Anyone use a weighted grill press for burgers?

[Caslon]

I make my burger patties pretty thin, but the inside still seems a bit undone in the center even with high enough pan heat and cooking for what seems like a long time. Does anyone use a weighted grill press to keep their patties pressed against the pan during frying? I'm thinking of buying one. I figure, that, if using one, the outside won't get overly fried to get the center cooked.

 

[Rocklobster]

You can lower your heat a bit so the inside will cook before the outside dries out too much..My theory is that if you flatten your patty out after the first flip, while the meat is still raw, you won't squeeze out too much juice because the heat hasn't liquefied the fats yet..I flatten it out very thin because it will shrink up and thicken again as it cooks..

 

[caseydog]

I like a good char on my burgers, but like RL says, you can risk charing the surface without cooking through if your heat is really high and your burger is just a little bit too thick.

When I cook burgers in the kitchen, I do "smash-burgers." I get my cast-iron skillet really hot, drop a ball of meat on it, and smash it flat with a spatula for about ten seconds. I don't smash it again after I flip it.

I have a cast-iron grill press, but I don't use it for cast-iron cook burgers. I don't think it adds anything to the party.

When I cook burgers on the outdoor grill, I go with a thicker patty. To me, the two styles are just different. I like both of them, but they are different.

CD

 

[Caslon]

I flatten supermarket round made patties using my tortilla press. I'll don't mind some char on the outside. I end up flipping the burgers a lot during cooking just to get the inside cooked without too much char on the outside. I thought maybe trying a weighted press.

 

[caseydog]

I flatten supermarket round made patties using my tortilla press. I'll don't mind some char on the outside. I end up flipping the burgers a lot during cooking just to get the inside cooked without too much char on the outside. I thought maybe trying a weighted press.

From my experience, the weighted press probably won't help you. If you want a well done burger without a lot of char, you will need to lower the heat.

CD

 

[Caslon]

From my experience, the weighted press probably won't help you. If you want a well done burger without a lot of char, you will need to lower the heat.

CD

I suppose lowering the temp will do. I though that you were supposed to first fry each side of the patty at high temp to seal in the juices. I'll lower the pan temperature after sealing in the juices. Fast food places don't cook their patties long. I'm trying to do the same.

P.S. I tried thawing and not thawing out the patties before pan frying them. The inside is still a bit reddish afterwards. The outside was as crusty as I wanted it to get, before adding the cheese to melt on. I'm not concerned about the patty being undercooked for safety reasons, it's just that I find the burger is more flavorful when it's cooked thoroughly, rather than partially raw in the middle. I'll get there.

 

[powerplantop]

I though that you were supposed to first fry each side of the patty at high temp to seal in the juices.

I wish this myth would go away. Nothing seals in the juices. Not over cooking keeps meat moist.

 

[msmofet]

I wish this myth would go away. Nothing seals in the juices. Not over cooking keeps meat moist.

^^ +1 ^^

 

[jennyema]

I wish this myth would go away. Nothing seals in the juices. Not over cooking keeps meat moist.

Me too. Searing doesn't seal in juices. It just makes the meat taste better

 

[RPCookin]

I wish this myth would go away. Nothing seals in the juices. Not over cooking keeps meat moist.

Me too. Searing doesn't seal in juices. It just makes the meat taste better

Somehow this is fixed in culinary mythology, so I expect we will be continuing to correct the misconception for as long as there are cooks.

If searing sealed in juices, then reverse searing would result in dry, unappetizing foods, since all of the juices would have leaked out before the searing step.

 

[Roll_Bones]

When I form patties, I do it between plastic wrap. No stick and you can press and shape.
I sometimes make a hole in the center of the patty to speed up cooking time.
At minimum, I indent the burger in the middle to offset the inevitable pot belly that results.

 

[Caslon]

Fast food restaurants that fry up patties don't let them fry for too long .

I'll keep on trying to replicate Wendy's and McDonalds. Fast and ready, not slow cooked..

 

[Mad Cook]

I suppose lowering the temp will do. I though that you were supposed to first fry each side of the patty at high temp to seal in the juices. I'll lower the pan temperature after sealing in the juices. Fast food places don't cook their patties long. I'm trying to do the same.

P.S. I tried thawing and not thawing out the patties before pan frying them. The inside is still a bit reddish afterwards. The outside was as crusty as I wanted it to get, before adding the cheese to melt on. I'm not concerned about the patty being undercooked for safety reasons, it's just that I find the burger is more flavorful when it's cooked thoroughly, rather than partially raw in the middle. I'll get there. [/QUOTE
If I'd minced my own meat for the burgers immediately before forming & cooking them I probably wouldn't worry about the inner being pink/red (I'm probably descended from vampires ) but if I'd bought the mince or the ready-made burgers I'd be more careful to cook them thoroughly.

 

[Aunt Bea]

Fast food restaurants that fry up patties don't let them fry for too long .

I'll keep on trying to replicate Wendy's and McDonalds. Fast and ready, not slow cooked..

Try putting a lid on the pan when you start cooking the burger and finish the burger at high heat with the lid removed from the pan. The lid will help the burger to cook from both sides by trapping the heat in the pan.

or maybe just call Uber Eats when you need a fast food burger.

 

[Whiskadoodle]

After forming the burger patty, I push an indent in the middle, almost like a donut hole, not all the way through. The burger cooks flat and you don't get a hump in the center. The burger seems to cook evenly throughout too.

 

[taxlady]

Fast food restaurants that fry up patties don't let them fry for too long .

I'll keep on trying to replicate Wendy's and McDonalds. Fast and ready, not slow cooked..

Maybe the weight they use is hot and it helps cook the meat from both sides at once.

 

[Rocklobster]

You have to remember that fast food burgers are paper thin, some use panini type fryers that fry on both sides at the same time, and the patties themselves are processed by machines to let the heat permeate through the meat quicker for faster cooking.. nothing like the home made patties we make or cook at home..a completely different animal..even the meat may be from a completely different animal..who knows?:p

 

[powerplantop]

Fast food restaurants that fry up patties don't let them fry for too long .

I'll keep on trying to replicate Wendy's and McDonalds. Fast and ready, not slow cooked..

McDonalds uses a 2 sided grill. It cooks the top and bottom at the same time. From frozen to done is 42 seconds.

 

[Andy M.]

If you have a Griddler or George Foreman grill, you can cook thin burgers in about a minute. I sometimes use my griddler to cook a half pound burger that's fairly thick and it takes about 3.5 minutes.

 

[Aunt Bea]

Maybe these fully cooked frozen beef patties from Ball Park would get you closer to your goal.

https://www.ballparkbrand.com/patties/fully-cooked-frozen-flame-grilled-beef