The Perfect Burger

Name: The Perfect Burger
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 3 pounds ground chuck, preferably chicken steak or blade steak, not more than 20 percent fat; 6 four-inch Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse white rolls or Amy's Bread rolls; 2 large sweet onions; 2 ripe tomatoes; 6 leaves of Boston or iceberg lettuce

By Jason Epstein

Total Time: 25 minutes
Rating: 4(30)
Comments: Read comments

Featured in: FOOD; Burger Heaven

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Ingredients

Yield:6 servings

3pounds ground chuck, preferably chicken steak or blade steak, not more than 20 percent fat
6four-inch Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse white rolls or Amy's Bread rolls
2large sweet onions
2ripe tomatoes
6leaves of Boston or iceberg lettuce

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Heat a seasoned cast-iron grill pan over a high flame for five minutes. Meanwhile, place the meat in a bowl and knead lightly. (Disregard experts who warn that kneading will produce a dry burger. Kneading will not have this effect on chuck cooked rare or medium rare, but it will keep the meat from falling apart. Leaner cuts will be dry whether or not you knead them.) Divide the meat into six portions and shape burgers. Do not season.
Step 2
Add burgers three at a time to pan leaving space between them. After four minutes lift burgers from pan with pair of tongs and turn by 90 degrees. After two minutes turn burgers over. The grill marks will form an attractive tick-tac-toe matrix. Meanwhile, toast rolls. In about five minutes meat will be medium-medium rare. Add sweet onion, tomato and lettuce on roll's bottom half. Add burger. Top with other roll half. Serve with ketchup.

Tip