So, I made my own hamburgers for the grill today. Good mince with a decent amount of fat, plenty of salt and pepper, dried parsley and a few lugs of soy sauce (had no Worcestershire in the house). Shaped the patties and left them in the fridge for a few hours to set.

Also baked my own bread buns - which turned out fine.

The burgers grilled fine - didn't disintegrate - however I felt they were a bit bland in the end. I didn't put onions in the mince mix as I felt these would make the patties less stable on the grill.

So...what do you Americans put in to the beef mix to spice it up a little?

Let the heated debate begin....

Cheers,
Nick

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You really opened up a discussion here.
Everyone I know has their own "secret recipe" and I love trying the different ones.

Personally I think onions is a must. The size of the pieces is where it can get interesting.

Egg has been a common ingredient (solves stability issues) but I don't personally add them.


I like to use red wine in the mix-adds quite the hint of flavour. Some always use beer as well.

Wish I had a grill so I could experiment further here

onion is a must, egg too. some whisky can be nice, all the seasoning you like. but that is a swiss recipe...

The Australian version I was brought up on has 1 onion, 1 egg per kg meat, fresh bread crumbs (about 1 cup per kg) half sausage meat (fine minced pork - don't know the deutsch name) and half mince meat (hackenfleish) + whatever spice/herbs you want to add. The hard thing to get here is the sausage meat, there was another thread about it here somewhere, too lazy to search.

I've never tried changing the meat--good call.

Bread crumbs are definitely a good call too, forgot about that.

Yeah, but the Aussies put slices of beet in their hamburgers and fried egg on their pizzas. That takes away any credibility right there.

There are many ways to throw a burger together.
http://cheeseandburger.com/
Egg is not necessary to bind a burger together.

If you have to add anything to the meat to make it taste better, you need to find a better butcher. Get some good ground beef, 10-20% fat, and make your patties out of that.

Mustard, mayo, ketchup, lettuce, tomato and red onion. Optional: cheese and bacon.

i hate you!

god. i am sooo hungry right now.

Beetroot and egg should never be absent from a burger

In terms of the content of the beef mixture, along with pepper, I like to utilize Worcestershire sauce as well as a healthy dose of minced garlic. Onion powder is also good to add, as well. I have heard that salt as a part of the mixture can effectively dry the meat out as it cooks, and that it is a better idea to add the salt to the top of the patty just as you put it onto the grill. As for the ground meat itself, it is important to avoid lean ground beef, as Nick said, because a bit of fat keeps the patty moist when cooking. The shaping of the patty is important, as it should not be flattened too much. Thus, a 1/4 to 1/3 lb. (.11 to .15 K) portion of beef shaped to be about 2 cm thick makes for a good-sized patty that doesn't shrink too much upon cooking.

I have also shaped the beef around a bit of blue cheese, which ends up nice and melty after cooking. While some might deem it a bit to technical, the use of a meat thermometer can help avoid overcooking, while still ensuring that the safe minimum internal temperature (71-72 deg. C) is met.

The raw onion is always a "fixin!"

Great replies so far. One recipe I read advocated mixing sausage meat with the beef? What does the jury think? Sacrilege or a good idea?

Cheers,
Nick

I use onion, garlic, basil, organo plus a little chilli. I use normal steak mince and to bind the mix I use an egg and some breadcrumbs until the mix is dry enough. I use a very similar receipe for meatballs and they never fall apart no matter how small I make them.

I should groan you on principal, egg and beet go in the burger and you put pineapple on the pizza, you need some culinary education.

What I use depends whether I'm making it for a quick weeknight meal or something that we'll have time to grill and enjoy. For a quick mix, I use onion and garlic powder, Worcestershire, egg and breadcrumbs.

If I have chance to really enjoy (or am cooking for more than just hubby and I) I fry some bacon ahead of time and scoop some of the rendered fat into my burger mix. The other difference is I use fresh minced onion and pressed garlic instead of the powders, the rest is the same.

Sometimes I have bacon and avocado on hand, always have mustard, mayo, ketchup and sliced onions as options. Emmental, Edamer or "Rahmkäse" depending on mood, sometimes mushrooms sauteed in butter and garlic, sometimes onions sauteed in a splash of Worcestershire.

I love a great, barely seasoned steak but can't abide "plain" ground beef, I also dislike having sandwiches with pieces sliding out so I like to add flavors to the meat as that way it has a better chance of staying in the bun.

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The Joys of Opticianry

I second that. Otherwise, all I add is dried (or powdered) onion, Worcestershire sauce, a little salt, and as much fresh ground black and/or cayenne pepper as I think my family/guests will tolerate.

Well, it's been awhile since I lived there and I refused to partake of such culinary tragedies. Esp Australian 'Mexican' food.

There are no rules on it. You can do what you want. Even the Aussies.

Onion is optional, egg too, meat too, not to mention bread crumbs, spices and the like. Whisk(e)y is the only absolutely mandatory ingredient, preferably in a tumbler. This is a Swiss recipe too, partly refined in the USA.

Canadians invited the pineapple on a pizza. Take note