A burger press, also called a patty press, is a kitchen tool that allows you to make perfectly flat burgers.
You can use it to make your own patties out of ground meat, or you can use it to reshape pre-made patties and form them into perfect rounds.
No matter what kind of burger you’re making, a burger press will help you get the shape and consistency you want.
It’s also great for making other kinds of patties, like crab cakes or fish cakes. The best part is that once you have your burger shaped perfectly, all it takes is one quick flip in the pan and it’s ready to go!
Benefits of Using a Burger Press
If you love burgers, but hate the time and mess it takes to make them, there’s good news: a burger press can help you create perfectly round burgers in no time at all.
Here are three reasons why you need a burger press in your life:
Helps Make Perfectly Round Burgers
A burger press is designed to help you form perfect patties every time, which means that when you’re done cooking, each piece of meat will be the same size as every other piece—and your guests won’t get confused about which part of the burger they should try first.
So whether they’re looking for a juicy patty or a crispy crust, they’ll get exactly what they want every time!
Makes Burger Making Quick and Easy
When it comes to cooking burgers on the grill or indoors with an oven broiler or stovetop burner, using a burger press can make all the difference.
No matter how much experience you have making burgers by hand, using one will cut down your prep time by at least half—and then some!
With just one press instead of two hands, you’ll have more time to actually enjoy yourself (and not clean up).
Elimination of Messy Hands When Forming Burgers
When you’re using your hands to form burgers, they get really messy.
You end up with raw meat all over your hands, making it impossible to do anything else until you wash them off.
With a burger press, you can use the included gloves so that no matter how much raw meat gets on them, it won’t get on your hands!
Keep That Raw Meat Cold
If you’re making burgers by hand, then chances are good that the meat will get warm as you try to form it into patties.
This can result in overcooked burgers that aren’t nearly as tasty as they could be.
With a burger press, however, the meat stays at an optimal temperature for cooking and doesn’t get too warm while you’re pressing it.
This means that your burgers will be cooked perfectly every time!
How to Use a Burger Press
1. Prepare your meat:
- If you are using ground beef, make sure it is at room temperature. This will ensure that the texture of your burger is well-blended and cohesive.
- If you are using a patty that has already been formed, heat a pan on medium-high heat for about 5 minutes.
2. Shape your patty:
- Place the burger press on top of your hamburger patty and push down until it forms an even thickness throughout its surface area.
3. Cook the burger:
- Once you’ve pressed the burger into shape, place it in a nonstick skillet over medium heat.
- Cook for 3 to 4 minutes per side (depending on thickness) or until desired doneness is reached. You’re done!
Tips for Using a Burger Press
You’ve got a new burger press, and you’re ready to make the best burgers ever. But you’re also nervous—what if you mess up? What if the burgers fall apart? We’ve got some tips for avoiding common pitfalls.
- Make sure your burgers are properly aligned in the press. If they aren’t lined up correctly, they’ll be difficult to get out of the press, and they’ll probably fall apart as soon as you put them on your grill.
- Don’t over-pack your burger press. If you do, it will be difficult for the patties to get through the holes in your press, and then again when you try to get them off of your grill. If there’s too much meat, it will stick together and make it hard for the burgers to cook evenly.
- Don’t use too much pressure when pressing down on the burger press! Pressing too hard can cause all sorts of problems: The burgers won’t come out easily; they won’t cook evenly, and there’s even a chance that you might break something in your kitchen (though we hope not!). You want to apply just enough pressure so that when you’re done, the patty is about 1/4 inch thick. If you go any thinner than that, your burger will be too thin and could fall apart when you try to flip it!
- Don’t overfill the burger press. If there’s too much meat in the pan or on top of your press, then it won’t get flattened properly. You want just enough meat so that each patty is about 4 inches across (or about the size of a normal hamburger).
FAQs about Burger Presses
Are burger presses worth it?
The answer is yes! Sure, you can use a spatula to smash your ground beef into patties, but that’ll take forever and you’ll probably end up with a bunch of crumbs stuck in the cracks of the grill. On the other hand, a burger press makes perfectly round patties fast and easy. It’s also really good for getting even pressure on the meat so that when you flip it over, it won’t fall apart.
What can I use instead of a burger press?
You could try using two spatulas: one to hold down one side of the patty while pressing down with the other side. Or if you want to go old-school, use your hands! Just make sure you don’t get any grease on them before you start handling raw meat!
Conclusion
The burger press is a great way to get the perfect patty every time. It’s easy to use, and it can be used on any grill, so you don’t need to buy a new one. The burger press comes in many different sizes, so you can have the perfect size for everyone in your family!
The purpose of a burger press is to pack meat together tightly, so that when it cooks, it will form a patty that is even and uniform in thickness. This means that you’ll have fewer overcooked or undercooked patties in your batch of burgers. Plus, it helps keep moisture in the burger while cooking so that you don’t end up with dry patties or meatballs.
If you want to make sure your burgers are packed tightly enough without having to press down on them manually, consider investing in a burger press. You’ll be able to get the same results as if you were using your hands but without having to exert any physical effort at all!
