A Ultimate Guide to Flat-Top Cooking Success

There is no end to the number of scrumptious hamburgers you can make, however here are 12 that will make your mouth water.

By J. Kenji Lpez-AltJ. Kenji Lpez-Alt composes a column for The New York Times on food and science, and he develops recipes and appears in videos for NYT Cooking. He is likewise the developer and host of Kenji's Cooking Show on YouTube. This video and post are part of, our series on cooking area fundamentals.

Credit ... Adam CentrellaAs a professional chef, food author and cookbook author, I have actually invested the last twenty years of my profession rigorously investigating and testing recipes, techniques and widely accepted cooking area knowledge to determine the whys of cooking. Over this time, I've operated multiple burger joints and even wrote a month-to-month column for Serious Consumes called the Burger Laboratory, in which I isolated and evaluated every possible variable that can impact the flavor and texture of a burger.

Here are the most important pointers I have actually discovered for optimizing your hamburger experience, whether in the backyard or the cooking area. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Creative Savory Dinner Ideas for Passionate Kitchens

In bread, this can be a good idea, however with hamburgers, overhandling can develop an undesirable thick texture. (Including extenders, like eggs or breadcrumbs, or additional flavoring, like onions and herbs, likewise requires you to exhaust the meat and sidetrack from the beef taste, so avoid it.) Salting the beyond your patties keeps their texture loose and tender.

This is a good thing in sausages, which must have a firm texture, however with burgers, you want looseness. A burger ought to be tender, with plenty of pockets for juices and rendered fat to collect.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

Browning your patties deeply makes the most of taste. Credit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York City Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Whether you're making a huge hamburger on the grill or a crisp-edged smash burger on a frying pan, browning is taste, and high heat is crucial. For thicker grilled or griddled hamburgers, wait up until your pan or grill is hot before adding the patties, and cook them till they're well browned on both sides.

This maximizes taste while preserving juiciness. Preparing your buns ahead of time lets you get to eating a lot faster. Credit ... Bryan Gardner for The New York City Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. Don't let your patties relax on the cutting board (or even worse, a steam table). Hamburgers are at their finest fresh from the fire, before any juices have had a chance to drip out.

Smash BurgersCredit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Diner BurgerCredit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York City Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Thick Yard BurgerCredit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York City Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Follow,,, and.

How to Perfect the Ultimate Griddle Burger

Upgraded May 7, 2026, 8:42 a.m. CTI've constantly been a burger enthusiast. If there were any little melty American cheese leavings stuck on the wrapper, I 'd drag my french fries through them (I still do this).

Capture me on the best day and I may confess that a cheeseburger is my preferred food. Even if you do, it's likely we do not have the exact same idea of what makes the perfect burger.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

I kept some old favorites, added some brand-new ones and continued to leave off the ones I know people like however I just. don't. get. Yes, I understand your favorite isn't there. Possibly we have various taste. Perhaps I haven't attempted your preferred hamburger yet. Perhaps I'm out to get you (just joking).

Let me share with you what makes the ideal hamburger for me. Let's begin with the patty.

When I bite in, I require to see a little shimmer, some glowing from the beef and perhaps a little grease running down the sides. When I see a smashburger on the menu, I constantly opt for a double patty. Smashburger or not, the patty should be seared to assist lock in the juices, however not too crusty.