Cast-Iron Burgers
Today was about heat control. A thick patty cooked all the way through without burning the outside or squeezing out all the juice is a genuinely tricky thing to get right. The usual way here is the BBQ; this was the indoor version, on cast iron
In the bowl
Cold ground beef with salt, pepper, paprika, a little cayenne and cumin ground fresh in the mortar, plus garlic and onion. A big onion is out on the board, but only a small amount actually goes in, less than half of it. The full amounts are written up as a recipe: Beef hamburger patties
Forming the patties
Divided into four and shaped, then onto a plate and into the fridge to firm up. Press them together a little more firmly than feels necessary. These held together fine, but the looser they are the more juice escapes while they cook
While they chill
The fridge time is for everything else. The toppings get sliced, tomato, pickle and onion, and the cast iron comes up to heat slowly and evenly so it is ready when the patties are
Mayonnaise on the buns
Mayonnaise on the cut sides, not butter, with a crinkle of salt. Toasted in a pan they come out basically perfect
Onto a screaming-hot pan
The pan as hot as it will go, then the patties in for a hard sear, about two minutes a side. That quick crust is what holds most of the juice inside
Lid on, heat down
Then a lid and low heat to bring the middle up to 71.1 °C without scorching the outside. The first batch got left alone under the lid and shot straight past the target, the thermometer caught it around 90 °C. Kept flipping, and the second batch held much better. Any juice that does escape into the pan goes straight back on top of the patty
