Bowman - Gourmet Burgers: That will Fire up your Grilling Season

Quick whats Americas favorite food to grill? Steak? Nah. Ribs? Not quite. Brats? Not by a long shot. The envelope, please. According to the American Barbecue Industry Association, the dish we fire up our grills most frequently for is the classic American hamburger. Last year, Americans consumed billionsnearly 150 burgers a year for every man, woman, and child.

The term hamburger originally derives from Hamburg, Germany's second largest city, from which many people immigrated to the United States. In High German, Burg means fortified settlement or fortified refuge and is a widespread component of place names. Hamburger, in the German language, is the demonym of Hamburg. Similar to frankfurter and wiener, names for other meat-based foods, being demonyms of the cities of Frankfurt and Vienna (Wien), respectively.

The term "burger", a back-formation, is associated with many different types of sandwiches similar to a (ground meat) hamburger, using different meats, such as a Buffalo burgers, Chicken, Venison, Turkey, Salmon burgers or Veggie burgers

Inside Gourmet Burgers That will Fire up your Grilling Season

This book specializes on Gourmet Burgers best served and enjoyed during the long hot summer BBQ season. Given the combination of the long hot summer nights, families gathered around the grill and the wonderful flavors and smells created from Grilling in the open.

The idea behind this book is to make those evenings special for the whole family. Gourmet Burgers that will Fire up your Grilling Season contains easy to follow recipe ideas to help you create homemade delicious burgers perfect for the summer grilling season. That the whole family will enjoy..Youll not only learn some new recipes, but Tips to make your grilling easier and Give you the perfect Burger. From Traditional Beef to the Exotic meats,(Bison, Elk) Chicken and some Specialty ones. That im sure will wow your family and friends. I hope you enjoy this Book and the recipes and knowledge I have given you. I hope this book provides a joyous experience to the tummy and soul,

Youll also learn:

What cuts to use to make the perfect blend of freshly ground meat?

The optimum ratio of lean meat to fat. When cooking traditional Beef burgers

Techniques for forming and grilling the perfect patty that stays juicy even when cooked to a safe temperature of 160 degrees F.

Burger dos and donts, including what not to do with your spatula.

The Ultimate Burger

Here are his twenty secrets to grilling the perfect burger:

Use grass-fed beef. It tastes better, poses less risk of bacterial contamination, and is healthier for the planet. Or Farm fresh Chicken, and Fresh seafood.

Grind the beef from a combination of brisket and chuck (beef shoulder clod) in a ratio of 45 to 55 percent. The brisket provides the richness; the chuck, a rich beefy flavor.

Keep the fat content at 22 percent; this is the single most important taste factor. Sorry, folks: Youll have to cut back on your fat intake somewhere else.

Grind the meat twice through the coarse plate of a meat grinder. Freeze the grinder parts before grinding the meat to minimize the heat generated by friction. Heat softens the fat, which makes for an inferior burger.

The perfect weight for a full-size burger is 9 ounces. Make the patty at least 1 inch thick and at least 1 inch larger in diameter than the bun. That way, when the burger cooks down, it will be about the same size as the bun.

When forming the burger, work quickly and with a light touch, packing the meat as loosely as possible. You get a lighter texture and less shrinkage if you dont pack the meat.

Make a slight depression in the center of each patty. Burgers shrink more at the edges than in the center, so the indentation in the center will give you a patty of a more even thickness when the meat is cooked.

If you form the burgers ahead of time (and you can), store them in the refrigerator in a single layer so as not to crush the meat.

For the best flavor, grill the burgers over the embers of a hardwood fire

Immediately prior to putting the burgers on the grill, salt the tops salt the other side when you turn the burgers.

Use a spatula for turning the burgers but never, ever press the tops with the spatula. Pressing the burgers serves only to squeeze out the juices.

The total cooking time will be 4 to 5 minutes for a rare burger; 6 to 7 minutes for medium-rare. Turn the burgers only once. This gives you the best crust.

Temper the burgersthat is, let them rest on a warm plate for two minutes after grilling before serving them. This relaxes the meat, making it juicier, while simultaneously keeping the juices in the patty, not spilling out into the bun.

Place a thumbnail (about 1 teaspoon) of unsalted butter on top of each hot burger while it rests, for extra moistness and richness.

Buy your buns at a bakery or make them at home.

Shop at your local farmers market. From locally raised lettuce and organic tomatoes, ideally heirlooms.

If you like bacon cheeseburgers, use good smokehouse bacon, for cheese, dont be afraid to vary Types. (Cheddar, Swiss, Mozza, Pepper Jack)

Think seasonal. In the winter forgo the tomatoes for caramelized onions.

Hamburger Safety

When I was growing up, an E.coli outbreak was a freak occurrence. Today you can hardly scan the news without reading about some sort of mass food contamination.

Ground meats seem to be particularly susceptible to contamination. In order to kill E.coli (or other bacteria), you need to cook hamburgers (and other meats) to an internal temperature of 160F. Thats the temperature of medium-done meat.

Some other ways to make hamburgers safer:

Buy your meat at a top-notch butcher shop where the meat is ground daily. If possible, choose your meat before its ground and have the butcher grind it while you wait.

Store the meat in the refrigerator until youre ready to cook it.

Wash any cutting board youve cut meat on with very hot water and plenty of soap immediately after each use.

How to Tell if a Burger Is Done

If you use commercially ground hamburger meat, I strongly recommend that you cook it through, meaning done to medium so theres no trace of red in the center. But how do you tell if a burger is cooked through? Use one of the following three tests.

Use the poke test: Press the center of the burger with the tip of your index fingerit should feel mostly firm, with just the slightest bit of yield in the center.

Take the burgers temperature: Insert the probe of an instant-read meat thermometer though the side of the burger (you wont get an accurate reading if the probe is inserted through the top). The internal temperature should be at least 160F for beer and pork burgers and at least 170F for poultry burgers. Tuna burgers, when made with sushi-quality tuna, can be served rare or medium-rare.

Make a small cut in the center of the burger with the tip of a paring knife. There should be no traces of red and only the faintest blush of pink in the center. Use this method sparingly, as each cut will release tasty juices. When serving the burger, place the cut side down.