Home made burger help

[hammerman]

I love my home made burgers. In with the mince goes spring onions, chopped garlic, chillis, chopped mushrooms, chopped peppers, squirt of tomato sauce, squirt of worcester sauce, squirt of lemon juice, dribble of honey.

Then i add 2 eggs and breadcrumbs as a binder. but when i turn the burgers over during frying, they always fall apart.

Any suggestions ?

[Snappy]

Maybe the mix is too wet, i wouldn't usually put all that liquid in. If you dont want to leave anthing out try putting it in the fridge before cooking so it firms up

[SaxyJag]

Cut out the breadcrumbs and coat the burgers in plain flour before cooking.

[stevie-p]

wouldnt mind getting the way they are made please so i can try it out.

[alfiebrady]

I'd suggest you make the burgers a little plainer, and reserve some of the ingredients for a relish. The mushrooms, e.g., will release a lot of moisture during cooking. Make sure your oil is hot enough, and resist the temptation to turn them too early. Sounds delicious, though!

[maximo]

Hello ! Sorry to barge in, but I have a question for you...the breadcrumbs you put in, are they just plain sliced bread, like Hovis ? Or do you have to use fresh crusty bread ? And do you just crumble a few slices ? sorry if it sounds stupid, but I'd like to make some and never really knew about the bread part !

[moppettshow]

Hi,

It's always best to shape your burgers, then chill them for at least 30 minutes before cooking. This stops them falling apart.

[kazzianne]

You're making me hungry!!

[alijangra]

Try squeezing excess liquid out with some muslin. Also try chopping your mince a little finer, x

[Clanad]

Three suggestions, hammerman... First, try replacing the breadcrumbs with crumbled saltine crackers. We also call them soup crackers. Secondly, use the same recipe, but mound up a dollop of the mixture in a muffin tin and bake at 350 degrees F for about 45 minutes. Third... try using a leaner cut of what ya'll call mince (here in the U.S. it's ground beef.) We have 85-15 and 93-7 as relates to leaness. A leaner mix would produce less fat... Good recipe, though...

[Champagne]

Dinner at hammerman's tonight everybody!

[cupboardie]

my nan coats them in flour AND breadcrumbs, but it's just beef no mushies or liquids apart from egg (and she only adds one)

[hammerman]

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions....top stuff guys

Steve-p.....i just use the ingredients above....mix it all up to a big mush with your (clean) hands and shallow fry.

I shall make some tonight and i might do them on the barbeque as it's such a nice day. I will shape and refrigerate them first for an hour or two and see how they go.

Dinner at mine tonight ???....it's always an open house here ;-)

[Gef]

Sorry if this is a bit too late. I agree with alfie and always use Delia's recipe.

Use good quality mince with about 20% fat - it comes out during the cooking but helps to keep the burger moist.

Break it up finely with a fork and add black pepper and, if you prefer, a little salt. When you make the burgers really squash the mince together and put a little dimple in the centre - it stops them getting too bloated when you cook them.

I've only ever done these on a BBQ but they never fall apart.

All other flavours come from various dips and relishes to accompany them.

[Plocket]

Do you use a burger press? I bought one from Lakeland (I think that was it!) and it is brilliant - I make different sorts of burgers and they never fall apart.

[stevie-p]

that gives me something to try out this weekend. mmmmmmmmmmmmm.