In addition, it's good to know that you're putting in quality meat in your burger rather than scraps.  It also makes me feel more "safe" to eat a burger cooked medium rare.  This burger is also made indoors which means that you can make it even in the winter! The process is a little long but the results are worth it.  This is definitely a crave-worthy burger especially when you go to the effort of topping it with your favourite cheese (goat cheese in my case) and crispy fried shallots.

Note: I used tri-tip steak roast and cut it into chucks because the original recipe called for sirloin steak tips which are commonly sold as flap steak, which I could not find at my grocery store.

I used only 1/2 of the package and cut it up in cubes.

There are pieces of lean and fattier meat which will get mixed together when ground.

The ground meat needs to be inspected for any long strands and extra butter is added for a good meat to fat ratio.

The key to a good burger is to have a hot pan and to not fuss around with the burgers once they're in the pan.  Don't forget to use the thermometer to avoid tough overcooked burgers.

Juicy Pub-Style Burgers

Yields 6 burgers

Ingredients

2 pounds sirloin steak tips, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1/2-inch chunks

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

Table salt and ground black pepper

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

4 hamburger buns, toasted and buttered

Any additional toppings as desired (tomato, lettuce, cheese, onions, crispy shallots, burger sauce, etc)

Place beef chunk on baking sheet in single layer.  Freeze meat until very firm and starting to harden around the edges but still pliable, about 35 minutes.

Place one-quarter of meat in food processor and pulse until finely ground into 1/16-inch pieces, about 35 one-second pulses, stopping and redistributing meat around bowl as necessary to ensure beef is evenly ground.  Transfer meat to second baking sheet.  Repeat grinding with remaining 3 batches of meat.  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 degrees.  Drizzle melted butter over ground meat and add 1 teaspoon pepper.  Gently toss with fork to combine.  Divide meat into 6 lightly packed balls.  Gently flatten into patties about 4 inches in diameter.  Refrigerate patties until ready to cook.  (Patties can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 1 day.)

Season 1 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.  Burgers will be cooked in two batches.  Using spatula, transfer 4 burgers to skillet and cook without moving for 2 minutes.  Using spatula, flip burgers and cook for 2 minutes longer.  Transfer patties to rimmed baking sheet and bake until instant-read thermometer inserted into burger registers 125 degrees for medium-rare or 130 for medium, 3 to 6 minutes.  Meanwhile cook second batch of burgers and continue baking in the oven.

Once burgers have reached the desired temperature, transfer burgers to plate and let rest for 5 minutes.  Transfer to buns, add desired toppings, and serve.

Source: slightly adapted by America's Test Kitchen