# Burger patty keeps falling apart



## rush (May 25, 2011)

There are so many factors that can lead to brittle burger patties, that I wish Alton Brown would cover an episode on it. 

My routine is pretty simple. I buy chuck, grind it myself, form it into patties no taller than 1", and then I throw it on a grill pan. 

I don't add anything to the patty. I know some people like to add egg and bread crumbs. Some people believe this glues the burger patty so it doesn't break on you. And then there are purists, who believe that such additions to the patty's infrastructure is blasphemous. 

I also read from someone that working salt into the patty, will help fuse the patty during the cooking process, but Bobby Flay says that seasoning should be applied on both sides of the formed patty and not on the inside, or it'll be a meat loaf. 

Flay also says the burger patty should be refridgerated for 30 minutes, prior to the cooking process. Some believe the patty should be brought up to room temp. 

Some say you should really knead the ground beef, so it's properly melded. Others - including Flay - say you should reduce the kneading, because it'll toughen up the burger... even though it seems like that's the point to avoid crumbling? 

Some say the burger patty should be around 3/4" tall. Others say it's too thin. Flay himself advocates 3/4", but if you watch any of his videos, it's pretty clear his burgers are around 1.5". They look like softballs, and he also reminds you to make an indentation in the middle of the patty to neutralize inflation. 

My burgers are usually around 3/4"-1", and it's so thin, I don't ever worry about it ballooning on me. It never happens, so I don't even bother with depressing the center of the patty. 

Finally, the most widely accepted answer to brittle patties, is to use a meat with more fat content. So far, I've used cheap, supermarket beef that was probably extremely lean, and I've also used Choice-graded chuck ribs with pretty good marbling, and honestly, there wasn't much of a difference in the patty's strength. 

So far for me, the burger patty that was freshly ground - regardless of the cut/grade - turned out most tender/fragile. It starts cracking on you when you try to flip the patty. I need to be extremely gentle as I scoot the spatula underneath the patty, hold the top of the patty with my free hand and sofly lay it on the grill pan. I absolutely cannot just effortlessly slide the spatula underneath the patty and flip it like Bobby Flay does with his patties. 

I also feel like the fact that I grind my own meat, has a lot to do with it, because I didn't have this problem with pre-ground meat from the store. The meat grinder at the store, churns out these fat, relatively unbreakable noodles of ground beef. My meat grinder just spews out little pieces at a time, and while it's definitely softer and more tender than the store-bought stuff, it also comes with a price... the patty itself is extremely vulnerable.


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## Andy M. (May 25, 2011)

The last paragraph says it all.


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## Hyperion (May 25, 2011)

I wonder if it has anything to do with keeping the fat cold? when make sausage the grinder will heat up the fat and melt it if it wasn't cold to start with, maybe that's why your ground meat doesn't stick together? maybe you can try treating the burger like sausage and keep it cold at all times from meat chunks to right before the grill


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## Constance (May 25, 2011)

Chuck roast makes the best hamburgers. You don't want to mush the meat to death, but you have to work it sufficiently to get it to stay together. 
The most important thing is not to turn the patty more than once, and don't smash it with the spatula (except at the last...see below). Let it brown on one side, then turn and put lid part way on skillet and let it finish cooking. You can tell when it's done if you press on it with the spatula and no red juice comes out. 

I sprinkle the patties with S&P on one side after I put them in the skillets, then season the other side when I turn them. 

Since you are grinding your own meat, you could wrap each patty with a strip of bacon, which would help hold it together and also add a little flavoring. Don't try to cook your burger till the bacon is crisp, though, or it will be hard as a hockey puck.


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## pacanis (May 25, 2011)

I think making burgers is something you just hit upon one day. Like Constance said, form it just enough that it will hold together, not too tight, not too loose. And make sure your grates are clean on the grill.


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## jennyema (May 25, 2011)

I personally thing burgers taste a lot better when the meat is saesoned before the patty is made.  Salt within a hamburger definitely does not make it "meatloaf."  Thats just sort of WTF.  But adding eggs and crumbs does.  And adding raw egg means you need to cook the patty to pretty well done unless youwant to serve raw egg.

I think Andy is right.  I think your grind is to blame.


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## Hyperion (May 25, 2011)

jennyema said:


> I personally thing burgers taste a lot better when the meat is saesoned before the patty is made.  Salt within a hamburger definitely does not make it "meatloaf."  Thats just sort of WTF.  But adding eggs and crumbs does.  And adding raw egg means you need to cook the patty to pretty well done unless youwant to serve raw egg.
> 
> I think Andy is right.  I think your grind is to blame.


maybe I'm wrong , but I believe mixing salt inside the burger makes it lose its juice during cooking. it's like sausages, except sausages has a casing to keep the juice inside while burger doesn't. so only season the outside the burger with kosher salt will keep the inside moist.


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## GB (May 25, 2011)

Actually salt on the inside of a burger will hold onto the moisture resulting in a juicier end product.


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (May 25, 2011)

Try using a burger press instead of hand forming the burgers.


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## FrankZ (May 25, 2011)

Before you grind the meat stick it in the freezer for 20 minutes or so.  You aren't looking for frozen, you are looking for really really cold.  This help considerably getting the meat through the grinding plate without tearing it to shreds.


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## jennyema (May 25, 2011)

Hyperion said:


> maybe I'm wrong , but I believe mixing salt inside the burger makes it lose its juice during cooking. it's like sausages, except sausages has a casing to keep the juice inside while burger doesn't. so only season the outside the burger with kosher salt will keep the inside moist.


 

It won't dry them out.  It will make them taste better.

And you don't have to use kosher salt.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (May 25, 2011)

When they are talking lean muscle tissue to fat ratio, they are measuring by weight.  Lean tissue contains a lot of water, while fat consists of solidified oil.  The fat is significantly lighter per unit volume.  The is a lot of fat in pre-ground burger that you purchase.  Your well marbled beef isn't even close.  You have to use either a binder, such as egg, or careful cooking technique to get your burger to hold together.  

1 large egg, added to 1 pound of the ground meat will not alter the flavor.  It will help it hold together better.  If you don't want to add any other ingredients, then cook your burger using indirect heat and relatively low temperatures on a covered grill until you get an internal temperature in the meat of about 145 degrees.   Then move the meat over the fire and salt and brown it.  Your burger will be juicier, and have a more pronounced beef flavor with this technique as well.

Your burger doesn't bulge because it has less fat than the ground beef you purchase from a grocer.  It is also drier in texture for the same reason.  The slow cooking method helps the meat retain its water content, and cooks it from both sides with radiant and convective heat underneath, and convective heat above.  This allows the meat particles to stick together better.

Seeeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


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## MyCrummyApartment (May 26, 2011)

I guess I just like doing it like my Mom used to, and I still add bread crumbs and egg to the mixture, along with black pepper and garlic salt, and maybe a few chili peppers. I think the bread crumbs actually do serve a purpose in smoothing out the texture of the cooked product.

I wish I had used that press Sir_Loin when I owed my restaurant, because I did hand-form them, but I was meticulous in designing perfectly flat, over-sized burgers so they would cook more quickly on the broiler.


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## DaveSoMD (May 26, 2011)

FrankZ said:


> Before you grind the meat stick it in the freezer for 20 minutes or so.  You aren't looking for frozen, you are looking for really really cold.  This help considerably getting the meat through the grinding plate without tearing it to shreds.



What Frank said. 

Also, Alton Brown did make an episode on hamburgers, it is called _"A Grind Is A Terrible Thing To Waste"_.   I'm sure you can find the episode online.


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## rush (May 26, 2011)

Hyperion said:


> I wonder if it has anything to do with keeping the fat cold? when make sausage the grinder will heat up the fat and melt it if it wasn't cold to start with, maybe that's why your ground meat doesn't stick together? maybe you can try treating the burger like sausage and keep it cold at all times from meat chunks to right before the grill


 
What happens if the fat melts?

I keep hearing people warn against the melting of fat. 

I just don't understand why this would be a necessary concern, considering the fat isn't going anywhere... if it melts, it'll redistribute itself throughout the ground meat.


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## rush (May 26, 2011)

Goodweed of the North said:


> When they are talking lean muscle tissue to fat ratio, they are measuring by weight. Lean tissue contains a lot of water, while fat consists of solidified oil. The fat is significantly lighter per unit volume. The is a lot of fat in pre-ground burger that you purchase. Your well marbled beef isn't even close. You have to use either a binder, such as egg, or careful cooking technique to get your burger to hold together.
> 
> 1 large egg, added to 1 pound of the ground meat will not alter the flavor. It will help it hold together better. If you don't want to add any other ingredients, then cook your burger using indirect heat and relatively low temperatures on a covered grill until you get an internal temperature in the meat of about 145 degrees. Then move the meat over the fire and salt and brown it. Your burger will be juicier, and have a more pronounced beef flavor with this technique as well.
> 
> ...


 
Thanks, but if Bobby Flay and plenty of other people in the world are cooking up rocksteady burger patties without egg/breadcrumbs, I believe there's a technique, and that's why I came here for answers.

And I'm pretty sure adding an egg to ground meat is gonna change the flavor... 

As for my ground meat not bulging, I think it has to do with the height of the patty, not the fat...


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## rush (May 26, 2011)

GB said:


> Actually salt on the inside of a burger will hold onto the moisture resulting in a juicier end product.


 
Is there a scientific reasoning to why salt holds the moisture?

And if yes, why does a burger master like Flay warn against it?


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## rush (May 26, 2011)

Constance said:


> Chuck roast makes the best hamburgers. You don't want to mush the meat to death, but you have to work it sufficiently to get it to stay together.
> The most important thing is not to turn the patty more than once, and don't smash it with the spatula (except at the last...see below). Let it brown on one side, then turn and put lid part way on skillet and let it finish cooking. You can tell when it's done if you press on it with the spatula and no red juice comes out.
> 
> I sprinkle the patties with S&P on one side after I put them in the skillets, then season the other side when I turn them.
> ...


 
My patty is nowhere thick enough to wrap a bacon strip around it. Also, doing so would probably crumble the burger... 

It's like a bridge that's about to collapse. Nothing that you wrap around the bridge, is gonna stop the inevitable. It needs support from below...


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## rush (May 26, 2011)

Sir_Loin_of_Beef said:


> Try using a burger press instead of hand forming the burgers.


 
That doesn't seem like a bad idea, actually. 

Worth considering.


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## rush (May 26, 2011)

FrankZ said:


> Before you grind the meat stick it in the freezer for 20 minutes or so. You aren't looking for frozen, you are looking for really really cold. This help considerably getting the meat through the grinding plate without tearing it to shreds.


 
Eh, it has nothing to do with the temperature of the meat.

I have a cheap Norpro grinder that I got for something like $30. The blade design is comparable to a fan. It's gonna shred up the meat, regardless, when you have a fan spinning. 

I don't know how the expensive grinders work, as they churn out thick noodles... I guess the grinding is done before it's shaped into noodles... 

My grinder just grinds, period. No noodle-shaping...


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## rush (May 26, 2011)

Thanks for all your suggestions, guys. 

Today, I really worked the patty to get it fuse together. In the past, I would just take a ball of the ground meat, place it on the cutting board, and smash it down with my palm, while I iron out cracks and shape the outer rim of the patty. 

But today, I shaped the patty in my hands. I just smacked it around, and I noticed far less cracking on the edges... 

Usually when I smash the burger on the cutting board, it gets giant fissures and cracks, that I press back together... but I guess that was insufficient. 

My burger patty today, looked rounder because I shaped it entirely in my hands and no flat surfaces were used. But it actually held together.

Not sure if this is because I had the burger refridgerated up until the cooking process... usually I let it rest at room temp, while I work on the prep/sauces/other components/etc.

I'm gonna make more burgers tomorrow, so we'll see... 

Thanks again, everyone!


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## niquejim (May 26, 2011)

This is a good read when it comes to burgers

The Burger Lab: Salting Ground Beef | A Hamburger Today


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## pacanis (May 26, 2011)

Just to add a couple things;
I shape my patties on a cutting board, but of course I use my hands, too. I press with one hand and use a few fingers of the other to work the loose edges back into the main patty. To get rid of the cracks if I understood you correctly. In essence, I am compressing the patty from all its axes. Then I flip it over and do the same thing. Not super tight, but like I said before, just enough to hold it together. Actually, I usually put wax paper on the cutting board, then use a knife to cut the sections the patties are on. It makes it easy to plop them on the grill this way.

And, I've made hamburger out of chuck using my FP's blade. It certainly doesn't make that "noodle" look to the grind and is more of a pulp. I never notice a difference in my burgers holding together, but they do have a different texture.


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## GB (May 26, 2011)

rush said:


> Is there a scientific reasoning to why salt holds the moisture?
> 
> And if yes, why does a burger master like Flay warn against it?


Yes, salt retains moisture. The moisture is drawn to the salt. When you hear people warn againt salting meat to early this is the reason they give. 

As to why Flay said to only salt the outside, the only thing I can say is that every is wrong from time to time. This is his time to be wrong. But don't take Flays word,  or mine. Try it yourself. You will notice a HUGE difference. Like Jenny said, you salt because it improves the flavor. A burger salted throughout will taste much better than a burger with salt just on the exterior.


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## dcSaute (May 26, 2011)

the BurgerLab testing is certainly interesting - and the author appears to have gone to some lengths to isolate the effect of salt in "testing equally" - I'd say a really good job.

but my own experience does not fully agree with / support the BurgerLab's results - and there's one glaring difference:  In two pounds of ground beef I use a fat pinch of kosher salt - I suspect about one tablespoon for (eventually) eight burgers - about one third the salt used in BurgerLab's testing.  frankly, a teaspoon of salt in a 4-5 ounce burger does not appeal to my mental taste buds.

some years back, quite by accident (root cause:  "we want burgers" - ground beef was frozen....) I developed my own "madness" to burger making - using a dough scraper, I chop up the beef and level it out over a cutting board - perhaps an inch thick.  add salt, fg pepper, fine dice onion/leek/shallot/scallion plus diced green pepper or fine diced celery, a spritz of Worcestershire sauce, and one (size large) beaten egg (for two lbs of beef) sprinkled over the flattened beef.  

using the dough scraper I fold and chop to get a reasonable homogeneous mixture - observing AB's "do not over work" advice.  formed into a flat loaf, using the scraper it's easy to divide in half, and half again, and halves again, to get 8 more or less equal patties.  they get hand formed, squished to equal thickness with the dough scraper, made tidy round and go back in the fridge for an hour (plus)

((I used to use a 10" chefs knife - but after cutting me fingers a couple time, the 'non edged' dough scraper seems an acceptable whimp out....))

I've noted:  one large egg is too much for one pound of beef.  the mix is too wet / loose; it will require some panko/bread crumbs to sop up the extra moisture.

I have ground my own.  it's a pita because our counter tops are too thick to mount the old fashioned hand crank grinder.  never used a food processor for grinding - got one, it's a pita to drag out & clean up.  about 99.99% of the time I just buy ground beef - 10% or 15% fat, depending on market offerings / deals / sales.

btw the "keep it cold" theory of meat grinding is a widely accepted practice - from what I gather one does not want the fat globules to soften / melt but the preference seems to be keeping the fat as particles vs. "internal coating."   one tv show featuring an old line butcher (Chicago...?) making their own sausages (okay, sausage is not a hamburger....) showed / explained how they shovel huge amounts of dry ice (frozen carbon dioxide/CO2 - minus 70'F in solid form) into the big rotating grinder to keep the mix cold.  grinding generates heat (just rub your hands together....) and the theory is to keep the mix cold during the grind / mix process.....


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## MostlyWater (May 26, 2011)

I guess I rank at the bottom of the list; i buy the premade burgers and keep them in the freezer.


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## roadfix (May 26, 2011)

As far as salt retaining water, this also applies to human physiology.  Most all sports drinks contain high does of sodium.  Salt tablets also help certain individuals during extreme physical activity with excessive sweating.


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## dcSaute (May 26, 2011)

MostlyWater said:


> I guess I rank at the bottom of the list; i buy the premade burgers and keep them in the freezer.


that'll work.  I'd offer an opinion you might be missing some good flavors, but flavort is a matter of taste and there's no accounting for taste.  what you find as "good" might not work here - and turned around.  basically I go with "whatever works for you and yours" (g)

once upon a time I was envious of how all those commercial burger patties got so flat & even.  meat "shrinks" on exposure to heat - so start big and fat, end up even fatter/thicker...  hence my propensity to squash them out flatter & thinner with the dough scraper.  but that approach does require some discipline / effort in making up the "pre-cooked patty" - perhaps an issue the home cook does not always observe.

the prepared frozen patties have not only been ground and seasoned, buy thenceforth "extruded" into patties.  if "over-grinding" is an potential issue, (over)grinding and then "extruding" into a patty is a double-triple "offense" - but if it works for your crowd, go for it !


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## Hyperion (May 26, 2011)

roadfix said:


> As far as salt retaining water, this also applies to human physiology.  Most all sports drinks contain high does of sodium.  Salt tablets also help certain individuals during extreme physical activity with excessive sweating.


eh, excuse me but drinking sodium-added sports drink during activity is NOT for retaining water. it's for resupplying the sodium lost from sweating, to keep balanced electrolyte in your body so that your nervous system can function


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## Hyperion (May 26, 2011)

the truth is, whether to add salt or how much salt to add totally depends on the eater. some people's tastebuds are not as sensitive as others and need salt to open them up. For myself, beef naturally contains enough sodium to make me taste saltiness (I can eat raw beef alone and enjoy the taste) and I don't need to add salt to it, except when the beef is processed/cooked in water. steaks are the same way for me. I only add salt to the surface to draw out some water-soluable protein in order to better form crust. this salt does not even alter the saltiness of the steak.


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## dcSaute (May 26, 2011)

roadfix said:


> As far as salt retaining water, this also applies to human physiology.  Most all sports drinks contain high does of sodium.  Salt tablets also help certain individuals during extreme physical activity with excessive sweating.



ah.. nuts.  I was in the Navy, more specifically in Engineering aka "Snipes" - we had hand dispensers for "salt tablets" - go forth and research - it's a theory of lost support.


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## roadfix (May 26, 2011)

Hyperion said:


> eh, excuse me but drinking sodium-added sports drink during activity is NOT for retaining water. it's for resupplying the sodium lost from sweating, to keep balanced electrolyte in your body so that your nervous system can function


Thanks for the clarification.  I meant to say that, I swear...


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## roadfix (May 26, 2011)

As far as forming patties, I take a large can of tomato sauce and use that to squish each tennis ball sized worth of ground beef.  The patties come out looking 'naturally formed'......whatever that means....lol..


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## Andy M. (May 26, 2011)

roadfix said:


> As far as forming patties, I take a large can of tomato sauce and use that to squish each tennis ball sized worth of ground beef.  The patties come out looking 'naturally formed'......whatever that means....lol..




As long as you don't mind "Product of the USA" stamped into the middle of your burger.


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## GB (May 26, 2011)

Hyperion said:


> eh, excuse me but drinking sodium-added sports drink during activity is NOT for retaining water. it's for resupplying the sodium lost from sweating, to keep balanced electrolyte in your body so that your nervous system can function


Part of that is retaining water.


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## GB (May 26, 2011)

Hyperion said:


> the truth is, whether to add salt or how much salt to add totally depends on the eater. some people's tastebuds are not as sensitive as others and need salt to open them up. For myself, beef naturally contains enough sodium to make me taste saltiness (I can eat raw beef alone and enjoy the taste) and I don't need to add salt to it, except when the beef is processed/cooked in water. steaks are the same way for me. I only add salt to the surface to draw out some water-soluable protein in order to better form crust. this salt does not even alter the saltiness of the steak.


The question was not whether to add salt, but when. Yes how much to add depends on the individual, However what salt does is the same for everyone. And you don't salt to make food taste salty. If ghat is how you are using salt then you are using it wrong. Salt is a flavor enhancer. It is used to bring out the natural flavors that are already present in whatever you are making. Salting a hamburger is not supposed to make you hamburger taste salty. It is supposed to make the beefy flavor more pronounced. Whether you use a half a teaspoon or three tablespoons in your hamburgers, the burger will taste better if the salt is mixed in as opposed to added just to the exterior.


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## pacanis (May 26, 2011)

Using salt "wrong"???
Some people like the taste of salt. I never met a pretzel with salt on the outside I didn't like. I can't imagine they are salted to bring out the flavor of the dough... Any more than I add a little salt to that cold slice of pizza to bring out the flavors of the cold pizza, lol.
Salt may very well be a flavor enhancer, and I don't doubt the *experts* that it is, but it is also a flavor many people enjoy on its own merit. Especially with tequila ;^)


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## CharlieD (May 26, 2011)

all you have to do after grinding meat, is to mix it well. even though you do not add anything to it. YOu almost have to wipp it, don't know how to describe any other way. If you do that you will be fine. I always grind my own meat.


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## GB (May 26, 2011)

pacanis said:


> I can't imagine they are salted to bring out the flavor of the dough.


And why not? Have you ever had a dough product made without salt? It tastes flat and horrible. You need the salt to bring out the flavor in the dough. That is actually one of the best examples where salt is a flavor enhancer. 

Yes, some people like salt for salts taste. Those are generally the same people who oversalt everything and have high blood pressure problems.


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## dcSaute (May 26, 2011)

it is without question politically incorrect to bring up these facts.
but, such are the facts; if you don't believe it, just wait a decade or two.

us old geezers suffer "taste bud disfunction" - along with a whole lotta' other 'disfunctions.'  salt is cheap; otoh Viagra is not cheap.

personally, I'm functioning well without Viagra, and without heaps of additional salt.

but a teaspoon of salt in a 5 ounce burger.... nah, that's well beyond my tolerance.


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## pacanis (May 26, 2011)

GB said:


> And why not? Have you ever had a dough product made without salt? It tastes flat and horrible. You need the salt to bring out the flavor in the dough. That is actually one of the best examples where salt is a flavor enhancer.
> 
> Yes, some people like salt for salts taste. Those are generally the same people who oversalt everything and have high blood pressure problems.


 
I have eaten some foods without any salt added. And some foods I am totally fine with eating without salt. And then there are foods like I mentioned that rely on salt (or another flavor or spice) for pretty much their whole flavor. And I would bet money that if the common person was polled in the street they would tell you they sprinkle a little salt on their corn (another example) for the salt flavor, not to enhance the corn flavor.

I do not know enough to comment on whether or not people who like the flavor of salt are "generally the same people who oversalt everything and have high blood pressure problems".


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## Andy M. (May 26, 2011)

When I eat potato chips, I taste a lot more salt than potato.  At the same time, I have cooked some dishes that were bland and tasteless until I added salt.  Then, I tasted the component flavors rather than the salt.

Sometimes you want to taste the food, sometimes you want to taste the salt.


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## pacanis (May 26, 2011)

Andy M. said:


> When I eat potato chips, I taste a lot more salt than potato. At the same time, I have cooked some dishes that were bland and tasteless until I added salt. Then, I tasted the component flavors rather than the salt.
> 
> Sometimes you want to taste the food, sometimes you want to taste the salt.


 
Exactly!

And sometimes you have to put on more salt than you really want to because you _don't_ want to taste the food


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## GB (May 26, 2011)

I am not saying that there are nit people who use salt to taste the salt. There is no doubt about that. But ask any person who has cut back on their salt intake and they will tell you that if they try to use the amount of salt they used to then the food tastes too salty. If you use just the right amount then you taste the flavor of the food. And yes salt enhances the natural corn flavor in corn as well.


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## Hyperion (May 26, 2011)

I think it's a misconception that salt "enhances" flavor. it doesn't. it merely makes your sense more sensitive, not to one flavor, but to any.


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## dcSaute (May 26, 2011)

Hyperion said:


> I think it's a misconception that salt "enhances" flavor. it doesn't. it merely makes your sense more sensitive, not to one flavor, but to any.


don't mention that to a potato.


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## GB (May 26, 2011)

You just defined what enhancing flavor is.


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## pacanis (May 26, 2011)

dcSaute said:


> don't mention that to a potato.


 
lol, the ol' "blank canvas"


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## rush (May 27, 2011)

niquejim said:


> This is a good read when it comes to burgers
> 
> The Burger Lab: Salting Ground Beef | A Hamburger Today


 
Wow, I didn't know salt could do that... 

I guess I'm gonna stick to salting the exterior of the patty.

Great post.


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## GB (May 27, 2011)

Please don not take that articles word for it. Try your own test and make your own informed decisions. I have made countless burgers with salt mixed in and have NEVER seen anything even remotely close to that abomination that they showed in the picture. People rave about my burgers. The texture is great. They are so juicy my friends know not to wear nice clothes when eating them because they will get tons of juice dribbling down their chin. The flavor is delicious. All that I ask is that you they it yourself and see which way you like better. Remember, you can not believe everything you read.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (May 27, 2011)

I have to throw my hat in with GB.  I have both salted before forming burgers, and when cooking.  The textural difference were negligible.  However, I prefer the flavor of the burger salted during the cooking process, and that is simply personal preference.  My solisbury steaks are well seasoned before forming and cooking.  They also come out with a very loose, and juicy texture.

I would need to see clinical proof that salt breaks down proteins.  I believe that if that were true, then our bodies would be a pile of mush, as we are filled with salty solutions of one type or another.  And I've never had a piece of meat made more tender by salting it.

Alkalies break down proteins, as do various enzymes. I don't think salt does.

As GB suggested, do the tests yourself and compare.  That's how I have disproved so many "wive's tales" found in cookbooks, and on TV cooking shows.  Just because someone says it's so, doesn't mean that it really is, including my advice.  I go to extremes to give accurate information, but am perfectly capable of making mistakes.  Again, do the comparisons yourself and make up your own mind what does and doesn't work.

Seeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


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## Andy M. (May 27, 2011)

I agree.  I've never noticed a texture difference regardless of when I salt a burger or if I don't salt it.

Looking at the pictures in the link, it looks the pre-salted (bad) burger was much more compressed during the patty forming process than the surface-salted (good) burger.


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## pacanis (May 27, 2011)

I've never even seen a patty that ill cooked.  I can't imagine that salt could do that. I also can't see what the tester would have to gain by messing with the results. That's weird.


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## GB (May 27, 2011)

Another weird thing from the article was this part. 



> Patty 2: Seasoned by tossing the ground meat and sauce in a metal bowl before forming the patties.



What sauce is he talking about? Burgers are not made with a sauce.


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## Andy M. (May 27, 2011)

Good point GB.  I noted that statement but flew right past it.


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## pacanis (May 27, 2011)

GB said:


> Another weird thing from the article was this part.
> 
> 
> 
> What sauce is he talking about? Burgers are not made with a sauce.


 
I counted it as a typo of sorts. There was another similar mistake in the article, too. 

You have to admit though, whatever he did to that one burger sure produced one ugly looking hamburger   It almost appears that he through it on frozen and didn't give it enough time.


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## GB (May 27, 2011)

It is unlike any burger I have ever seen in my entire life.


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## pacanis (May 27, 2011)

oops... speaking of typos, I typed through instead of threw, lol.


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## u8sushi2 (May 31, 2011)

I know this sounds crazy but try adding some bread crumbs to the meat. I use regular white bread with the crusts cut off and chopped in a food processor. One slice for two regular burgers or one big burger. Try it and you will be surprized how tender the burger will be. Does not taste like meatloaf.


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## ranleemil (May 31, 2011)

I haven't read all the comments, so I don't know if someone already mentioned this, but I was always a person who tried to turn or flip, if grilling, anything I cooked. I guess I was afraid I would burn something.  Giving food enough time to carmelize and brown is important. I've since learned to be patient! Most food tends to stay intact once given the appropriate time to carmelize.


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## AmandaN80 (May 31, 2011)

GB said:


> Please don not take that articles word for it. Try your own test and make your own informed decisions. I have made countless burgers with salt mixed in and have NEVER seen anything even remotely close to that abomination that they showed in the picture. People rave about my burgers. The texture is great. They are so juicy my friends know not to wear nice clothes when eating them because they will get tons of juice dribbling down their chin. The flavor is delicious. All that I ask is that you they it yourself and see which way you like better. Remember, you can not believe everything you read.



LOL I add a bit of salt as I mix most the time and Ive never had a burger turn out that way lmao how much salt did he dump in? I didnt read the whole thing only skimmed it


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## AmandaN80 (May 31, 2011)

GB said:


> Another weird thing from the article was this part.
> 
> 
> 
> What sauce is he talking about? Burgers are not made with a sauce.



Maybe that is the problem


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