Preparing Restaurant-Quality French Fries in Modern Home

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

By J. Kenji Lpez-AltJ. Kenji Lpez-Alt composes a column for The New York Times on food and science, and he establishes dishes and appears in videos for NYT Cooking. He is also the developer and host of Kenji's Cooking Show on YouTube. This video and short article are part of, our series on cooking area fundamentals.

Credit ... Adam CentrellaAs a professional chef, food writer and cookbook author, I have actually invested the last twenty years of my career carefully looking into and testing recipes, strategies and widely accepted kitchen knowledge to determine the whys of cooking. Over this time, I have actually operated several hamburger joints and even composed a regular monthly column for Serious Consumes called the Hamburger Laboratory, in which I separated and evaluated every possible variable that can impact the taste and texture of a burger.

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

Top-Rated Gourmet Dinner Recipes for the Season

In bread, this can be a great thing, but with hamburgers, overhandling can create an undesirable thick texture. (Including extenders, like eggs or breadcrumbs, or extra flavoring, like onions and herbs, also requires you to overwork the meat and distract from the beef flavor, so skip it.) Salting the beyond your patties keeps their texture loose and tender.

This is a good thing in sausages, which need to have a company texture, but with burgers, you want looseness. A hamburger ought to be tender, with plenty of pockets for juices and rendered fat to gather.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

Whether you're making a huge hamburger on the grill or a crisp-edged smash burger on a frying pan, browning is flavor, and high heat is key. For thicker grilled or griddled hamburgers, wait till your pan or grill is hot before adding the patties, and cook them till they're well browned on both sides.

This takes full advantage of flavor while preserving juiciness. Preparing your buns ahead of time lets you get to consuming a lot quicker. Credit ... Bryan Gardner for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. Do not let your patties sit around on the cutting board (or worse, a steam table). Burgers are at their best fresh from the fire, before any juices have actually had an opportunity to drip out.

Smash BurgersCredit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York City Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Restaurant BurgerCredit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York City Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Thick Backyard BurgerCredit ... Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Follow,,, and.

Why High-Quality Fresh Ingredients Transform Your Burger

Updated May 7, 2026, 8:42 a.m. CTI have actually constantly been a hamburger fan. Growing up, I 'd happily chew them down at sit-down dining establishments and from the drive-thru getting back from gymnastics practice. I 'd squish the soft bun and let ketchup 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).

Capture me on the best day and I may confess that a cheeseburger is my preferred food. In fact, I may say that on the majority of days. And you may say the same. But even if you do, it's most likely we do not have the same concept of what makes the ideal hamburger.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

I kept some old favorites, added some new ones and continued to leave off the ones I know individuals like however I simply. Possibly I haven't attempted your preferred burger. Perhaps I'm out to get you (just joking).

There's one best burg out there for everybody. Let me show you what makes the perfect burger for me. Let's start with the patty. Can I say I'm growing a little sick of smashburgers? The finest ones astonishingly remain juicy with just a hint of flaky char around the edges, but unfortunately, many places go too hard on the smash.

When I bite in, I require to see a little shimmer, some shining from the beef and maybe a little grease diminishing the sides. When I see a smashburger on the menu, I always opt for a double patty. Smashburger or not, the patty should be seared to assist lock in the juices, but not too crusty.