I will gladly pay you Tuesday.......

In every house there seems to be that 'go to' meal that parents serve when they need to make a dinner for their family and can't think of anything else to make. In some houses that meal is pasta, while in others it is chicken nuggets or fish sticks. In my house, that meal is hamburgers. During the winter, we are not ashamed to say that we do it under the broiler (a close second to on the grill), but as soon as the weather changes, we are outside and we are grilling. While Everything Is Better Grilled, when it comes to onions on top of my burgers, I prefer caramelized onions. The reason why I do not put onions inside the burgers is because as the meat cooks on the grill, it's connective tissue and collagen shrinks and begins to stick together which is what helps the burger retain its shape. When there are things in the way of those connective tissues sticking together by something like onions, the burgers tend to fall apart on your grill which is not fun. In addition, as the onions cook, they release moisture which also doesn't help the burgers from falling apart. Oddly enough there are people out there (who hopefully stop after reading this) who like to put bread crumbs in the burgers to help them from falling apart??!! Aren't they turning their burgers into meatloaf?

The other great thing I like about this meal is that it takes about 30 minutes to make and no one walks away hungry. I also like this meal on a Thursday night because there usually aren't any leftovers to contend with going into Shabbos.

This recipe makes (5) 6 oz hamburgers.

1.6-1.75 pounds of ground neck and steak
3 onions
3 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
Dry Rub 

As I discussed previously, when I first started making burgers I tried ground chuck as I thought it would have a meatier taste considering which part of the cow it comes from. However my family kept saying that the burgers tasted dry even though they were cooked to medium doneness. I then tried the ground neck and steak and we found the burgers to be juicy with good flavor. Since this is around Pesach time, all the meat is a little more expensive.

The other important tool to have when making the burgers is a good patty maker. The problem with making burgers by hand is that the middle is thicker than the edges so when they cook, they do not cook evenly. I personally like the Progressive International patty maker as it releases the burgers well, makes the dimple, and is easy to clean.

Step 1: Heat your vegetable oil in a pot. Dice your onions, and place them in pot with the preheated vegetable oil. 

Sprinkle some salt over the onions and cover for 3 minutes on high heat to begin drawing out some of the moisture. After 3 minutes, reduce the heat to medium-low and stir frequently. If the temperature gets too hot or the onions get too dried out before they become fully caramelized, try adding a little water to the pot. I will usually have my son do the stirring while I focus on the burgers.

Step 2: Take the meat out of the packaging and place in a dry bowl.

Step 3: Add your dry rub mixture. 

If you haven't been making a good amount of your rub and storing it in an empty spice container, now might be a good time to start.

Step 4: Mix your meat and spices together. There are individuals who believe that overly mixing your meat when making hamburgers makes them tough. On the contrary, it is not the over mixing that makes them tough, it is the fact that your hands are warm and when you overly work the meat, it warms the meat up. To overcome this, make sure the meat is very cold when you begin mixing it. Make sure the meat is mixed well so that your spices are evenly distributed.

Step 5: Go outside and light your charcoal. For 5 burgers I usually fill a chimney 50-60 percent of the way full of charcoal.

Step 6: While the charcoal is getting hot, go inside and form your burgers. I like to use parchment paper to separate the layers of burgers. I like parchment paper over wax paper because wax paper has a tendency to stick to the burgers while they are waiting to be cooked.

Step 7: Once your charcoal gets hot and you begin to see the white on the charcoal, or it looks like this,  pour it on one side of your grill, and cover your grill to get it hot.

Step 8: Grill your burgers for 4 minutes on each side. Be mindful of flare ups and getting a good crust before flipping.

Step 9: Once the burgers have been cooked on both sides, move them to the cool side of the grill and cover them with the vents open so that they can finish cooking. The thicker the burger is, the longer it will take to finish. 

Step 10: At this point your caramelized onions should be done and your child's arm could rest from the constant stirring.

Step 11: Make sure that you let the burgers rest for a few minutes before you dive in. The resting gives the juices time to settle in the burgers. For me, a perfect burger is medium, for my brother in law, it still needs to be mooing.

How do you like your burgers done?