what meat is best for burgers

What grade of beef is best for hamburgers?

What Ground Meat Ratio is Best for What Dish?

• Burgers. You’re looking for beef with a pretty high fat content, but nothing too extreme. ...
• Meatloaf. Go for ground beef with even more fat for the best meatloaf. ...
• Meatballs. “I like to use 50 percent ground pork and 50 percent ground beef for any tomato-based sauce meatballs because of the way pork flavor works so well with tomato,” ...

What is the best beef for hamburgers?

The Complete Guide to Burger Blends

1. The fat content Fat equals juiciness and flavor, which is why the lean-to-fat ratio in ground beef is critical. ...
2. The grind Have your butcher grind your meat twice through a medium blade. ...
3. The cuts of beef Don’t believe the “bedazzled blend” burger hype. ...
4. The Meat Hook Custom Burger Blends Mylan has a sense of humor. ...
5. Shaping the patties

What is the best hamburger meat to buy?

• Researchers around the world are working on futuristic foods
• This year, teams have 3D-printed a 3oz steak and a wagyu beef cut with marbling
• Another group produced coffee from cells taken from the arabica plant
• A major change in diet over the coming decade could see us eat more insects

How to buy the best ground beef for your burgers?

The Best Ground Beef for Your Burgers

• 80/20 Ground Beef Is the Perfect Blend. That might sound like a lot of fat, but a large amount of that fat is going to render out as you cook ...
• Ask for "Store Trim" Store trim is almost always 80/20 because they use the fat trimmings from other cuts of meat that they fabricate there.
• Case-Ready Packaging. ...
• Ask Your Butcher to Grind It on the Spot. ...

A Quick Note on Fat Percentage

It’s important to start with the role fat plays in the cooking process.

Blending

It’s also worth noting that mixing the right types of meat is not only okay, it’s encouraged! Some of the best burgers I’ve had in my life have been blends of different types of meat. At the end of the day, what you’re looking for is a final mixture that falls in that sweet spot of 15 to 20% fat content.

Best Meat for Burgers – Beef Cuts

Here are our picks for the best beef cuts for burgers. Each of these have great flavor, texture, and fat content – making them ideal choices for burgers or burger blends.

Best Meat for Burgers – Non-Beef Cuts

If you want to get a little more ambitious and branch away from traditional beef cuts for your burger, here are some other great choices for best beat for burgers.

Final Thoughts

I hope this article has opened your eyes up to all of the burger possibilities out there! At the end of the day the best meat for burgers is all about two things – texture and flavor.

Best Meat for Burgers – Beef Cuts

Wondering which cut of beef makes the best burgers? Truth be told, there are actually several great cuts you can use to make homemade burgers. Whether you are looking for a simple single cut or want to try combining two or three different cuts, we’ve got all of the best beef cuts for burgers covered.

Expensive Beef Cuts for Burgers

If you are looking to make extra-special burgers, you may want to consider using Kobe or Wagyu beef. Whether you go for Japanese or American Wagyu beef, you’ll be paying top-dollar for some of the very best meat on the planet.

Dry Aged Beef for Burgers

If you are really big on flavor and don’t mind spending a lot of cash, then adding dry-aged New York strip steak to your burger blend will give you a strong umami flavor, enhanced by the enzymatic breakdown of the muscle fibers from the dry-aging process.

Other Great Meats for Burgers

There are plenty of other great meats that can be used to make burgers. If you are looking for an alternative to standard beef burgers, here are some of the most popular options – you’re sure to find one, or several, to try out at your next BBQ.

Choose the Right Meat for Your Burger Patty

As you will have noticed throughout our best burger meats section, we’ve included you with approximate meat-to-fat ratios.

Final Thoughts

There is certainly no shortage of options when it comes down to choosing the best burger meat. While there are several traditional favorites, it all really comes down to finding a good meat-to-fat ratio, an agreeable texture, and a fantastic flavor. As we’re all different, don’t be afraid to take our suggestions as a starting point.

Best Meat for Burgers. Great Cuts for Juicy Hamburgers

Home » BBQs » Burgers » Best Meat for Burgers. Great Cuts for Juicy Hamburgers

Step 1. Make the best burger patty

At the base of every damn tasty burger lies a quality beef patty that’s made of 100% quality beef, beef and nothing but beef. Don’t go adding all sorts of funky stuff like eggs, breadcrumbs or seasonings, if you want to do that make meatloaf instead.

Read on to build your ultimate burger

Select the best meat for burgers and make the ultimate hamburger. Read the full Smokey Goodness ultimate burger series here.

Where You Get Your Beef Matters

As it is with most things in life, if you’re looking for the best of anything, you have to know where to go to get it. Grocery stores are great for ground beef you’re going to put in one of Grandma’s best casseroles because there are a lot of other ingredients that are going to help make it shine.

Grilling vs. Pan-Frying

How you cook your burgers also will help clue you into what type of beef to get. If I’m going to grill the burgers, I like to have a little more fat in the mix. A lot of the fat will drip out while it cooks and you’ll end up with less fat in the burger.

Choosing a Cut of Beef

You want to start with full-flavored beef. I almost always go for chuck, round or even brisket. Round is leaner so you’ll need to increase the fat content by adding another cut. That’s when I ask for the short-ribs. They have an intense beef flavor and the fat won’t melt out as fast as other types of beef fat.

The Bottom Line

One final thought, if in doubt, always go for a mix with a higher fat ratio. You can’t fix a dried out burger once that damage has been done.

Spinach Tomato Burgers

Every Friday night is burger night at our house. The tomatoes add fresh flavor and the cool spinach dip brings it all together. We often skip the buns and serve these over a bed of grilled cabbage. —Courtney Stultz, Weir, Kansas

How to choose the right meat for your burger patty

Beef tends to be the most common choice of meat for burger patties, but don’t feel you should feel restricted to it.

Why should you use freshly ground meat?

There are a couple of reasons why freshly ground meat is the best way to go with your burgers.

What is the optimum fat percentage for burger beef?

A great burger should be juicy, full of flavor, and yet hold together well enough that it doesn’t disintegrate when you pick it up.

How coarsely should you grind your burger?

Generally, ground meat sold in supermarkets tends to be coarsely ground. However, after doing some delicious sounding testing in their burger lab, J. Kenji López and the team of food wizards over at Serious Eats discovered that a coarse grind isn’t ideal for grilled burgers.

Which cuts of beef should I grind up for burgers?

When it comes to beef burgers, humble beef chuck comes into its own. This is because, unlike the lean sirloin or the fatty short ribs, the chuck has that magic 15 to 20 percent fat ratio.

1. Avoid using lean cuts because they might be too dry for your burgers

A lean cut might be perfect for making pan-seared steak until medium-rare. However, when using it for making beef patties for your homemade burgers, it needs to be mixed with some fat to make the meat become juicier. Otherwise, just opt for a fattier cut, especially some with marbling fat.

2. The perfect meat-to-fat ratio is 80:20

Another thing you should keep in mind when shopping for beef for burgers is the ratio of meat to fat. A perfect ratio should be 80% lean meat and 20% fat. If you buy pre-ground beef from your local butcher, grocery store, or supermarket, don’t forget to look for this information on the package. 70:30 ground beef will work too.

3. Buy plain fresh ground beef or the whole cut and grind it yourself

There are many brands of beef patties that are pre-ground and pre-seasoned so that you can use them directly from the package. Our recommendation is to opt for fresh ground beef rather than the frozen counterpart for a more flavorful burger.

1. Chuck steak

Chuck steak is a great cut for different purposes. Chuck steak is a cut from the chuck area, and it has a tough texture that turns tender when finely chopped and grilled over low heat. You can also marinate ground chuck steak with some olive oil to make it more tender.

2. A round cut

A round cut is also perfect for making beef burgers. Either a top round or a bottom round can work in this case thanks to their perfect fat content. A round cut can be sold pre-ground or the whole cut so that you can have different choices to opt for. It is also more economical than most other cuts of beef.

3. Boneless short ribs

Boneless short ribs, unlike its name, are not taken from the rib section. They are actually cut from the chuck area and have a similar appearance to the short ribs that are deboned. They are affordable, flavorful, and versatile. Making beef burgers from boneless short ribs is a great choice though.

5. Sirloin steak

Sirloin steak is a lean cut but it is juicy and relatively tender. Moreover, you can even make it juicier by adding a little more fat trims from other fatty cuts of the cattle. Sirloin steak is also an economical way to add protein to your daily meal.

The best cuts of beef for burgers: Meat to fat ratio

Before we get into specific cuts of beef, let’s talk meat-to-fat ratio. This is the most important consideration when it comes to good burgers. The classic — and best — mix is 80 percent meat to 20 percent fat (often seen on packaging or in the meat case as 80/20).

The best cuts of beef for burgers: The everyday burger

Cut from the shoulder, ground chuck is the classic high-fat (80/20) cut to use for a well-balanced beef burger. Hands down, this is the best grind you can find that’s widely available. But make sure that it says ground chuck, not ground beef, which is ambiguous and inconsistent.

The best cuts of beef for burgers: The kick-it-up-a-notch burger

If you’re a real burger connoisseur or just want to experiment this summer, try a custom blend. Start with a chuck base and ask the butcher to grind in any of the following meats, depending on your taste. Or if you really want to experiment, grind the meat yourself. The folks at Serious Eats have a great guide on the best ways to grind beef.