video:
You're Doing It All Wrong
How to Make a Burger with Hubert Keller
By Meredith Arthur and Eric Slatkin
Hubert Keller, chef-owner of San Francisco– and Las Vegas–based Fleur de Lys and a television mainstay (Secrets of a Chef, Top Chef, Top Chef Masters), is obsessed with hamburgers, as any self-respecting Frenchman should be. He generously shares some of his secrets (more can be found in his book, Burger Bar: Build Your Own Ultimate Burgers).
Awesome.
1)Searing doesn't seal in juices
2) That burger is way too tall
Weren't we just complaining that TV chefs don't use cast iron? That's the star of this clip.
Great video, but it does break one of my pet peeves. If the burger is so tall that you can't get your mouth around it, then what's the point? But everything else he said and did was great. And Rockfish, searing absolutely does seal in the juices. But we do agree on the tallness issue.
No, rockfish is right, searing doesn't lock in moisture any better. Reference Harold McGee's "On Food & Cooking".
Searing creates a maillard reaction, which is the browning of the meat. This develops a bounty of flavours, and is the reason you should sear.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Searing
I never thought to chop my own beef to make hamburgers by knife, I'll have to give it a try. The one thing I didn't understand though is, what he he stuff them with? I sheepishly admit I couldn't make it out!
Delicious looking burger. He makes a lot of good points about ingredient selection and method.
On the other hand, it always peeves me when someone professing to be knowledgeable about food claims searing "seals juices". C'mon! If you want to seal juices in... wrap it in plastic. If you want juicy meat 1) don't overcook, 2) allow it to rest.
Chow should think about subtitling... this guy's accent is ridiculous. I don't know what the hell he stuffed that with either.
Hey MikeyMadness,
Chef Keller added mustard seeds, shallots, and herbs (parsley) to the patty he made in the video. He also suggested adding sauteed mushrooms and just being adventurous in general. You should have seen all of the ingredients he brought to the studio with him--it blew my mind.
Meredith of CHOW
Thanks Meredith, wow, that gives me some ideas!
He stuffed the burger with leftover braised short ribs.
As far as the searing question goes, I believe a proper statement would be that having proper heat on a burger allows the meat to sear rather then boil or sweat in the pan, giving you more control of the temperature and allowing you to not overcook on accident. Plus, the maillard reaction is very tasty.
He stuffed it with meat gleaned from some left over shortribs, and he added a bunch of junk to the burger. a hamburger should be a hamburger - the one thing about it McDonald's does get right. If I wanted a meat loaf sandwhich, I'd make a meat loaf sandwhich.
The burger was way too tall to eat comfortably (and I have a big mouth), who wants to cut their burger in half so they can eat it, lets all the juices run out.
I also agree, "sealing the juices" is a crock, and he used way too much oil. In a well seasoned pan, you hardly/don't need oil at all.
Just goes to show you that only Americans know what a hamburger really is! LOL (j/k)
Nice, very sexy video. I will definitely try chopping by hand.
Does everyone agree with not salting the meat ahead of time? I have read that doing so brings out the meat's flavors.
Have you tasted the Burger at Brad's Grille in San Jose, Costa Rica. Once you do, you will come back for more!! I found this place by chance in Jan and have been a regular ever since.
@ mudaba: He did not say mushrooms. He stuffed the burgers with leftover short ribs.
@ mcmachete: Actually he did say "sauteed mushrooms". He then proceeded to talk about stuffing the burger with cheese, or what he really likes "I put the short ribs in the center of the burger".
I'm almost 100% with KaimukiMan. That is a meatloaf, not a hamburger -- and it's ridiculously too big.
I didn't taste it, but I can't imagine all those flavors work together in anything remotely approaching what a hamburger should be. Pesto? OK. With shortribs, mustard seeds, mushrooms and pineapple? No thank you, chef Keller. I find this totally unappealing.
Let me clarify: First the Chef added ingredients to the meat mixture. He suggests you consider adding all sorts of things before you form your patty. Then, as an added bonus, he recommended doing the stuffing, or using the egg to hollow out the inside of your burger, then stuffing it with blue cheese, leftover short ribs, or other "surprises" for your guests when they bite into the burger. I'm sorry if this wasn't clear in the video--two steps. One, ingredients into meat, two, stuffings into the already formed patty.
Thanks for the follow-up, all,
Meredith
WAAY too tall!
Why do all the noble high-standard HIP-Restaurant Burgers have to consinst of giant meatballs?!??
We want tipps on how to get your burger juicy, full-flavoured slightly seared AAND FLAAT ! ! !
I can't even look at all the Super-gourmet-burger fotos. If I want Meatballs I skip the bun and salad and put the ketch-up aside and not on top!
You remember Jim Carey in "The Mask"? Opening his mouth super-super wide and choking down the TNT? Even HE couldn't eat Chef Keller's Burger!
Make Burgers and no Battleships.
Totally agree with all of you that this burger is too tall.
When I cook burgers, I use already ground meat. I like to season it about the same way Chef Keller does, however, I make the patties thiner to allow the meat to be cooked in a few minutes and to be able to add layers of goodies on it.
When I go through the trouble of chopping the meat myself, it's to eat it raw !
I think that our fancy chef need to go to the midwest and see how a real hamburger is made, keep your fancy additives.
And what the hell makes a "midwest" burger so great? I lived in the midwest and it was the same crap as anywhere else.
Anyway, yes the burger is too tall, and who wants a entire cross section of onion on their burger? I also think the patty itself is far too thick for the whole sandwich to be balanced.
I didn't know you could acheive a "ground" consistency with a knife! I'll have to give that the old college try.
As for searing: no it does not seal in juices. If it did, your steak would explode on the grill or burst in your mouth like a sausage. And even if it did, you would have to sear every sq. mm. of surface area to seal in the juices.
Another tip: Press down on the center of the raw burger with your knuckles so that the middle is thinner than the edges. Then, when the burger swells as it cooks, it will be even instead of shaped like a ball.
I think I read that in Cooks Illustrated. It works.
Pretty Clever, Remander!
I like it...
I thought the video was great and offered many great suggestions. I will use his tips as a guide in my own burger making. Whether you choose to make a tall burger that's entirely up to you. Put whatever you want on as toppings. He's just teaching you the basics. This is what I took away: Use ground beef with fat or chop your own. Add fresh ingredients. Use medium heat and don't flatten the bread. Mmmh i'm hungry just typing this.
If you don't have the knife skills of a professional chef, you can finely chop beef quite satisfactorily in a food processor.
Although all Chef Keller's tips were valuable individually, that final burger was far from "ultimate": too tall, too over-complicated.
Psh. Clearly French chefs know nothing about cooking a burger.
A perfect burger is grilled, not pan fried.
The ultimate burger needs nothing except maybe some cheese and some steamed or lightly toasted buns. Pesto and shortribs in a burger? That is blasphemy.
I prefer burgers a slimmer and more uniform thickness. I have been using two plastic coffee can lids (smaller cans) to form burgers for 20 years. I learned that trick in college cooking at a Chili's restaurant and it works wonderfully. As for adding ingredients to the meat, why not? I realize it can be more like meatloaf but cooking should be about exploration as well as honoring tradition. There is room for both.
Great video! One thing I would like to have included was how you know the burger is done to your liking (without cutting into it to see).
ok...well after reading the comments I still dont know what he put in that freekishly tall burger...It sounded like "strawberries" to me, but that could not be right. Ok, I am most greatful for the video, but I cannot help but think I might end up pulling a long grey hair out of that burger on the first bite. I know I know I have issues...
best burger I've had was vigorously cooked on a flattop--lots of crusted juices and flavor up the yin-yang. It was flat, juicy (not rare)not 'allowed to rest'.
I haven't watched it, but I always make mine with chopped steak. The only thing that goes in mine is diced onion, a touch of olive oil, and an egg (for 450g of steak).
I totally don't like filling the actual burger; a dollop of gorgonzola on the top half of the bun is fine.
Is it just me? Is he using that honing steel all wrong?!
i wish the producers of these videos would stop adding that drumming in the background. Most annoying!
I'm so going to Burger Bar in Vegas!
Looks delicious - but I agree with other posters that the burger should be more easy to eat. I have a big mouth ... but not that big!
cscott: If you salt it and just put it back into the fridge for a while, then yeah, the juices are going to get pulled out.
Sigh. As (almost) everyone knows, searing the meat does not seal in juices. Maybe chef is too busy with his hair conditioner to read McGee.
It looked friggin amazing, I dunno why everyone keeps complaining. Looks absolutely delicious...
I'm more curious about the cutting the steak by hand though. First of all, I never considered trying it by hand. Lets say my knife skills are basic, do I have a shot? I do have a very sharp Japanese chefs knife.
Second of all, what does he say as he's cutting up the piece of steak. He says "You can use chuck or you can use (garbled) steak".. Did he say strip steak? as in striploin? They don't sell "whole chuck" at my very limited supermarket
thanks
Soop, why the egg?
As for the height. In my limited experience, in countries in which beef is expensive, a "burger" - is much higher on the feeding chain. It is treated with more skill and complexity. It is its own dish , between what we in NA call burger, and steak. It is not intended to be eaten in a bun . Keller's dish is a fusion burger, and probably a lot better deconstructed.
What do ya"all think?
Look at that ridiculous burger! No one could eat that. No one would want to. What is that, like a full pound of meat? I hate when chefs serve food that is made to impress, rather than to eat.
Even though the burger looks absolutely amazing, I think it's too tall to eat comfortably. You are right pjproby, the burger was made more to impress!
I'd still eat the hell out of that burger, even if it is tall. Looks juicy and delicious. It just might be more managable to eat without the huge stack of onions, though.
Despite the burger looking pretty tall, this is still the best single video I've see on Chow.
@kesseki: those arent onions, its pineapple
Vinnie; the egg is a legacy of my Nan's hamburgers. It's used to bind the meat together. It probably works, but it's certainly not broken :)
BTW, I had some friends round and knocked together 4 burgers about 30 minutes before they arrived. Everyone took me up on my offer, and they all said it was great! The best thing is, none of them would tread around my feelings, so they really were good (I would have eaten another had I been able).
And cooking them on a cast iron pan definitely made a positive difference.
1st to tell someone they are doing it wrong is wrong. if what they make is yummy to them then its a masterpiece. The instruction in this video are so 1 sided its silly. and the burger he shows in the end is gross its 6-7in tall. The chef must serve Mick Jagger these burgers as he is the only guy with a mouth that big. Sorry just seems anyone can call themselves "chef" now a days
"Sorry just seems anyone can call themselves 'chef' now a days"
-- Are you SERIOUS?
"In 1988 Hubert Keller was ranked as one of the "10 best new chefs in America" by Food & Wine Magazine[3]. In 1997 he won the James Beard Foundation award for best chef in California. Fleur de Lys in San Francisco has been ranked as one of the top 40 restaurants in the United States in 2004, 2005, and 2006 by Gayot restaurant guide[4], and was awarded one Michelin star in 2006. Fleur de Lys has also been ranked as one of the top 25 restaurants in the United States by Food & Wine magazine." -yes quoting wikipedia but you get the idea.
Sorry if you were like 10 years old when he was winning awards, but that doesnt take away from his accomplishments -- the techniques in the video are sound.. you can apply them to a smaller burger.
Yes look at your forum-name for a good example of anyone calling themselves chef.
1st Turkeybone you have no idea who I am
and this burger is trash, its full of misconceptions and miss information. I am no child and I do work as a Chef in a huge restaurant. I am not talking from my ass. and seems you can't grasp the idea that if the food you make is enjoyed its a masterpiece. Its a simple idea not rocket science. Either way I am not taking any kudos from him I am just making the point if its good then its good. no matter who made it. I would hope Hubert Keller would agree. So get some facts that pertain to the subject before you come here and Insult my skills.
"No, rockfish is right, searing doesn't lock in moisture any better. Reference Harold McGee's "On Food & Cooking".
It's amazing how people cam mis-quote McGee. A burger is ground meat not solid muscle. Any one who doesn't believe you can seal the majority of the juices in a burger clearly hasn't cooked many burgers.
Ever see a burger swell when you put it under a broiler? Searing may not contain 100% of the juice but it makes your product taste better and you can quote McGee on that! ;)
I hope for cleanliness's sake, Hubert wears a hair net before making his burgers for public consumption!
1. Chef, that's a very tasty looking meatloaf, not a hamburger. I agree that you should experiment, but you added in a LOT of ingredients.
2. The short ribs honestly ruined the loafburger for me. I'm not sure I would have stuffed it with that. The stuffing I like the most would be some simple slices of cheese, Jucy Lucy style.
3. WOW, that's a tall loafburger. I want to be able to fit my mouth around the top without squashing everything and having the condiments spill onto my hands. That makes me one sad panda.
4. Ugh, you pan seared the loafburger? You can have your pan, I'll take a charcoal grill. Thanks.
As for if searing locks in juices or not, I don't care. I prefer the taste of grilled beef.
Ugh. This is making me crave a nice grilled hamburger...
Yeah, next time I'm feeding a bunch of friends outdoors, I'll serve up a bunch of Tower Burgers that are so tall they need guy wires to keep them upright. Then after all my friends are done laughing, we'll send someone out to Five Guys to buy a sack of burgers we can actually eat and not just admire sitting on a plate.
I also agree with keeping the burger simple, and letting each person dress it up to their liking. If they want pesto, or onions, or pineapple, or short ribs, or God-knows-what-else on their burger, they can do it themselves.
I still like to sear, but not to 'seal in the juices', as that's been disproven by even my own experimentation. Yes, the Maillard reaction produces all sorts of incredible and interesting flavors and textures...but searing gives that non-Maillard caramelized crust that I like. I've found, though, that doing it at the end of the cooking process rather than the beginning keeps the burger (or any piece of meat) much juicier.
Am I wrong or did he tell us not to salt the meat ahead of time, and then proceed to salt the meet ahead of time?
great video though. i love this series.
1) lean meat makes a fine burger. fat dilutes flavor when it's more than a few % of the food. especially if you're adding cheese, a 90 or 95% lean burger is going to be plenty moist if you don't cook it past medium. ground kobe is wasted money. the point of grinding meat is that you can add fat if it's too lean, and turn any meat into kobe-fatty meat. but it's too much fat, anyway.
2) what's with all the mix-ins? this is a burger, not ice cream. in fact, that's not necessary for ice cream either.
3) olive oil is just fine also. evoo can't handle super-high heat, but refined ("extra light") oo will. better than canola, in fact. and he uses way too much of that, in a pan that's making way too much smoke. then he spoons it over his burger, which already has 3X more fat than it needs.
4) toast the bun. don't fry it in more oil.
5) ketchup (heinz), mustard (yellow or dijon), lettuce (iceberg or butter), pickle (claussen hearty garlic, sliced paper-thin) on a potato bun.
Duckdown, That was an onion, not a pineapple slice. He merely suggested the use of pineapple on a burger, which by the way, is delicious!
I find it not a little amusing that while Chef Keller is presenting this video on burger-craft, he did not win the burger quickfire challenge on this past summer's Top Chef Masters.
While I may not agree with all of his methods or even end products, Chef Keller is obviously very passionate about burgers. If such talented chefs continue getting excited about what was considered a gastronomic throwaway when it first appeared, we all have a reason to be rejoice, traditional and non-traditional burger lovers alike.
Lots of good information but agree its to tall to eat in a bun