Making hamburger patties ahead of time is an easy way to have the convenience of frozen patties ready for anytime you want to have it. It is nice having more items I can just grab and go with and it adds to my list of freezer meals.
I usually freeze my patties plain and then season them once they are on the grill or on the stove so that allows me to decide what flavors I want to incorporate into them at the moment. I also freeze them plain just in case I want to use the frozen patties to make Salisbury Steak or Swiss steak.
I use 80/20 ground beef which is 80% lean beef and 20% fat. If you use less fat, your burgers may fall apart when you cook them. The fat is what binds the meat together and adds flavor.
Also, be sure to make all your patties as uniform in size as you can so they cook evenly. I used a burger press but it is not necessary...just more convenient.
Also, be sure not to over form your patties. Just like you can over handle bread dough, the same can be said with beef. If you poke and prod the meat too much you will get a tough tasting burger.
I also place a "thumbprint" into the middle of each patty.
The reason that I put a thumbprint into the center of the patty is to ensure that the patty doesn't swell up in the middle when it cooks. If you do not do this, the patty is curved over the center and to get it to cook all the way through, you end up with crispy edges. With the thumbprint, you get a nice looking burger that is cooked evenly.
Okay, what I do first is line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Now, take a handful of your ground beef into your hand.
Use your burger press or just use your hands and form the meat into a hamburger patty.
Place the formed patty onto the parchment paper lined pan. Repeat until you have formed all your patties.
Place the pan full of burgers into the freezer and allow each patty to become frozen until solid, generally about 2-3 hours. Once they are frozen, remove each patty from the cookie sheet and place each patty into a gallon freezer bag. Separate each patty with a small piece of parchment paper to keep them from sticking to one another. Be sure to get as much air as you can out of the bag before sealing them up to prevent freezer burn. You can also wrap the burgers in cling wrap to prevent freezer burn or you can vacuum seal the bag, your choice.
I can get 16 patties out of a 5 pound roll.
I hope you have found this post useful and while you are here, why don't you check out my recipe for Salisbury Steak, Homemade Hamburger Buns and Sweet Pickle Relish. Both are a great compliment to a burger!
I'm going to try that thumbprint tip - thanks! Cheers
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