Chef-Level Cooking Techniques for Juicier Homemade Burgers

There is no end to the variety of tasty burgers you can make, but here are 12 that will make your mouth water.

J. Kenji Lpez-Alt writes a column for The New York Times on food and science, and he develops dishes and appears in videos for NYT Cooking. He is likewise the developer and host of Kenji's Cooking Program on YouTube.

Credit ... Adam CentrellaAs a professional chef, food author and cookbook author, I have actually spent the last twenty years of my profession carefully researching and evaluating recipes, methods and widely accepted cooking area knowledge to find out the whys of cooking. Over this time, I've operated numerous burger joints and even composed a monthly column for Serious Consumes called the Hamburger Lab, in which I isolated and tested every possible variable that can impact the taste and texture of a burger.

Here are the most crucial tips I've discovered for optimizing your burger experience, whether in the yard or the kitchen. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

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

This is an excellent thing in sausages, which should have a firm texture, but with burgers, you desire looseness. A hamburger ought to be tender, with plenty of pockets for juices and rendered fat to gather.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

Browning your patties deeply maximizes taste. Credit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York City Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Whether you're making a huge burger on the grill or a crisp-edged smash burger on a griddle, browning is taste, and high heat is key. For thicker grilled or griddled hamburgers, wait till your pan or grill is hot before including the patties, and prepare them till they're well browned on both sides.

This optimizes flavor while maintaining juiciness. Don't let your patties sit around on the cutting board (or even worse, a steam table). Burgers are at their best fresh from the fire, before any juices have actually had a chance to leak out.

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

Advanced Cooking Techniques for Juicier Homemade Burgers

Updated May 7, 2026, 8:42 a.m. CTI have actually always been a hamburger lover. 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 ideal day and I might confess that a cheeseburger is my favorite food. In fact, I may say that on the majority of days. And you may say the same. Even if you do, it's most likely we don't have the exact same idea of what makes the best hamburger.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

I kept some old favorites, added some new ones and continued to leave off the ones I understand people like but I simply. don't. get. Yes, I know your favorite isn't there. Maybe we have various taste. Possibly I have not tried your favorite hamburger. Maybe I'm out to get you (simply kidding).

There's one best burg out there for everyone. Let me share with you what makes the ideal burger for me. Let's begin with the patty. Can I say I'm growing a little fed up with smashburgers? The finest ones astonishingly remain juicy with just a hint of flaky char around the edges, however regrettably, a lot of locations go too tough on the smash.

When I bite in, I require to see a little sparkle, some glowing from the beef and perhaps a little grease running down the sides. When I see a smashburger on the menu, I constantly go with a double patty. Smashburger or not, the patty must be seared to help lock in the juices, however not too crusty.