I’ve tried several recipes but have always been disappointed. The worst ones I made were “Scandinavian” and had fresh beetroot in the mix. Bleugh! I’m after a tasty burger made with lean (5%) minced beef that doesn’t fall apart under the grill.

TiA

Just use Ostrich mince, way lower fat than beef mince and nice flavour too!

For a simple burger use:
mince
salt
pepper
egg & breadcrumbs to bind. – for a kilo of mince two eggs and handful of breadcrumbs max.

then get fancy with any ingredients you like.

Use whisked eggs or bread crumbs to keep the mixture together i always put in onion, salt and pepper and fresh herbs (but not the ones stoner smokes)
phil has faster fingers

See, it’s the fat that helps it stick together, and gives it flavour. I prefer standard mince to lean stuff. If grillling or BBQing, much of the fat runs off anyway.

Lightly fry some chopped onion, let it cool, bung it into mince, with a fair bit of salt, and a beaten raw egg (helps to bind it a bit better). Mash it all up until sticky. then make into little patties, but compress them tightly. Using greaseproof sheets or bits of foil to keep them separate, bung ’em in’t fridge for a couple of hours; helps the fat to solidify a bit and hold them together better.

Cook. Enjoy.

If you want low fat, you need to be using game. Rabbit mince makes a superb chicken burger-type burger and, as long as the rabbit is free range (i.e. I shot it that morning in a field) is about as healthy as you can get.

Throw in half an egg, some breadcrumbs and a bunch of chopped corriander and you have a winner!

lean mince, egg yolk and cream crackers to bind, juniper berries, rosemary and salt to flavour…

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/homemade-burgers-de-boeuf-recipes-for-the-bbq-hit-me-with-em

The egg is unnecessary, in my experience. Plenty of seasoning is essential, very finely chopped raw onion (only a little – you could even grate it – maybe a quarter onion for a lb of meat) is nice, as are fresh herbs and/or chili flakes. Breadcrumbs not needed either.

To be honest, I would also rate a bit more fat as essential.

Also unnecessary and even undesireable is squishing it tightly together – better more loosely formed and carefully handled. Resting in the fridge helps a hell of a lot.

…and can I add a WTF to beetroot in a burger!

we used to do a pork burger with apple sauce hidden in the middle which worked well, for better results try cooking them in the oven.

Why not just nip to Macdonalds? 😉

ok, this is the best you’ll get.

throw the mince into a bowl add salt n pepper

black olives, chop until fine course

add to meat

and add some oregano

mix it well by hand.

get a cassole (small flat bottomed clay dish, about an inch deep) and oil it.

fill with the meat, then free it by running a knife around the edge and wacking it out onto a board or into your hand.

repeat & then grill.

also do the following:

red & white onion thinly sliced, vinegar, salt & pepper and a little oil, mix let it stand as you’re cooking.

optional ranch dressing: tomato sauce & dijon mustard (70/30) chopped capers, a little Worcestershire sauce and a little lemon juice & sugar.

or freshly grated horseradish & whipped cream

crisp fresh salad (you can use iceberg, its not illegal)

Emmentaler, Colston bassett Stilton or unpasteurised red Leicestershire

serve in a crusty bap with French fries

damn, now I’m hungry!!

cream crackers

Bugger, got there before me…

…seriously though, cream crackers are top drawer substitute for breadcrumbs. Because lets face it, bread goes mouldy these days before it goes stale. Fresh breadcrumbs (which we all tend to use instead) have too much moisture and make the burger a stodgy mess.

Coriander, cumin and some mild chillies.

Less is more with the flavour stuff though.

i used to work here – http://www.fergburger.com/fullscreen.html – and the burgers are regarded by many as some of the best in the world. the recipe for all their burgers was simply use the best ingredients available. the beef pattys were made with nothing except high quality ground beef and a bit of water to bind them. you don’t need any breadcrumbs or egg or any of that lot. chuck it on the grill on a med-high heat and grind some black pepper over it. cook til the blood runs out on the top & flip and cook for approximately the same amount of time.

beetroot on a burger is an oz/nz thing as far as i am aware and i like it.

Fergburger?!?! Amazing place, incredible burgers!

the burgers are regarded by many as some of the best in the world

It’s a burger, not Cordon Bleu ffs…

Seriously, you can make burgers at home that will taste as good as anywhere else.Very easy to make. experiment with a few different recipes until you find one that suits you. Adding Corriander is a good tip; I like Corriander. But salt is important; not enough/no salt will give you a fairly tasteless burger.

As for the low-fat nonsense; burgers aren’t ‘health food’. If you want that, eat some lettuce or mung beans or something….

Why not just nip to Macdonalds?

Is that a joke? Not even food, let alone a nice burger!

It’s a burger, not Cordon Bleu ffs…

So you can’t have a good burger and a crap one then???

As I said, the Ferg uses the best ingredients available: highest quality ground NZ beef, locally sourced bread from a highly acclaimed bakery, freshly made (in-house) sauces and all burgers are made to order.

Definitely NO Salt added to the patty though – why would you want to draw the moisture out from the burger. Use better ingredients if you want a better taste!

So you can’t have a good burger and a crap one then???

Of course. But it’s *just* a burger. It’s not difficult to make.

Definitely NO Salt added to the patty though – why would you want to draw the moisture out from the burger. Use better ingredients if you want a better taste!

Nonsense. It’s getting cooked within a couple of hours, not hung up for weeks. I like a bit of salt in mine, and it enhances the flavour of the meat. I find meat too bland without a bit of salt.

People have said my burgers are the best they’ve ever tasted. I live in London. London is far more renowned for it’s food outlets than Queenstown NZ. Ergo, my burgers are better! 😀

Definitely NO Salt added to the patty though – why would you want to draw the moisture out from the burger. Use better ingredients if you want a better taste!

That’s funny that is.

The quickest way to draw the juices out of a piece of meat is to constantly turn it while it’s cooking. Salt enhances the flavour in food – obviously it can be used incorrectly but a properly seasoned dish will always taste better than the same dish unseasoned.

Elfin – you do delivery?

I was wondering what to have to for dinner, thanks all.

I just used a burger press from Lakeland and 100% beef/lamb/pork mince, or beef with chopped sunderided tomatoes, or lamb with mint, or lamb with toasted cumin, or pork and apple.

I never got one with adding breadcrumbs or egg or the like. Just pressed them firmly, they held together on BBQ fine.

Ok, so salt does not draw moisture. you’re both right obviously.