Spiced Homemade Beef Burger Recipe

Spiced Homemade Beef Burger Recipe

A good homemade burger should be simple, easy and less complicated. This spiced homemade beef burger is just that! The spices add a fun twist to the regular burger and serving it over my soft whole wheat burger buns makes it more nutritious and hearty.

Have you started with BBQs this summer already? Oh we have!

It’s a ritual here, almost every two weeks, the family wants to get together and the only cooking happening is BBQ -of course burgers and steaks mostly.  While a good meat needs nothing more than just salt and pepper for flavor you can’t deny extra kick you get from a few spices – can you? These burgers are an absolute hit. Some smoky spices, some sauteed onions for sweetness and a hot grill!

Let’s talk ingredients and substitutes 

• Beef – The best meat for juicy burgers are the tender but full fat meats. If you choose one with less fat they tend to shrink and become dry. Aslso one of the many reasons why people choose to stuff burgers so the center won’t need cooking. It is always a good thing to have a butcher whose knowledge you can trust. He usually will give you the best he has on hand for that day. Another important point to remember is to ask for coarse ground meat not fine ground. The fine ground will tend to dry out faster.
• Onions – I love using a mix of red and white onions -to add more depth of flavor. While the brown onion has a zing; the red is sweet. We are big onion fans in our home even my kids. So I grill extra red onions and add them onto our burgers. Yeah I know!!
• Sauces – These are definitely optional and thing you can omit or replace. Try adding a bit of ketchup or some mayonnaise as well.
• Cheese -Again I love the nutty flavor that Parmesan has and often I will add it to dishes that aren’t really Italian.

A few burger making tips for you

• Avoid handling the meat too much. The more you handle the meat the tougher it gets resulting in dense chewy burgers. Notice below I mix all ingredients first then and the mince meat and mix gently to combine. This makes soft juicy burgers that melt in the mouth.
• When cooking burgers – Leave them alone!! NEVER press down with the a spatula as you will push the juices out making the burger dense.
• Is it time to flip yet? – You need to flip the burger just once actually. Place the burger on the grill or pan, wait till it done on one side. If you try to lift and it’s still stuck means it’s not ready yet. Wait if you force it all the beautiful caramalization you just got on the meat with the high heat will stay stuck to the pan!

Burger Buns 

Well, with the whooping success of my super Soft Burger Buns which are by far the most popular on this blog. I’m please to say that I do have also succeeded in making a super soft whole wheat burger buns. I will be sharing that recipe with you shortly.

Recipe – Spiced Homemade Beef Burger Recipe 

Here’s what you will need:

• Beef minced – 500 grams ( 1 lbs)
• Onions – 1 large chopped
• Garlic – 1 large grated or minced
• Ginger – 1/4 tsp  grated
• Herbs /Parsley or Cilantro – 1/2 cup
• Mustard (Dijon) – 1 tsp
• Worcestershire sauce – 1 tbsp
• Tabasco Sauce  – 1/4 tsp
• Lemon juice – 1 tbsp
• Parmesan grated – 1/4 cup
• Cheese Slices – 4 slices
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Method:

Prepare /Saute

• Saute chopped onions in a pan until translucent or grill then chop fine
• Have all ingredients ready to go.

Combine & Divide

• Place all the ingredients in the bowl – sauteed onion, garlic, ginger, mustard, herbs, sauces, juices and Parmesan juice
• Mix to combine. Season with salt and pepper
• Add the mince meat and mix to combine gently. (see tip above)
• Divide your mixture into four and form a disc – approx 12 cm (not too thick or thin)
• Just press lightly into a ball then flatten with the fingers.
• You can keep these wrapped with Cling wrap in the fridge until you are ready to grill  them.
• Thaw burgers to room temperature an hour before grilling

Outdoor/ Grilled Burger

• Heat the grill on medium high
• Place burger – let cook without touching – you will see the sides changing color from the bottom up.
  • For medium well – cook about 4 minutes on the first side then 3 on the next
  • Medium – about 3 minutes on each side.
  • Medium rare – about 2 1/2 to 3 minutes on each side.
  • Rare – about 2 minutes should do
• For the last one minute – add the slice cheese

Pan Cooked Burger 

• Place a grill or fry pan on medium high
• Once hot – place the burgers and let cook for at least 2 to 3 minutes before you touch them.
• When grilled on one side – you will see the side changing color from the bottom up.
• Flip and cook on the other side for two more minutes
• For the last one minute place the cheese slices on top and
• Remove from the pan. The heat in the burger will melt the cheese further.

Heat Burger Buns and serve

• Spit the burger buns and heat them on the same hot pan
• Serve burger with you choice of sides. We love our onion rings and Oven Baked Potato Wedges or Oven Fried Potato Chips

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Recipe Card – Spiced Homemade Beef Burger Recipe 

Now that’s a summer feast all ready to enjoy!