Advanced Culinary Techniques for Juicier Hand-Pressed Patties

There is no end to the number of scrumptious hamburgers you can make, but here are 12 that will make your mouth water.

By J. Kenji Lpez-AltJ. Kenji Lpez-Alt composes a column for The New york city Times on food and science, and he establishes recipes and appears in videos for NYT Cooking. He is also the developer and host of Kenji's Cooking Program on YouTube. This video and post belong to, our series on kitchen area fundamentals.

Credit ... Adam CentrellaAs an expert chef, food writer and cookbook author, I have actually spent the last two decades of my profession carefully investigating and evaluating recipes, strategies and commonly accepted kitchen wisdom to determine the whys of cooking. Over this time, I have actually run numerous hamburger joints and even composed a month-to-month column for Serious Eats called the Burger Lab, in which I isolated and tested every possible variable that can affect the taste and texture of a hamburger.

Here are the most important pointers I have actually discovered for optimizing your hamburger experience, whether in the yard or the kitchen. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

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In bread, this can be a great thing, but with hamburgers, overhandling can develop an undesirable dense texture. (Incorporating extenders, like eggs or breadcrumbs, or extra spices, like onions and herbs, likewise forces you to exhaust the meat and sidetrack from the beef taste, so avoid it.) Salting the outside of your patties keeps their texture loose and tender.

This is an excellent thing in sausages, which ought to have a firm texture, however with hamburgers, you desire looseness. A hamburger must be tender, with plenty of pockets for juices and rendered fat to gather.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

Browning your patties deeply optimizes flavor. Credit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Whether you're making a huge burger on the grill or a crisp-edged smash burger on a griddle, browning is flavor, and high heat is crucial. For thicker grilled or griddled burgers, wait till your pan or grill is hot before adding the patties, and cook them up until they're well browned on both sides.

This optimizes flavor while preserving juiciness. Don't let your patties sit around on the cutting board (or worse, a steam table). Hamburgers are at their best fresh from the fire, before any juices have had a chance to drip out.

Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

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Updated May 7, 2026, 8:42 a.m. CTI've constantly been a burger fan. Maturing, I 'd happily chew them down at sit-down restaurants and from the drive-thru getting back from gymnastics practice. I 'd squish the soft bun and let catsup dribble down the sides over my fingers. If there were any little melty American cheese leavings stuck on the wrapper, I 'd drag my french fries through them (I still do this).

Catch me on the right day and I might confess that a cheeseburger is my favorite food. Really, I might state that on a lot of days. And you might say the exact same. However even if you do, it's likely we do not have the same idea of what makes the best hamburger.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

I kept some old favorites, added some brand-new ones and continued to end the ones I know individuals like however I simply. don't. get. Yes, I understand your favorite isn't there. Maybe we have various taste. Maybe I haven't tried your preferred hamburger. Perhaps I'm out to get you (just kidding).

Let me share with you what makes the perfect hamburger for me. Let's begin with the patty.

When I bite in, I require to see a little shimmer, some glistening from the beef and maybe a little grease diminishing the sides. When I see a smashburger on the menu, I constantly opt for a double patty. Smashburger or not, the patty needs to be scorched to assist secure the juices, however not too crusty.