Grilling Burgers – An Art You Need To Know
Key Takeaways
1. Discover essential grilling tips, including selecting the right meat, achieving the ideal patty thickness, and preheating the grill for the best results.
2. Get precise grilling times for various burgers, from beef to turkey and chicken. Know how long to grill each side to achieve your desired level of doneness.
3. Uncover insider secrets like making a thumb indentation in the patty to prevent shrinkage, maintaining the right lean-to-fat ratio, and avoiding common mistakes for juicy, delicious burgers.
4. Elevate your burger experience with expert suggestions for toppings and seasonings. Learn about adding cheese, veggies, sauces, and more to enhance the taste and texture of your grilled masterpiece.
BURGERS! Burgers are something that I guess no one can ever say no to. Some of you might like to order it every time you go out to eat, and some of you, like me, CRAVE for Grilling Burgers.
Yes! I crave for burgers. There are sometimes that I want a burger right at that moment, but WAIT!
Have you ever tried grilling a burger at your place?
If you have not. You are missing out on something delicious. The grilled burger tastes so different and yummy.
Ah! Just hearing it sounds so mouthwatering.
IS IT EASY TO GRILL??
I know, I know, now a question will strike your mind that is it so easy to grill a burger? Can you do the grilling that easily as I am saying?
Let me break it to you that no if you don’t know the basics, grilling will turn out to be an absolute disaster.
But imagine yourself standing in a lawn over the grill, holding the scapula with friends sitting around. What an amazing experience that would be? Don’t worry about the disaster. I am here to help you with that.
HOW CAN YOU GRILL A BURGER?
So now that you want to grill some yummy burgers for you but don’t want it to mess up. I will tell you everything before that plan so you will grill the burger like a pro.
Heat the grill and prepare some patties because some great burgers are coming to your way.
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE GRILLING
I will take you to all the timings and temperature of the grilling of different types of burgers. But before going into that, let me tell you some secret tips that will make your burger finger licking.
1) Choose the perfect meat:
Now different people have different choices for meat. You might like beef, bison, turkey or ham. No matter whatever mean you want for your burger, what you need to take care of is whether the meat is fresh or not? Do not forget to check the production date before buying.
Lean-to Fat ratio:
The second thing you should care about before buying is the lean to fat ratio. More fat is not at all healthy for anyone of you, either young or old, as it may lead to a variety of health issues. The best lean to fat ratio is 80/20 or 85/15.
2) Thumb Indentation:
Yes, you read it right. Professionals say that making an indentation on the patty before grilling it helps your burger not to shrink and maintain its shape. You can also make that with the back of the spoon.
3) Size of the Patty:
The best size of a patty is ¾ inch. Suppose you make the patty smaller than that it will not be as juicy as it should be. Make the shape of the patty larger than you need for the burger. Keep that in mind that it will shrink.
4) Preheat the grill:
Never turn the grill on at the moment you are placing the patties. Always give 5 to 7 minutes to heat the grill before. Ideally, cover the grill while pre-heating.
5) Grill Thermometer:
Grill thermometer is helpful for you to check whether the meat is cooked up to the required point or not. We can’t take the risk regarding this as undercooked meat is linked with a lot of health problems. So to cook the meat up to the mark is very important.
6) Do not press the patties:
It is a common practice that we press the patties with a spatula while they are on the grill. Do not do that as it makes the patty dry.
7) Food safety:
As we all know that a lot of diseases are linked with raw meat so to avoid that
- Wash your hand properly before and after handling raw meat.
- Use thermometer specially designed for food to check that meat is cooked enough to kill all the germs.
HOW LONG TO GRILL?
This is a very commonly asked question, but the answer to it is that it depends on how more or less you like your meat to be cooked. Secondly, it depends that the meat is fresh or frozen. The time may vary from 2 minutes to 8 minutes.
Stay with me, and I will tell you the grilling time for every kind of burger.
DIFFERENT BURGERS DIFFERENT GRILLING TIME CHARTS
As every burger type is different, so id their grilling time. Let me tell you for each one so you can have your best-cooked burger on your platter.
BEEF BURGERS GRILLING TIME:
As I already told you that the best patty thickness is ¾ inches. So this chart is according to that appropriate size. Now it may vary according to the way you like ranging from rare to well cook.
Types |
One side |
Flipped side |
Total Time |
RARE |
2 MINUTES | 3 MINUTES | 5 MINUTES |
MEDIUM |
3 MINUTES | 5 MINUTES | 8 MINUTES |
WELL-COOK |
4 MINUTES | 6 MINUTES | 10 MINUTES |
FROZEN BEEF BURGER GRILLING TIME:
If you are grilling a frozen beef burger, there is an exception. You need to flip every 3 to 4 minutes, and you need to flip four times so that the total time will extend up to 15 to 20 minutes.
TURKEY BURGER GRILLING TIME:
Dealing with the turkey patties is a little different than the beef ones. For turkey, you need to measure internal cooking temperature to be away from any kind of health issue. Plus, the best type to eat a turkey burger is well cooked, as health is above all. So please take care of that.
|
One side |
Flipped side |
Total Time |
FRESH FORM |
5 MINUTES | 5 MINUTES | 10 MINUTES |
FROZEN FORM |
8 MINUTES | 7 MINUTES | 15 MINUTES |
BISON BURGER GRILLING TIME:
Here comes the bison burger. The one came with some good health too. Bison is low in cholesterol and very rich in vitamin B12 and iron. For bison burgers, rare to medium cook brings out the best flavor.
TYPE |
One side |
Flipped side |
Total Time |
RARE |
4 MINUTES | 5 MINUTES | 9 MINUTES |
MEDIUM |
5 MINUTES | 6 MINUTES | 11 MINUTES |
WELL-COOK |
6 MINUTES | 6 MINUTES | 12 MINUTES |
CHICKEN BURGER GRILLING TIME:
Now for chicken burgers, the case is a little different. For chicken, you need to keep the patty small as it will swell up, and again, the chicken patty should be well cooked the same as turkey for health issues.
One side |
Flipped side |
Total Time |
|
FRESH FORM |
5 MINUTES | 5 MINUTES | 10 MINUTES |
FROZEN FORM |
8 MINUTES | 7 MINUTES | 15 MINUTES |
THINGS TO BOOST UP THE FLAVOUR:
Now that you know everything about grilling let’s finish our burgers by adding seasoning and other yummy things to boost up the flavor.
Things that you can add on are:
Cheese:
You can add cheese slices in your burger. It is preferred to add the slice on the meat when it is warm. So that the cheese melts and adds up the tastes, some people also add cheese in the meat while making the patty.
Sliced tomato and onions:
Tomatoes are not everyone’s choice, but they can sure add up the juicy taste. Onions can add a great taste too. You can cut a slice and put it in your burger too.
Lettuce leaves:
This is something healthy, plus they give a great taste. Suppose you don’t fry it and put it fresh. It can give you a crunch too.
Pickles:
If you like your burger spicy, you can always add pickles or jalapenos. They will give a spicy boost up.
Mayonnaise or Sauces:
Mayo and sauces are I guess something that everyone like. They enhance the taste as well as make your burger juicier.
Fries egg:
Some people like fried eggs too. Just an idea, do try it in your yummy burger and make it better.
Or you can add anything that you like.
Seasonings:
No one can deny the role that seasoning play in our foods. As for these grilled burgers, you can add salt and pepper to improve the taste. The grilling itself brings out the most, but you can still ad for more.
BURGER READY:
Take two slices of a bum, warm them a little. Put your perfectly grilled patty on it. Add on your favorite items. Make it the way you like. Put the other part of the bun on. And take the most delicious bite.
ENJOY YOUR BURGER!!
FAQs
Q. HOW OFTEN CAN I FLIP THE BURGER?
It is advisable to flip only once in between as long as it is not frozen meat. Only one flip can bring out the most juice and taste.
Q. WHAT TO DO IF I DON’T HAVE A GRILL COVER?
It is advisable to grill with a cover. That will cook the meat better. But if you don’t have one, you should increase the grilling time. Probably double it.
Q. SHOULD WE OIL THE MEAT OF THE GRILL?
Most people recommend oiling the meat. When you put it up on the grill, it will automatically ooze out and spread with the heat.