Grill/Barbecue

Tried-and-True Summer-on-the-Lake Burgers

by:
July 22, 2010
5
2 Ratings
  • Serves 6 burgers
Author Notes

I thought I'd had some pretty decent burgers until I ran up against the farmers' cooperative that sells, among other things, organically grown and locally butchered beef at our Farmers' Market here. It may be five bucks a pound, but it's worth every penny; I haven't bought "regular" ground beef since. Because it is quite lean, and has such a rich taste, I have experimented until I have perfected the burger method we love. And we each dress ours as we wish; mine often have blue cheese and onions grilled until they're brown and soft, or sometimes a slice of tomato and a slab of fresh mozzarella and three or four basil leaves, or a few slices of avocado and some homemade chipotle mayonnaise. I have been known to have a few with nothing but a slathering of Dijon mustard and a hefty portion of bread-and-butter pickles, too! - Kayb —Kayb

Test Kitchen Notes

This was just simply good. Grass-fed beef makes a good burger, but to my surprise I loved the celery salt and paprika in this recipe, which left a fresh and smoky flavor in every bite. I am not sure I will make a burger again without the celery salt. The egg and the bread crumbs kept it moist. As I said... simply good.- MyCommunalTable —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds organic, grass-fed ground beef
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • 1/2 cup bread or cracker crumbs
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Directions
  1. Crumble beef into a bowl. Sprinkle with crumbs. Beat egg with Worcestershire and spices and drizzle over beef. Toss with a fork to combine, and form loosely into six patties, forming an indentation in the center of each (I have small hands, so I use the back of a tablespoon). Refrigerate patties for 30 minutes.
  2. Light grill and heat to medium hot. Bring burgers directly from fridge to grill; grill five minutes on one side directly over coals or flame, flip and grill three minutes on the other. Remove to edges of grill; if you are adding cheese, do so here. Toast buns for about 60 seconds.
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  • Kayb
    Kayb
  • Sagegreen
    Sagegreen
  • There'sAlwaysPie
    There'sAlwaysPie
  • SPark0101
    SPark0101
Kayb
I'm a business professional who learned to cook early on, and have expanded my tastes and my skills as I've traveled and been exposed to new cuisines and new dishes. I love fresh vegetables, any kind of protein on the grill, and breakfasts that involve fried eggs with runny yolks. My recipes tend toward the simple and the Southern, with bits of Asia or the Mediterranean or Mexico thrown in here and there. And a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on a float in the lake, as pictured, is a pretty fine lunch!

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5 Reviews

SPark0101
SPark0101 August 9, 2010
can these be frozen as patties to be cooked later? we often end up with uncooked hamburger patties after a barbecue and freeze the leftovers to grill them up later.
 
Kayb
Kayb August 9, 2010
Good question. Were it not for the egg, I'd say certainly they could. The egg may be in small enough proportion to the meat that freezing it doesn't make any difference. There's no reason everything else wouldn't freeze just fine. I always just cook the extras, if there are any, and stick them in the fridge, where they make lunch for my teenaged son during the week! (I do not believe it's possible to have more leftover burgers than he can eat in the span of time they remain good in the fridge....)
 
Kayb
Kayb August 6, 2010
Thanks, friends! These are on my menu this weekend, while the tomatos are at their peak!
 
Sagegreen
Sagegreen August 6, 2010
My son now only will eat grass-fed burgers. Look forward to trying this! Congrats on your ep.
 
There'sAlwaysPie
There'sAlwaysPie July 29, 2010
I have not tried this recipe - but I can say hands down the best hamburgers I have ever made were made with grass-fed beef. The first time I used it I was in awe of how delicious they were! My recipe was similar to yours - you just need to let the meat shine through!