You can make burgers flat by either pressing down on the raw patty before cooking or by smashing them flat during cooking.
Here's a breakdown of techniques:
Pre-Cooking Flattening:
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Thumb Impression: Before cooking, create a shallow indentation in the center of the raw patty using your thumb. This helps prevent the burger from bulging during cooking.
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Smash Before Forming: Instead of gently forming a ball and then a patty, slightly flatten the ground meat before even forming the patty. This creates a denser, flatter starting point.
Flattening During Cooking ("Smash Burgers"):
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The Smash Technique: Place a ball of ground meat onto a hot, flat cooking surface (griddle or cast iron pan). Immediately smash it down using a sturdy spatula.
- Use the right tools: A stiff, wide spatula is crucial.
- Add pressure: Apply significant pressure to flatten the patty as much as possible.
- Timing is key: Smash the burger immediately after placing it on the hot surface. Waiting even a few seconds will make it harder to flatten.
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Why Smash Burgers Work: This technique maximizes surface area contact with the hot surface, creating a delicious crust and ensuring even cooking, resulting in a flat, juicy burger.
Why Burgers Puff Up and How Flattening Helps:
Burgers tend to puff up because the edges cook faster than the center, causing the meat to shrink and contract. The moisture in the center turns to steam, creating pressure that forces the burger to bulge. Flattening, especially the smash burger technique, addresses this by:
- Promoting even cooking: More surface area in contact with the heat ensures faster and more uniform cooking.
- Reducing moisture buildup: The increased surface area allows more moisture to escape, preventing the steam pressure that causes bulging.
By employing either the pre-cooking or during-cooking flattening techniques, you can achieve consistently flat, delicious burgers.
