What cuts for grinding your own beef for burgers?

[RonB]

I just ordered the meat grinder attachment for our Kitchenaid stand mixer. I want to grind my own beef so that I can cook to medium instead of well done.

So what cuts would you grind, and at what percentages?

[fzxdoc]

I've got the KitchenAid grinder attachment and am wondering the same thing. I've read Meathead's recommendations and seen his video, but want to hear about exact cuts, percentages, etc. here as well. Thanks for asking the question, RonB .

Kathryn

[RonB]

I've read what Meathead said too, and there are several high end online shops that will custom grind for you, but they are very expensive. I figure I can save the cost of the grinder with just a few pounds of meat bought locally instead of buying online for a hefty price plus shipping...

[lonnie mac]

I go by looks really. 80/20, 70/30 there abouts. My favorite so far is just to get a couple of fatty looking chuck-eye steaks. Man good burgers.

[HackingBBQ]

I'm by no means an expert in this area as I've not experimented with a TON of cuts, but I usually end up using short rib which seems to have a good ratio of meat to fat for my liking. Other times, I'll use a less fatty cut like sirloin and mix in some bacon/fatback or some chorizo to get the fat content up and add flavor.

A tip as you experiment....if you end up too dry after cooking, fry up an egg and throw it on top of the burger. The gooey egg yolk will seep into the meat and hide the dryness. I've used this trick a few times to hide mistakes

[Gooner-que]

I use cryovac packages of some thing called "rib finger" meat. It looks like the meat cut from between the side ribs of a steer. Makes great beefy burgers that are ~70/30, could be 65/35.

[MBMorgan]

Pretty much only chuck eye steak here.

[fzxdoc]

I don't believe I've ever seen "chuck eye" in our grocery stores. The closest is chuck roast which apparently isn't that close.

Kathryn

[lonnie mac]

Here is a good link. I get these down in these parts all the time. Nice and fatty small little steaks.

http://bbq.about.com/od/steakglossary/g/chuck_eye_steak.htm

[Huskee]

I'm sure they're called different things at different places, but man if you can find 'em those little guys are just small ribeyes and far less expensive.

[ecowper]

My grocery store carries chuck steak. Is that the same as chuck eye?

fzxdoc would love to hear how you feel about the KitchenAid grinder before I buy mine :-)

[Darchie03]

If you are looking for a grinder for your Kitchenaid Look on line & find one of the older all metal ones the new ones have a plastic body & don't last very long as there is a lot of pressure inside the grinder. I have one of the older ones for 40+years you just need the after market blades for them.

[Darchie03]

ecowper, D** limit of 300 characters: I even have a spare I will likely never use. If want I can look up where I bought the new blades & grinding plates of all sizes. there much better than the original ones.

[ecowper]

Thanks Darchie03 I will do a bit of checking. If I can't find it, I'll give you a shout.

[HackingBBQ]

Chuck eye steak is different than chuck steak. This article explains the difference: https://grillinfools.com/blog/2013/0...uck-eye-steak/

Chuck eye is great when you can find it but its not often you can in a lot of places. Any time I see them in my local Publix I buy em all and freeze them. They make a great "poor man's ribeye."

[ecowper]

Great, good to know. Thanks

[RonB]

Thanx all - I was expecting to get a few "exotic" replies...

BTW - I passed on some prime Ribeye Cap Steaks at Costco today because I had not seen this cut before, and it was pricey at $19/lb...

[FLBuckeye]

My butcher at my local Publix said that the chuck roast and the chuck steak are the same thing, just that the steaks are sliced thin for grilling. I got a 3.38 lb. chuck roast for Steakburgers and asked him to grind it using the large plate. I also asked himto include 4 oz. more of fat to bump the fat percentage up. Got a nice loose grind and the burgers were fantastic. I had also made the Brioche buns to hold the burgers.

[GBA]

Chuck eye is different than either chuck steak or chuck roast, the Chuck eye is very tender and has exceptional flavor cooked as and any fine steak. Also more expensive than either roast or chuck steak.

[GBA]

I find that brisket and chuck combo makes a great burger. Need to add minimum 25% fat to final blend.

[Rancherstriker]

I use sirloin and add bacon to about 70/30. Just pick fatty bacon.
The egg trick someone else suggested works perfectly if you get your patties too dry.

[Edward Hafer]

A friend of mine and I have an ongoing debate. He uses 1/3 short rib, 1/3 rib eye, and 1/3 brisket. I have been using 3/4 lean chuck and 1/4 dry cured bacon. Both produce excellent results if ground properly.

[ecowper]

I often use lean ground chuck (local butcher sells an 85/15 grind) and then mix it 2-1 with Fletcher's thick cut bacon. Everybody really likes that burger mix.