Brisket Hamburgers

by Jessica

Hamburgers are the ultimate comfort food. Especially a nice, big, juicy burger with either guacamole on top. I don’t eat ketchup or mustard, so I often try to get more flavor out of the actual burger. That means better meat, and flavors added into that meat. Which is why when I saw Alex Guarnaschelli make hamburgers with brisket, the cut Pat LaFrieda claimed is the best for hamburgers, I knew I had to try it.

So what if we can’t eat cheeseburgers? That doesn’t mean that kosher burgers aren’t delicious! Caramelized onions are another good topping for burgers. And I prefer eating them on challah rolls – they’re WAY better than hamburger buns!

The real reason I made these delicious brisket hamburgers? I wanted to try out my newest kitchen toy, the KitchenAid food grinder attachment. Yes, I ground my own meat. It wasn’t so difficult, but if you decide to do it yourself, make sure you follow all food safety guidelines you know of. And you will have to wash your hands about 400 times. When I left the butcher with a $40 brisket, I was in a state of shock. But at the end of the day, I realized I made 13 BIG hamburgers (4 ounces each) and one little teeny burger (okay, about 2 ounces), so each burger only cost me about $3 to make. That’s cheaper than any burger I can buy. And tastes better!

Brisket Burgers, recipe adapted from Alex Guarnaschelli:

Ingredients:

  • 1 carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
  • 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
  • Glug of olive oil
  • Kosher salt
  • 4 pounds beef brisket, ground (I used the coarser setting on my grinder)
  • 1/2 cup toasted breadcrumbs (I just processed an end of a loaf for a few seconds)
  • 1/2 cup prepared mayonnaise

Directions:

1. Combine carrots, celery, and onion in a food processor and process until you have a fine paste.

2. In a skillet, add the oil. When hot, add the processed veggies. Add some salt and cook until tender and caramelized, about ten minutes. Then, pour onto plate and flatten to cool.

3. In a large bowl, mix the ground brisket with the mayonnaise, breadcrumbs, and vegetables. Add a pinch of salt. Mix together (I used my hands!)

4. Form the meat into patties, about 4 ounces each. They should be 1/3 inch thick and about the size of a hamburger bun.

5. At this point, you can freeze the ones you don’t want to cook right away. To eat them, continue:

6. Place the patties on the grill (or grill pan, or cast iron skillet) and cook on one side for four minutes. Then, turn over and cook on the other side for 2 more minutes for rare to medium rare. 4 minutes for well.

7. Serve with toasted challah roll (or bun) and your favorite burger toppings.