Welcome to the EGGhead Forum - a great place to visit and packed with tips and EGGspert advice! You can also join the conversation and get more information and amazing kamado recipes by following Big Green Egg to Experience our World of Flavor™ at:
Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram  |  Pinterest  |  Youtube  |  Vimeo
Share your photos by tagging us and using the hashtag #BigGreenEgg.

Want to see how the EGG is made? Click to Watch

Teach me the ways of the Cheeseburger

2»

Comments

  • bo_mull
    bo_mull Posts: 363
    I use 80/20 store bought ground beef. SWMBO uses a patty press to make the patties. I cook them at 400 degrees raised direct till the top turns grey then flip. I put my cheese on when internal is 155-158 degrees on my therma-pen. Let the cheese melt then pull em.

    Cleveland, TN.

    LG BGE, PSWOO2, Stoker WIFI.

  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    I have tried sirloin the texture is different to me. I usually do short rib and chuck to get more flavor from the short rib but for quick burgers I always do chuck. Just a preference thing I guess. Might have to give sirloin another go and mix in some bacon fat.
  • jaydub58
    jaydub58 Posts: 2,167

    I buy store bought, 15% fat and do patties of close to 1/2 lb each.  Salt, pepper. a splash of Worcestershire and on the mini about 4 inches above the fire at about 350-400.  Just flip once, about 3 minutes a side.

    I don't put the cheese on until the burgers are off the fire, just let the heat of the meat melt the cheese down a little bit.

    Woks for me!

    John in the Willamette Valley of Oregon
  • horseflesh
    horseflesh Posts: 206
    Lots of good advice here, much of it similar to my method: 6 - 8 oz patties, cooked direct at about 400-450F on the dome thermometer. I always add fish sauce and usually a little minced garlic. 

    It took me a while to learn this: do not force the flip. If the first side is stuck to the grill, it isn't ready to flip. It will release naturally when it is ready. 

    I find that weighing every patty and working to be sure that they are the same size and thickness helps make consistent batches. 

    Haven't ground my own meat yet but I have supplemented store bought lean ground beef with a few strips of ground bacon. If you are having it custom ground I have read that half sirloin, half chuck is a good mix. 

    A homemade BGE burger is one of my very favorite things to eat. 

  • Little Steven
    Little Steven Posts: 28,817
    Pretty scary coming from a guy with the handle horseflesh. I grew up near a place that served horsemeat burgers though and they were the best in town. They just forgot to tell anybody.

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • Botch
    Botch Posts: 15,427
    Grabbing some good tips here, since I'm still tinkering with my own burger technique.
     
    However, since you mentioned "cheeseburger", let me throw this out, after having lived in New Mexico for 5 years.  The absolute best burger to be had is the Green Chile Cheeseburger.  Once your burgers are resting on their toasted buns, lay a slice of real cheddar cheese (hint: it's cream-colored, not dyed orange) and top with chopped Hatch green chile.  Absolute heaven!  
    You can get canned green chile (Old El Paso brand, etc) just about anywhere but sadly getting freshly-roasted green chile is only available in the southern West:   

    image
     
    The chiles are rolled back-n-forth in steel drums, with hot torches on the bottom, until the peppers are blackened.  They are then handed to you in a garbage bag (I buy a bushel every year) where they steam, and you can then peel the skins off after an hour or so (don rubber gloves either while peeling them, or while taking a whiz >-) ).  
    Seriously, there is no better burger; I'm drooling right now...
     
    image
    _____________

    "I mean, I don't just kill guys, I'm notorious for doing in houseplants."  - Maggie, Northern Exposure


  • Ragtop99
    Ragtop99 Posts: 1,570
    One of the things I've found with the extra large is that cooking at 450 - 500* gives me more consistent results than when I was cooking at lower temps.  The more burgers on the cooking gate the more true I find this.  It's too easy at lower temps to have some burgers over the fire directly and others not above glowing coals.  Get the temps up around 500* and most of the wood is glowing. I've been using raised direct at those temps and getting a light sear.  Grid level would add more char if desired.

    Cooking on an XL and Medium in Bethesda, MD.
  • Aviator
    Aviator Posts: 1,757
    Botch said:
    Grabbing some good tips here, since I'm still tinkering with my own burger technique.
     
    However, since you mentioned "cheeseburger", let me throw this out, after having lived in New Mexico for 5 years.  The absolute best burger to be had is the Green Chile Cheeseburger.  Once your burgers are resting on their toasted buns, lay a slice of real cheddar cheese (hint: it's cream-colored, not dyed orange) and top with chopped Hatch green chile.  Absolute heaven!  
    You can get canned green chile (Old El Paso brand, etc) just about anywhere but sadly getting freshly-roasted green chile is only available in the southern West:   

    image
     
    The chiles are rolled back-n-forth in steel drums, with hot torches on the bottom, until the peppers are blackened.  They are then handed to you in a garbage bag (I buy a bushel every year) where they steam, and you can then peel the skins off after an hour or so (don rubber gloves either while peeling them, or while taking a whiz >-) ).  
    Seriously, there is no better burger; I'm drooling right now...
     
    image
    Fail, I will not eat a burger without seeds on the bun. Sorry.

    ______________________________________________ 

    Large and Small BGE, Blackstone 36 and a baby black Kub.

    Chattanooga, TN.

     

  • Like everyone has been saying, it's all about the meat and I'm not at the point of grinding it myself just yet. I get my patties from a local gourmet market and the butcher grinds them fresh every morning. If you don't grind them yourself or trust the butcher is properly grinding them fresh then don't leave any pink on the meat (160*). I always use nitrile gloves when handling the meat.

    I stabilize the XL to 450- 500*, raised, direct set up. Season with Dizzy Pig Cowlick one side and put the patties on the grill and then season the other side. Grill 3 mins per side and flip only once. Add the cheese and wait another minute to let it melt on. I use thin slices of 1000 day aged gouda cheese and the burgers come out really tasty and medium/medium rare. If you want to get creative with the buns then try brioche or pretzel .

    XL BGE with adj rig & woo2

  • Thatgrimguy
    Thatgrimguy Posts: 4,722
    What temp do ya'll pull off your burgers, assuming freshly ground meat.  I'm looking for a medium - pink throughout but not slimy/red.
    XL, Small, Mini & Mini Max Green Egg, Shirley Fab Trailer, 6 gal and 2.5 gal Cajun Fryers, BlueStar 60" Range, 48" Lonestar Grillz Santa Maria, Alto Shaam 1200s, Gozney Dome, Gateway 55g Drum
  • boatbum
    boatbum Posts: 1,273
    mix in some left over pulled pork
    Cookin in Texas
  • jfm0830
    jfm0830 Posts: 987
    Check out the cookbook Wicked Good Burgers by Andy Husbands, Chris Hart and Andrea Pyenson. It covers the points folks have made above and has great attention to details. There are also great recipes for making your own buns, condiments, sides, shakes and desserts. I already think I made a very good burger and this book has really upped my game.

    Jim
    Website: www.grillinsmokin.net
    3 LBGE & More Eggcessories than I care to think about.
  • Thatgrimguy
    Thatgrimguy Posts: 4,722
    edited May 2013
    jfm0830 said:
    Check out the cookbook Wicked Good Burgers by Andy Husbands, Chris Hart and Andrea Pyenson. It covers the points folks have made above and has great attention to details. There are also great recipes for making your own buns, condiments, sides, shakes and desserts. I already think I made a very good burger and this book has really upped my game.

    Jim


    Didn't you post that bison burger with the pretzel bun the other day... That thing looked amazing. I'll definitely pick up that book! Thanks for the reference!
    XL, Small, Mini & Mini Max Green Egg, Shirley Fab Trailer, 6 gal and 2.5 gal Cajun Fryers, BlueStar 60" Range, 48" Lonestar Grillz Santa Maria, Alto Shaam 1200s, Gozney Dome, Gateway 55g Drum
  • Austin  Egghead
    Austin Egghead Posts: 3,966
    Good tasting hamburgers are all about the quality of the meat. Get a good butcher, pick out you chunk of meat and have them grind it.......Better yet grind the hamburger yourself.
    Large, small and mini now Egging in Rowlett Tx
  • Thatgrimguy
    Thatgrimguy Posts: 4,722
    Thanks for all the great advice! I had a very successful burger cook tonight!! 

    What Internal temp should I cook to for a warm red center?
    XL, Small, Mini & Mini Max Green Egg, Shirley Fab Trailer, 6 gal and 2.5 gal Cajun Fryers, BlueStar 60" Range, 48" Lonestar Grillz Santa Maria, Alto Shaam 1200s, Gozney Dome, Gateway 55g Drum
  • BYS1981
    BYS1981 Posts: 2,533
    I recommend putting a dip in the patty that way the finished product is flat, and not bowed up.
  • BOWHUNR
    BOWHUNR Posts: 1,487
    I do standard old 80/20 ground beef in 1/2 pound patties.  I form them in a Tupperware burger mold, give them a nice dimple in the middle to prevent bulging and season with Lawreys on both sides.  I cook at 450* raised direct for approx six minutes on the first side, flip and cook approx four more minutes and then add a slice of provolone and cheddar cheese.  Wait two minutes and serve.  This is for a medium/medium rare burger......the way they should be served.

    Mike

    I'm ashamed what I did for a Klondike Bar!!

    Omaha, NE
  • Pjoe
    Pjoe Posts: 224
    What ever grind you use and however you decide to cook them, add a couple tablespoons of fish sauce per pound of meat. It adds a richness that is unbelievable. Don't let the name fool you - it does not taste like fish. Find it in the oriental section at the grocer.
    LBGE AR SMALL BGE WOO RING