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Ranch Burgers

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on October 14, 2011

Yield

Serves 4

Ranch Burgers

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds 85 percent lean ground chuck ⅔ cup crumbled blue cheese 2 cloves garlic, minced4 teaspoons powdered ranch dressing mix (from packet) ½ teaspoon table salt ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Before You Begin

Although we usually enjoy our burgers medium-rare, with extra ingredients added, tasters found that the burgers were too soft unless cooked through (basically, well-done).

Instructions

  1. Break beef into small pieces in medium bowl. Add cheese, garlic, ranch mix, salt, and pepper. Using fork, toss until evenly distributed. Divide mixture into 4 equal portions and lightly pack into 1-inch-thick patties.
  2. When coals are ready and grate is hot, dip wad of paper towels in vegetable oil and use tongs to rub oil over grate. Grill burgers over very hot fire, without pressing down on them, until well seared on both sides and cooked through, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer to plate, tent with foil, and let rest 5 minutes. Serve.
Ranch Burgers
Photography by Daniel J. van Ackere. Styling by Janette Zepeda.

Ranch Burgers

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds 85 percent lean ground chuck
⅔ cup crumbled blue cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 teaspoons powdered ranch dressing mix (from packet)
½ teaspoon table salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds 85 percent lean ground chuck
⅔ cup crumbled blue cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 teaspoons powdered ranch dressing mix (from packet)
½ teaspoon table salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds 85 percent lean ground chuck
⅔ cup crumbled blue cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 teaspoons powdered ranch dressing mix (from packet)
½ teaspoon table salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Why This Recipe Works

To keep our Ranch Burgers’ toppings from sliding out from beneath the bun, we created a recipe that put them inside the burger, where they couldn’t fall out. We added our recipe’s ingredients straight into the burger mix. Our recipe calls for 85 percent lean ground beef, which kept the burgers from being too greasy. And because the ingredients were mixed into the meat, we found it best to cook the burgers to well-done. The blue cheese kept them from being dry or tough.

Before You Begin

Although we usually enjoy our burgers medium-rare, with extra ingredients added, tasters found that the burgers were too soft unless cooked through (basically, well-done).

Instructions

  1. Break beef into small pieces in medium bowl. Add cheese, garlic, ranch mix, salt, and pepper. Using fork, toss until evenly distributed. Divide mixture into 4 equal portions and lightly pack into 1-inch-thick patties.
  2. When coals are ready and grate is hot, dip wad of paper towels in vegetable oil and use tongs to rub oil over grate. Grill burgers over very hot fire, without pressing down on them, until well seared on both sides and cooked through, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer to plate, tent with foil, and let rest 5 minutes. Serve.

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Appears In

Magazine

June / July 2006

Key Equipment

Equipment

The Best Kitchen Tongs

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