How to Achieve Your Personal Burger Best 1

Let’s talk burgers — big (but not too big), juicy and perfectly turned, with or without cheese, tucked inside a fancy bakery brioche or a basic potato bun, dressed to the nines or served neat. It’s nearly impossible to discuss the finer points of burgers without working up an appetite. But there’s no nibbling around the fact that some burgers are better than others. The question, then: What’s the key to making sure your burgers rank among the best?

According to The New York Times, a lot of it comes down to what you cook the burger on, and those known for the most-perfect patties insist on “heavy, cast-iron pans and griddles.” Yes, even if you’re cooking outside on a grill. Heat the meat in a pan over the fire. Don’t place your patties directly on the grill. “The point is to allow rendering beef fat to gather around the patties as they cook, like a primitive high-heat confit,” Times Senior Editor Sam Sifton explains as he strives to deconstruct “the perfect burger.”

Documentary filmmaker (2005′s Hamburger America) and burger expert George Motz contends that using a skillet allows the grease to function not only as a cooking agent, but also as a “condiment that is as natural as the beef itself.” George compares a “great burger” to “a baked potato, or sashimi,” telling Sam, “It should taste completely of itself.”