photo by Torll

When I was a kid, I never paid attention to how my family made burgers. Some were burned on the outside and pink on the inside. Some ended up as charred UFOs, and all the toppings invariably oozed out when I tried to eat. I remember cutting open and inspecting the hard-as-rock beef hockey pucks just to decide whether I wanted a hamburger or a hot dog.

As an adult, I now realize there’s a bit more to creating a great burger than flattening some ground beef and tossing it on the grill. My children have never had to suffer the deformed burgers I ate in my youth. I felt it was my duty to end the cycle of horrid hamburgers.

For the tastiest burgers, I like to use ground chuck. In the past, I used a patty-maker so I could make and freeze several at once. The problem is, the meat gets compressed so the burgers don’t turn out juicy enough. I discovered that if I use a measuring cup to scoop the meat, it gives me enough to work with, and my burgers come out thick yet symmetrical. The trick is not to overhandle, press too hard or add too many ingredients to the ground beef when creating the patties. Press them just enough to form a nice shape.

There’s nothing wrong with a simple ground-beef burger. You can always pile on the toppings after your burgers are cooked to give them more flavor. If you do add ingredients to the beef, such as onions or celery, mince them so the meat holds together on the grill.

Another hint: If you indent the center a bit with the underside of a spoon, the top won’t round out. Once your burgers are on the grill, resist flattening them with a spatula. Doing so presses out the juices and creates something fit only for a shuffleboard court.

Are you tired of burgers topped with the usual suspects — tomatoes, lettuce, onions, relish, ketchup and mustard? Try the following ideas to take your burgers beyond fast food.

NOT JUST FOR SALAD: Try using ranch, Caesar, blue-cheese or thousand-island dressing to liven up your burgers.

CHANGE THE BUN: Instead of the typical hamburger roll, try using rye bread, bagels, English muffins, croissants or tortillas.

PIZZA BURGER: Use pizza sauce and mozzarella cheese.

CREATIVE CRUNCH: Instead of lettuce, try cole slaw or cucumbers.

STROGANOFF BURGER: Add onions, sour cream and mushrooms.

TACO BURGER: Add taco sauce or salsa, lettuce, cheese, black olives, tomatoes and sour cream.

CHILI BURGER: Add chili and cheese.

RANCH BLT: Add bacon, lettuce, tomato and ranch salad dressing.

STUFFED-PEPPER BURGER: Add green peppers, cooked rice, tomato sauce and cheddar cheese.

BBQ BURGER: Top the patty with barbecue sauce, onions and bacon.

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