Everyone loves a good burger right?

They’re a simple, cheap and kid-friendly meal. They’re also a good way to delegate part of the meal prep process and keep all those cooking smells outdoors. Smart. Now, my burgers are a more deconstructed affair seeing as I go sans bun, but here’s some tips on making a patty that matters:

1. Don’t use lean meat. Using delicious fatty meat gives you a juicier burger so lamb and fattier beef mince are good choices. If you’re using turkey or chicken I recommend adding some extra fat/oil to your mix to stop them becoming dry as a dead dingo’s donger.
2. Don’t overwork your meat. You aren’t Demi Moore and you aren’t reenacting a scene from Ghost, so stop manhandling it like Patrick Swayze’s going to appear. Just work it enough to mix in all your herbs, spices, egg and what not then leave it alone. Just shape gently, don’t mould them into submission.
3. If you like it then you should put a dimple in it, whoa oh oh, oh oh oh oh. Pressing your thumb in to make a shallow divot in the centre helps to cook it evenly and stop it shrinking.
4. Don’t press the life out of your burgers with the back of the spatula! No it doesn’t give better BBQ char marks and all your doing is squeezing out all the yummy juices! Just relax, cook it on one side, flip it, cook it on the other. Simple.