Patties fall apart???

[HouseHomey]

Yeah. I think your grinder is in the middle. I have been using this one so long I don’t know the size. I lost the other ones.

Ribeye... geeze. I’m coming to your house. You may need to add some meat. Lol.

When re grinding fatty that can be an issue. The sausage makers in the group can really help with grinding twice.

For sure be easy on the meat or you heat up all that fat. Cold may help your process v mine.

Such a complimentary group. You all humble me..... there, it’s passed.

[mnavarre]

patcrail The coarse disk is what I use for burger grind, in fact I pretty much only use the fine die for sausage and meatballs. Grinding twice through the coarse die shouldn't be an issue either, I grind twice if I'm adding additional fat or grinding a blend of meats, it just makes sure everything is evenly distributed.

Honestly, your grind and your fat ratio probably aren't the issue unless things are too warm and your fat starts smearing. It's more likely that you're not using enough pressure when you form your patties. You don't want to mash the hell out of 'em, but you do need to use enough force that they hang together. So, when I make smash burgers I weigh the meat for the patties and then form a ball using enough force that it wants to stay together. If I'm forming patties I usually use a silicone egg ring as a mold and firmly press the meat in, I'm not mashing it but I'm also not babying it. It's honestly one of those things where once you get it right and get as feel for it it's so easy that you don't even think about it, but it's surprisingly difficult for something so simple.

[patcrail]

HouseHomey , thanks.... did you say my disc looks smaller or bigger than yours? I couldn’t quite tell from your comment.... as far as ribeye, that was only because it was some pretty lean choice ribeye, and the steaks were more like sirloin, had 3 lbs left, so figured I’d practice burgers!

[HouseHomey]

I love that move!! I do that when Sophia ask for hamburger meat to have on hand for the kids when I work. I get briskets or tri tips from Smart n Final or on sale stuff from Ralph’s. It cheaper than hamburger meat these days.
I don’t care. I’ll grind anything.

[patcrail]

So these were the best burgers yet, but still wanted to break a little bit... am I cooking these too low before searing? I’m following MH’s recipe for steakhouse burgers, so indirect at 220, then searing direct at 130-135 IT.... seems like it takes forever to get them ready to sear??? Should I be cooking at higher heat? fzxdoc HouseHomey ?

[patcrail]

And yes, I could have packed them tighter.... everything I read says not to pack them too tight , leave pockets for the fat, so maybe that had me backing off too much? I have a 2lb chuck to try next!

[HouseHomey]

Yeah , I thought that above, that perhaps you babied them. mnavarre cracked me up above. Basically, yup.

I think I have the middle size grinder between yours.

i bet those burgers were tasty though. Didn’t MH use like 12oz patties?? Or was that me? Don’t worry too much about the exact time.

Just make it look like you want it and don’t overcook it.

the chuck will be delicious too!!

[shify]

Agreed. Every recipe and chef is so adamant about overworking it that it can backfire and scare you into not forming it enough. pack it into a burger shape just don’t use your whole weight or one of those burger formers where you press the life out of it. Or keep it loose and make a delicious smash burger or griddle burger which naturally breaks apart a little and the crust holds it together.

I think it’ll also hold together a bit better if your sear to start if you want to keep a thick burger

[HouseHomey]

Did you buy your grinder used?? It almost looks like the blades are dull unless that’s generally how large holed grinds look.

RE: heat

I would cook a little hotter. Looking at the "Marks" on you party it appear it sank into the grate for a while. That’s a warm patty. Perhaps take it from the fridge to the grill with no tempering or cook a closer proximity to the fire.

The burger looks tasty though so this is all guesswork on my part based on the photos.

[patcrail]

HouseHomey mnavarre , thanks! I think that a) babying then too much & b) cooking way too low n slow are the issues I need to work on next. They WERE absolutely delicious, I’m just on a mission to perfect these now!
I did take the patties directly from fridge to grill (literally). And the grinder is brand new, just how the meat comes out of those giant holes.

[Towering Inferno]

This was happening to me too. Discovered I let my meat get to warm before putting on the grill. When the meat is warm when going onto the grill, the moisture escapes the patties with a vengeance and causes the patties to crumble. I experimented different ways to prove it going forward. I didn't flip the burgers for a minimum of 3 1/2 minutes to 4 minutes at high heat. My last and really nice turn out was cooked at 675 degrees. Burgers were juicy and full of flavor and best of all, did not crumble. I tried the add a egg bandaid, did not work. But the meat was warm too. Room temp. So my take away is start with chilled patties. Give it a shot. Lean or full of fat, it shouldn't make too much of a difference. Oh, and this is chuck that we ground ourselves, double grind with the coarse plate to make sure the multiple roasts that were ground were mixed thoroughly.

[Redwng]

We make 1/3 pound burgers with cheese and jalapenos in the meat. We put two in a Foodsaver bag with parchment paper between them. I usually will put them on my GrillGrates Griddle (that is around 450) frozen and have never had an issue with crumbling. Been doing them this way for many years.

[patcrail]

Got it all figured out now, I do believe, and thanks to you all! I wasn’t packing them near enough - too worried about all the warnings about overworking the beef! Was also cooking too low (225 ain’t for the indirect part of burgers) . The last couple of cooks were perfect!