Possibly a Juicier Burger?

[Paul Bacino]

So I was having company for the opening Football season.  One of the local food store had Hamburger  patties on sale.  So,  I opted to use them 85/15 chuck.

 

They were only probably 3/4 " thick.  When I got them home.. that seemed like a wimpy thickness.

 

So ,  Idea    Lets fuse 2 patties using Activa -RM--  so I treated one side ( dusted like a chicken breast ) - put together, and place them in frig for about 2 hrs.. to meld

 

Took them out about 45 min prior to cook.

 

Then off to my flat top to cook..  usually these thick burgers   1 1/2 icnches, get a big blood bubble in the middle, even if you dent them prior to cooking.  What I notice with the Activa-Rm barrier in the middle , this really didn't happen.  thick the meat juice collected just under, that in-side half.  So i flipped and cooked side two.  Really was amazed how uniform they cook and how the juices real stayed inside.  No pictures as the game was on. 

 

Just thought I would share.

 

PB

[rotuts]

""   a big blood bubble in the middle,  ""

 

interesting.  was the meat previously frozen ?

[Paul Bacino]

""   a big blood bubble in the middle,  ""

 

interesting.  was the meat previously frozen ?

No.. RT  ----Not frozen

 

 

in my experience .. the meat contracts.  on the outside.. first.. which in turn..  pushes the juice up in the middle up.. causing the Bubble effect.

 

Its probably not blood, but juice of fats and all

[rotuts]

this was inside your burger ? 

 

not uniformly distributed ?

 

interesting.

[Paul Bacino]

here is the only pre -shot  I have

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SylviaLovegren]

I get that bubble in the middle all the time but I will refuse to ever call it a "blood bubble."  Just sayin. 

[Anna N]

I get that bubble in the middle all the time but I will refuse to ever call it a "blood bubble."  Just sayin.

Is that not why a lot of people recommend that you put a dimple in the center of the burgers to counteract the bubble?

[rotuts]

Ive understood the dimple is to counter the contraction of the meat which results in a 'Domed' burger.

 

proper dimpliazation results in a flat burger

[Paul Bacino]

Is that not why a lot of people recommend that you put a dimple in the center of the burgers to counteract the bubble?

 

Yep..

 

But this doesn't happen.." the juice stops ..half way   ..or that appears to me.

 

I usually cook longer on side one..  rather than the constant flipping.

 

That way I get a nice crust developed

[FeChef]

I am still trying to comprehend why you used activa to glue ground meat together? Why didn't you just combine the raw ground meat and reshape the patties?

[rotuts]

well,  know why I would have done it :

 

because its Fun !

 

(  I'm pleased to see FeChef still posts from time to time.  remember  More is Better esp. w posts )

[Anna N]

I am with rotuts. If you can't have fun in the kitchen where can you have fun? Well at my age anyway. Somebody had already carefully preformed these burgers and gluing two of them together strikes me as a brilliant idea. Simplicity isn't always all it's cracked up to be!

[Paul Bacino]

I am still trying to comprehend why you used activa to glue ground meat together? Why didn't you just combine the raw ground meat and reshape the patties?

 

 

Now like rotuts said..   That would not be fun..  and  why would I reform those perfect patties.. it would only compress the meat more. 

 

Then it wouldn't be an experiment either.

 

(  A little side bar--  my wife said it caused her heart burn.. and would never eat them again )

 

I noticed nothing-- taste differance or ill effects

[rotuts]

nice

 

did she know you used " Meat-Glue "

 

 

maybe if she knew she had " LessThan Grande Expectations "

 

just saying.

[FeChef]

Now like rotuts said..   That would not be fun..  and  why would I reform those perfect patties.. it would only compress the meat more. 

 

Then it wouldn't be an experiment either.

 

(  A little side bar--  my wife said it caused her heart burn.. and would never eat them again )

 

I noticed nothing-- taste differance or ill effects

I can understand not mixing the ground meat too much but i would have just fried/grilled them seperate and added two of the patties to the buns. More maillard/browned/char = more flavor. So instead of only two surfaces you would have had 4 surfaces.

[rotuts]

nice

 

not as much fun

 

but good idea

 

I think PB had some Glue to Use up.

[weedy]

the simple answer to a "juicier" burger is 70/30!

[paulraphael]

I'm surprised activa isn't giving you sausage textures.

 

Juicy burgers are easy if you trust the meat and cook it medium-rare. If you have to cook more, it's traditional to compensate by adding more fat. It's surprising how hard it is to even get 20% fat with the cuts that are easily available these days. I'm guessing most of us are making 85/15 burgers. Weedy's 70/30 may go far for some people's tastes. A little butter or marrow added to the grind also works fine.

Edited September 11, 2015 by paulraphael (log)

[weedy]

I actually usually use a LaFrieda blend that's about 80/20,

that plus sous vide = "juicy" 100% of the time

[MSRadell]

I actually usually use a LaFrieda blend that's about 80/20,

that plus sous vide = "juicy" 100% of the time

We've been playing around trying to get the perfect burger cooking it SV and then doing a quick sear on the outside at the end. We've yet to come up with the perfect combination however. What time and temperature combination are you using? Are you doing a sear, if so are you doing it prior to or after the SV cook? We are also using a approximate 80/20 blend (just a guess because we are fresh grinding it ourselves).

[scubadoo97]

So far my SV burgers are less juicy then traditional burgers. Rare yes, juicy no

[Paul Bacino]

all is true

 

as long as non of that.. juice doesn't push out ( break out ) of the sear

 

I really didn't notice..  much extrusion in these..

 

Like all the .. juice was pushed under the umbrella of the Activa ( middle ).. and kept inside

 

But.. I could have been doing some pre-game quaffing  and  just missed it

 

 

My standard cook is side one .. more than side 2.  and as the blood juice.. begin to perk through after the flip..  ill start the finger touch..  usually when the juice begins showing up a 1/3 of the way in from the edge.  its close to medium..  "  I didnt see that with these

 

Cheers  Doc

[FeChef]

We've been playing around trying to get the perfect burger cooking it SV and then doing a quick sear on the outside at the end. We've yet to come up with the perfect combination however. What time and temperature combination are you using? Are you doing a sear, if so are you doing it prior to or after the SV cook? We are also using a approximate 80/20 blend (just a guess because we are fresh grinding it ourselves).

In my experiences with SV burgers, the perfect burger is first seasoned before being shaped. After shaped it is flash freezed, seared, then gently bagged and set to 140F for 1-2 hours and seared again before served on a bun with toppings of your choice. I use a blowtorch to sear to give it that "flame broiled" flavor. There is very little moisture loss even with 75/25. I prefer 80/20 because its more cost effective then other ratio's.

[weedy]

We've been playing around trying to get the perfect burger cooking it SV and then doing a quick sear on the outside at the end. We've yet to come up with the perfect combination however. What time and temperature combination are you using? Are you doing a sear, if so are you doing it prior to or after the SV cook? We are also using a approximate 80/20 blend (just a guess because we are fresh grinding it ourselves).

 

I do 132F for 60 mins (if not frozen), then sear in cast iron plus torch

 

"juicy" by MY reckoning