When we go to restaurants and order a burger, they are brought out to us looking and tasting amazing! Big, juicy, and just about perfect in every way. Then we try to duplicate that at home, and it just doesn’t come out quite the same way. So why do burgers taste better in restaurants?
One of the ingredients that restaurants have in cooking their burgers is that the equipment they use is top of the line. The tools and accessories you use when making your burgers are just as important as the burgers themselves. In most cases, restaurants will be using a cast iron griddle that has been seasoned to perfection and is well taken care of. Since these are commercial griddles, they are set to a temperature that will create the perfect burger just about every time.
You may have seen in restaurant kitchens where they add the burger patty to the griddle and it immediately sizzles to get that nice outer crust. The chef also has the knowledge of how the inside of the burger is cooked just by pressing on it – you’ve seen that before on various cooking shows!
We have mentioned in other posts about the importance of using the right tools, and good tools, to create your burger masterpiece. Restaurants not only have the perfect griddle, but they also use spatulas that help in the process. Use a good, sturdy stainless-steel spatula to be able to get under the burger when flipping so you catch all of the great pieces of the burger.
While we know that you can’t use a commercial griddle at home, is there a way to create a restaurant-quality burger at home that tastes just as great? Of course, there is! Read on to find out how.
How to Make Your Burger Like a Restaurant Burger
The most important things to know when making the perfect burger have been talked about multiple times, but since they are so important we want to briefly touch on them again here, so bear with us! These are also part of why burgers taste better in restaurants.
Make sure you are using a good lean-to-fat ratio of beef. A ratio of 80/20 or even 70/30 will produce the most flavorful and juicy burger as it is the fat that is the flavor.
You can also opt to grind your own mixture. A mixture of steak, brisket, and short ribs makes a great burger. We have also used flat iron steak for burgers. We weren’t sure how that would turn out, but to our surprise, it was actually really good! Check out how we did this here.
Be sure to keep your ground beef cold until ready to cook. You can prepare the patties beforehand and keep them in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper just prior to cooking. Or use the seasoning of your choice. You don’t need to add a bunch of fillers or binders. If made correctly, your burger won’t fall apart and all those additives just turn it into a meatloaf!
Shape those patties, but be sure to not overwork the meat. It is best to use a patty shaper like the Perfect Patty Shpaerz™ (coming soon) to get the best out of your burger.
Remember to use great condiments and toppings to make the burger your own. And by all means, please add the cheese!
Enough of all this – what will make these burgers as you had in your favorite restaurant?
If you do everything we talked about you truly have a great start to creating the perfect restaurant-style burger. Trust us, all if this is worth mentioning.
As for the cooking method, cast iron is actually the way to go. As mentioned previously, restaurants use hot griddles to create their burgers. Cast iron has a searing power that no other type of material has, which is great for that crusty burger. Cast iron is slow to heat up and therefore slow to cool down. It is a great regulator of temperature so you won’t have temperature spikes that can create an uneven cook in your burger.
You do need to remember that your cast iron pan or griddle does need to be seasoned properly. Most pans you buy today will say pre-seasoned. While this is nice, they still need a complete and proper seasoning of the pan for it to truly work like a cast iron pan should. Also, each time you use your skillet or griddle, it continues to add to the seasoning process. Cast iron is naturally non-stick, but it can be a stick nightmare if not seasoned properly.
You can also use a cast iron skillet or griddle on the stovetop or on the outside grill if you don’t want to deal with the grill grates. Cast iron works great in the oven also due to its ability to retain heat.
Why Do Fast Food Burgers Taste So Good?
We love the fast-food burgers from In N Out, Shake Shack, and Steak n Shake among others, but what makes the burgers from these restaurants so good? It is definitely all of the above, but another thing as to why they are so good is the griddle. I know, we said that before, but the thing is that while these restaurants scrape off the griddle, they don’t actually clean it throughout the day. Not the end-of-the-day cleaning and scrubbing.
Since these and the big restaurants just scrape the excess crumbs down, the griddle remains seasoned with the flavor of the burgers each time they are cooked. Since these restaurants are cooking dozens of burgers daily, their griddles will retain the seasoning from the meat adding flavor each time a burger is made.
While you will season your skillet and griddle at home, and that seasoning will increase each time you cook, you won’t get the amount of seasoning on the pan as the restaurants do because of the number of burgers they are making.
This is not to say that you can’t get a great burger just like the restaurants. You absolutely can with a bit of practice and experimenting with different meats and burger additions.
What Makes a Perfect Burger?
Well, this is a very subjective question. We all have our idea of the perfect burger. Is it a half or quarter-pound burger with mustard, ketchup, lettuce, and pickle on a sesame seed bun? Or is it a double crush burger with cheese in the middle and sautéed onions? These burgers sound wonderful and certainly are, but there are certain elements that make a burger what you might consider perfect.
In addition to using the right lean-to-fat ratio in your meat to give it that fantastic flavor, you want to use good seasonings, great condiments, and toppings, and even the bun can make a difference.
So what are the right elements out of all of these? You tell us! It is ultimately what you love your burgers to be. We love burgers with just salt and pepper, but adding garlic gives the meat a great kick of added flavor. The type of seasoning also makes a difference if you are making a burger out of ground chicken or turkey. Using just the white meat will make your burgers dryer as the white meat is leaner. Try mixing some of the dark meat with the white to get a juicier chicken or turkey burger. If you don’t have a meat grinder, no problem. You can chop the meat up with just a knife, or have your butcher create a blend for you.
The different types of wonderful cheese can make a huge difference in your burger. We love the creamy meltiness of the American cheese slices and using cheddar gives your burger a sharper flavor. Beware though that cheddar also has a greasy texture when melted, so keep that in mind if using.
You can go for a lighter, yet tangy, choice of cheese such as goat cheese. There is also smoked gouda that is great paired with a smoky barbeque sauce, which would be great on those chicken burgers.
Then there is the bun. You have your classic white hamburger bun, a potato bun that is, yes, made with potatoes, and fries go with burgers, right? Then there is one of our favorites – brioche. This bun has a buttery flavor that just sings with a burger. As always, toast any bun you use to keep it from getting soggy.
This is just the beginning of what can make a perfect burger. The question of why do burgers taste better in restaurants is really due to the burgers being made on the griddle and the toppings they add to them. That’s why you will see so many choices on the menu – so you can pick the one that has on it what you want. Or you can create your own. If you don’t have a cast iron skillet, using another type of pan or your outside can still create a great burger. These restaurants have professional chefs and cooks that do this all day. There is nothing to say that you cannot create a perfect burger at home.
Conclusion
Why do burgers taste better in a restaurant? Truly, some do and some don’t. That’s why there are so many choices of restaurants out there – bigger restaurants and fast-food restaurants. We have made some great burgers at our house, and some not so great!
If you follow our guidelines, you can create some great tasting burgers right at home. Be sure to experiment with seasonings, toppings, and even the bun. There are also many ways to cook burgers that you may like better than on the stove or grill. You can cook burgers in the oven or in an air fryer. We don’t recommend a microwave.
Let us know how you create your restaurant-quality burgers at home. We love to hear your ideas.
Keep lovin’ those burgers!
Below is a Pinterest-friendly photo . . . so you can pin it to your Burger Board!
