Perfect Hamburger Patties

I used to hate making hamburgers for my family for three reasons: 1) they always fell apart while cooking, 2) they always shrunk smaller than the bun, and 3) they were all lumpy and funny-shaped.  My mom sometime in my teens started making these hamburgers that were always perfectly shaped, stayed together, and were sometimes even bigger than the bun.  One day she let me in on the secret, and I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it myself.  Duh... 

You'll need two dinner plates and two sheets of wax paper.  If you want to be precise, you can measure out your hamburger, but I usually skip this step.  I weighed mine this time, and they are roughly 5-6 oz. apiece pre-cooked.  Using your hands, mash the hamburger until the squiggly lines from the store's meat grinder are no longer visible, then form your hamburger in to spheres.  

Lay a sheet of wax paper on top of one of the plates, then lay the hamburger sphere on top.  Layer the other sheet of wax paper on top of the sphere.

Place the 2nd plate on top.  Basically, the wax paper serves to prevent the meat from sticking to the plates.  Applying pressure to the top plate, squish the plates together.

Lift up the plate, and check the size of the patty.  I find that if the diameter of the patty is about 2 inches larger than the hamburger bun, you'll have a perfectly sized burger.   Keep squashing till you get the desired size!

Carefully peel the patty from the wax paper, and cook immediately, or if you are prepping for a meal later in the week, simply sandwich the patty between some wax paper, finish enough patties for the meal, and pop them into a Ziploc for a perfectly prepped meal on a busy night.

That works for me!

This post is linked to Feature Me Friday hosted by Fingerprints on the Fridge.