I'm looking for a good way to make some deer burgers this fall. I like the frozen burgers at the store just because it is easy/cheap to buy a box full then grab some out when i want some, throw them on the grill and have dinner ready in a matter of minutes. so im looking for a good way to make pre pattied deer burgers that i can freeze, and save to use throughout the year. i just bought a burger press, so im thinking about grinding the deer and mixing it with either ground pork or 73/27 beef hamburger. then pressing it with the burger press, and freezing it with wax paper between them. think this will work? taste good? stay together while cooking? any tips?
Go with the beef. Adding pork would make ground sausage. It will work, but it won't make a good burger. The key to a good burger is too not pack them too tight. This is why burger presses are horrible. The less handling, the better the burger. My advice. Just ground the beef into the deer, then freeze it ground together in 1 lb sizes. If you want a burger that night, put the ground meat in the sink in the morning, and it will be ready by dinner. Then form the patties, add salt and pepper (that's it), and grill. Takes like 5 minutes.
that is pretty quick, but theres something that is much easier/quicker about having the patties already made, and cooking them frozen. another thing, is it seems that once burger has been frozen it is hard to make patties without it falling apart, but cooking them while they are still frozen, usually keeps them together. (all this talk is about pure beef burgers, im sure the venison will fall apart even worse)
Alright, time to set you straight. The best burgers have about 20% fat in them. Burgers fall apart because they get dried out, not because they've been pressed too hard. Go to your butcher and ask for beef trim. The stuff is about $0.50 a pound and will be mostly fat. Though you'll get a lot of beef flavor from the fat, you'll have less of a percentage of it in the mix. Don't overhandle your burgers. The heat from your hands will melt the fat and create a dense burger. You've probably had these burgers before, your jaw gets tired and you can't wait for the last bite to be over. Do use a burger press. The burger press will help with creating a more uniform burger that is less likely to ball up on you when you cook it. Optimally, you want a burger that is slightly thinner in the middle than on the edges, The best thickness I've found for a burger is somewhere around 3/4" (1/2" after cooked). I like meat, but if you make a 1.5" burger, you're going to overcook the whole thing while trying to cook the middle. 1/2" not manly enough for you? Cook up another patty and stack them up (you can do that when they're flat). After you've made the burger patties, place a square of butchers paper down and place the patty on it. Continue this routine until you've made yourself stacks that you can fit in a ziploc freezer bag and toss them in the freezer. I've heard some people season their meat with more than just salt and pepper these days. If you are one of these people, remember that your seasoning will shorten the longevity your burgers can expect in the freezer. Also, remember that if you're going to add something like oats or bread crumbs, you have to make up for that moisture loss some other way. I've made more burgers in my lifetime than I care to remember. Working at a mom and pop restaurant for a couple years will do that to you. Hopefully, my years of sweat over a hot grill will benefit you in your burger adventure.
Im not sure how to solve your pre patted problem but if you want to zest up your burgers just a bit of Ranch dressing dry mix that comes in a packet. just add mix to the burgers and nead it in. yummy!!!
I make ground patties out of deer meat but do it a bit different and it turns out good. Not really a solution to your burger problem though. I make a pattie as thin as I possible can without it falling apart (my ground venison has beef mixed with it). Put cream cheese, jalapenos on top of it and then lay another thin pattie on top of that. Season, then wrap the whole thing with bacon and put it on the grill. The thinner the better! I am sure you guys have done this with a backstrap or tenderloin but it is just a different way to spice up the ground deer meat.
big stick sounds like he knows what he is talking about, and thanks for the recipes from everyone else, they sound great. now i just have to arrow a deer and get to grinding. bad thing is i dont have a butcher anywhere around me, does anyone have another suggestion of how to add fat to the venison burger? all i have in my area is walmart, and hyvee.
I like and prefer 100% pure venison. Handle as little as possible, grill as slow as possible and throw a nice piece of cheese on the last 2 minutes, when you put the buns on the top burner for toasting. Add whatever spices and seasonings you want. Add lots, or add nothing - they are damn good both ways, IMO.
Your hyvee meat department should have a butcher working it. Ask him for the trim. Don't be afraid to try straight venison though. It's hard to beat that flavor.
I'm with big stick. You got to add some beef fat. And someone said the heat from your hands makes a burger tought. Bull HOCKEY. I prefer a little thicker burger after the grinding shaped with my hands. Vacuum pack them in single layers like 4 to a bag or something. IF you have occasion for a single meal for one then maybe some 2 packs. In a single layer they thaw fast even under running water while still vacuum packed. Heat from my hands making them tough indeed. Who told you that nonsense. Skinny little pressed burgers are not burgers..... they're just a flat tough piece of meat that'll overcook in a heart beat. The only good burger is not found past medium rare. Well done is a waste of meat.
For the best tasting elk and deer burger. Add 10% Bacon Ends to your well trimmed venison. Get every bit of the deer fat off. That's what causes deer or elk or any game animal for that matter to have a gamey taste. It's own fat stinks in the burger. I prefer the flavor of bacon ends over beef every day of the week, but you may not, but I suggest you try a little of both. Beef is fine though if you like that flavor. Bacon ends at Wal mart come in 3-5lb packages and are cheap. If you want to make great breakfast sausage add 30% bacon ends with a breakfast sausage mix. I buy mountain man breakfast sausage mix, it is to die for in venison. I make all of my breakfast sausage out of my whitetails only. They make better bf sausage than elk imo. Anyway we mix all the burger up and or sausage. Roll it out on a cutting board and then cut out sausages and burgers and then simply vaccum seal them in packages of six, that way you can just go to the freezer and pull out a package and you instantly have premade patties for both breakfast and burgers, you dont have to even defrost!
