RESIST THE URGE TO SQUEEZE!

Something profoundly primal happens to me when I hear the sizzle and crack of our bar-be-cue. The smell of a grilling burger makes me instantly starving and sends me running to the fridge to grab every condiment known to man. I LOVE my burger stacked to the rafters with gooey cheese, crisp lettuce, juicy tomato slices, crunchy red onion, buttery avocado and glops of ketchup. I know it sounds like a mess but building the perfect burger is a very personal experience. What’s a hot mess to one person is a masterpiece to another.

With Canada Day around the corner, I was thrilled when Sobeys contacted me to write a post about their Canadian Chuck Burgers. We’re entertaining a lot this summer, so I decided to do a test run and see whether we’d like to serve Sobeys fresh pre-made Canadian Chuck Burgers at our bar-b-cues. The burgers are handcrafted every day in their stores, from 100% Canadian AAA beef. The beef is Certified Humane® Canadian Chuck Burger, made from beef raised humanely without added antibiotics or hormones. They also have the Canadian Turkey Burger, made from 100% Canadian turkey and the Canadian Pork Burger, made from 100% Canadian pork. If you like ‘stuff’ in your burgers they have flavours such as jalapeno and cheddar cheese; bacon and cheddar cheese; poutine gravy and cheese curds; or rimmed with steak and onion spice. Personally, I like my ‘stuff’ on top of my burger, so I purchased the straight-up 100% Canadian Chuck Burgers. I’m serious about what I serve my friends and family so when I was done shopping I headed straight up to the farm and fired up the grill. I LOVE BEING A FOOD BLOGGER!

When I’m entertaining and burgers are the main attraction, I set out every topping that I have on hand and even things that seem weird to me, then stand back and watch the magic as our guests create their own burger works of art. However, no matter how spectacular your condiments are, if your burgers aren’t grilled perfectly your doomed. Grilling techniques differ from cook to cook. After years of trial and error, this technique nails it for me, every time.

HOW-TO-GRILL-THE-PERFECT-BURGER

• Salt and pepper on both sides of your burgers.
• Preheat your grill to medium-high. I have my temperature gauge hovering around 450*F. If there are any bits of left-over food on the racks, scrap it away so your cooking surface is clean.
• Spray the racks with a food release spray to keep the burgers from sticking.
• Lay the burgers on the grill, keep the lid up and leave the burgers alone for 4-5  minutes then flip to the other side until your burger is cooked to the desired doneness. You can use a meat thermometer to determine if the burgers are safe to eat. Health Canada recommends cooking ground beef to an internal temperature of 160*F. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, do a ‘tester’ to determine your cook time for medium, medium well or well. If you’re lucky, your crowd will all like their burgers cooked to the same doneness – it makes things so much easier… DISCLAIMER: I like a char-crust on my burger. If you prefer a softer exterior, flip your burger more often.
• Finally, and I can’t emphasize this enough, the #1, most important, step to grilling a succulent, mouth-watering burger:

RESIST THE URGE TO SQUEEZE DOWN ON YOUR BURGERS!

As intoxicatingly luscious as it is to hear the sound of sizzling flames lapping your burgers while they’re grilling, don’t do it. You’ll be squeezing out the flavourful juices, leaving a dry, tasteless meat patty.

THE LOVE: Another critical detail of world-class burgers is the fat to meat ratio. If there’s too little fat, your burger will be dry. If there’s too much fat, your burger will be disgusting. Sobeys Canadian Chuck Burgers are bang on!

If you’re kind enough to share my post with your social media friends and include your favourite burger topping or best burger tip, you’ll have the chance to WIN a 50.00 Sobeys Gift Card. If you want to get really fancy on Twitter, use the hashtags #BetterFoodForAll or #BetterBurger or both!

GOOD LUCK & HAPPY CANADA DAY!  XO

Thanks for reading.