The Meathead Method Sneak Peek

[SheilaAnn]

Here is a sneak peek into The Meathead Method!

MYTH. Never squish a burger with your spatula while it is on the grill.

BUSTED. When we squish a burger on a grill, melted fat, meat juices, and seasonings that hit flame or glowing coals vaporize and land on the burger and flame jumps up to sear the meat. This is good. The problem is that if you have a burger that is 20% fat, the common blend, a few squishes results in a hard dry patty. The way to combat this is to up the fat content of the raw burger to 30%. Now when you squish you can afford to lose some fat. This, however, causes another problem: 30% burgers might break or crumble when squished. So cook them on a grill topper so the juices can drip through.



My new book, The Meathead Method, is out May 13. The great Alton Brown said it is “The only book on outdoor cookery you’ll ever need.”

You can pre-order on Amazon at tinyurl.com/meatheadmethod.

If you buy a copy, take a selfie with the book when it arrives, post it on your favorite social media channels, send a link to [email protected] I’ll send you a link where you can download our new eBook on Heavenly Hamburgers.

[Huskee]

I've also found higher-fat meat is awful to work with when it starts warming up. A sticky mess. Gloves and wet hands helps. Best to use meat straight from the fridge, and if you have a lot of patties to make, pull chunks of beef out at a time to patty up, don't let the whole pile sit there warming up. Lastly, Amazon sells parchment paper portions, rounds or squares, for cheap (a penny each if you shop around), they are your friend for making & stacking patties and for smash burgers!

[Oak Smoke]

Is there a chance that there are some autographed copy’s available for pit members to buy?

[Huskee]

I know there will be some with signed bookplates, but as far as signed or custom-signed, that's to be determined...

[mrichie1229]

Huskee What if we already pre-ordered on Amazon?

[Meathead]

We'll get you signed bookplates!

[STEbbq]

I don’t always use custom blends for burgers so 30% isn’t always doable but a griddle insert is absolutely a great idea. I have been using it for a while now for burgers and it makes a big difference for exactly the reasons you state around juiciness. It also ensures a more uniform look and presentation versus scraggly edges.

[yakima]

"scraggly"
Obviously a BBQ term of art.

[STEbbq]

yakima technical term I know. But we are all geniuses here.

[GolfGeezer]

STEbbq +1 on the griddle for burgers (and a lot of other cooks!). That's one reason I love my Weber Slate griddle - whether smash burger style or pub burger style, the burgers are juicy with a great crusty exterior. And easy to melt the cheese with a dome and a squirt of water.

[GolfGeezer]

SheilaAnn WOW! We were on Newport, between Clark and Halstead. You were in what was becoming the "New Town" area. Our street was "owned" by the Latin Eagles (only friendly if you lived there). This early '70's before the area started to gentrify, converting the townhomes to condos. I hear it is pretty upscale these days. Waaaay different back then.

[J-Melt]

Closest I got up there was working at Belmont and Leavitt for a year at the coffee shop

Edit: lies, I lived in Logan square for a sumner after college off Milwaukee and something that I don’t remember.

[STEbbq]

GolfGeezer I lived near San Francisco for a year or two and went to university in Redlands in SoCal. I was in the area for about 8 years. I definitely liked California for the weather but can’t make it work job wise. I greatly prefer Chicago over living in the LA area though for traffic!

[SmokingSteve]

I just placed my pre-order. Hopefully it will arrive in time for my birthday. The 16th.