HappyTrails

Why go out for a great burger when you can make it at home for so much less?  Hubs went to the store and brought home all the fresh ground sirloin and fixings.  All I brought was my appetite, the ability to cook, and we already had frozen french fries which I timed to be hot, crispy and ready at the same time as the steak burgers were done.

For the best burgers you can make at home, here is how I do it — fast and it makes 4 servings.

To Make the Burger:

1 lb very fresh ground sirloin (you want about 90% or a little above lean)
Salted butter
Non-stick skillet and lid
4 Bakery burger buns

Fixings To Combine or Choose

Salt and/or Ground Black Pepper
Thin sliced onion to saute
Fresh sliced mushrooms
Crisp (refrigerator dill) pickle slices
Blue Cheese, Cheddar, Pepper Jack, etc.
Mayonnaise, Ketchup or Ranch dressing
Fresh lettuce and fresh sliced tomato and/or thin sliced green pepper

Extra side dishes suggestions:

French fries
Soup
Salad

Heat the skillet until it is hot then add your butter to coat the bottom, enough to provide a little sizzle in the pan.  Do not burn the butter.   Divide the ground sirloin into four patties and press to flatten about an inch larger than the bun.  The ground sirloin will shrink as it cooks.  Do not crowd the burgers.

Cook uncovered until you see the meat beginning to brown nicely and starting to cook up the sides of the burger.  Add a small pat of butter to each burger top and flip over.  That should cook for another 3 to 5 minutes.   Place lid on skillet and immediately reduce heat for 1 or 2 minutes until thoroughly cooked throughout.

Open lid, place cheese on top, add the top of the bakery bun to each burger, and place the bottom of bakery bun on top of all.  Replace the lid for a minute or two and your cheese will melt while your bun heats.  Remove quickly onto serving plates and add your favorite fixings.

The no waiting for saute to be finished method:  Heat a second skillet at the same time as the burger pan, lightly cover the bottom with EVOO and/or butter.  Saute lightly the onions, mushrooms, and/or sliced green pepper.  The vegetables should be tender crisp and not overcooked.

Many people prefer to add spices and stretchers to their burgers before cooking, but I have always felt that those are pretty close to mini meatloaves and we want to be able to taste each individual ingredient as well as the great ground sirloin.

The method in the video below looks pretty good, except they are using a lot of spicy ingredients mixed in the burger itself.  Probably too much for us, but interesting take on a burger nevertheless to add spices and chopped toasted pecans.

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