Burgers!!
 

I'm making cheeseburgers for dinner tonight and was wondering what everyone puts in them to jazz them up quick and easy? Thanks in advance!

Re: Burgers!!
 

In? Ground lamb.

I'm serious. Half ground beef, half ground lamb.

Or ground brisket or heart, but these can be really intense. Some people find them to be too "beefy" flavored.

Re: Burgers!!
 

egg yolk, bread crumbs, shredded cheese, whatever spices you prefer, minced garlic, finely chopped onions, or whatever I see in the kitchen that looks like it would be a good fit :tu

Re: Burgers!!
 

Kind of reminds me of Eddie Murphy's McDonalds burger routine from back when he was still funny:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08c0BXTVpfs

Possible NSFW language.

Re: Burgers!!
 

Classic :r

Re: Burgers!!
 

80-20 ground beef

Re: Burgers!!
 

I like to mix the extra ingredients into the beef instead of dusting the patties.

My favorite "secret ingredient" is A1 steak sauce. I'll still throw in a dash or two of Worcestershire for good measure too, as that's what I used to add before I tried A1.

I would imagine any steak sauce of your choice would be a great addition.

Re: Burgers!!
 

I've made patties of 50% beef and 50% ground bacon. :dr :dr :dr

Re: Burgers!!
 

:tpd:

But I leave out the cheese (darn lactose :fp) and toss in some Worchester sauce.

My current spices of choice are most often oregano, thyme, salt, sweet pepper and cayenne (resembles what we here in Holland call Cajun, not sure if it is truely what Cajun should be though)

Re: Burgers!!
 

I make thin beef patties (not too lean); then I take a patty and put chopped onions, sliced mushrooms, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper (and optionally, some cheese) and place this all in the center. Then I take the second patty and seal it onto the top, resulting in a stuffed patty. My family loves these.

Re: Burgers!!
 

I like a little ground lamb mixed in with beef too, but more like a 1/4 -1/3. Parsley, pine nuts, garlic, allspice, salt and lemon... roll around a skewer...

I find grinding beef myself is much better than buying ground beef; cheaper too.

I buy any old hunk of beef, cut into 1" squares, put on a cookie sheet in the freezer for 30 min or so, then into food processor & pulse chop. Freezing helps from keeping the far from smearing and it comes out much nicer looking the regular hamburger; especially if you want to use in a sauce or chili...

Re: Burgers!!
 

Some chopped roasted garlic, crumbled blue cheese, and a couple of dashes of worcestershire sauce.

Re: Burgers!!
 

I agree about grinding your own unless you really trust where the ground is coming from. I grind by hand with one of the Universal brand manual grinders because I personally don't care for the texture that the food processor creates. I tend to stick to specific cuts and grind in maybe 20% heart for all-beef grinds.

Typically I don't put anything in the meat because I want a burger, not a flattened sausage or meatloaf on a bun.

Re: Burgers!!
 

I make mine using 8oz (1/2 lb) 88% lean ground beef (usually from Costco) to which I fold in 1T of unseasoned (plain) bread crumbs and 2 strips of smoked bacon cut into 1/2' slices. The bacon adds to the flavor by replacing the missing fat (a lot of extra lean chuck tastes like cardboard) and the bread crumbs help retain the moisture while grilling.

Usually, I'll do 'em in bulk and freeze them a dozen at a time. As an added twist, I serve them with some spinach sauteed with olive oil and garlic instead of the traditional tomato/onion along with my 'doctored' JD/Knob Creek sauce (just posted in 'recipes'), on a kaiser roll.

Re: Burgers!!
 

In other words, 'souvlaki'. :D

Re: Burgers!!
 

Try a bit of ranch dressing. It's great, even though it feels like a shortcut.