How to make a perfect hamburger at home, according to a golf-club chef

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When the PGA Tour descends on Hilton Head Island this yr, the dwell oaks, treacherous bunkers, and the long-lasting lighthouse with its barber-pole paint job will all function acquainted sights throughout Harbour Town Golf Links. Inside Harbour Town’s clubhouse, nonetheless — at Links, an American Grill, particularly — a new menu merchandise is for certain to entice a lot of consideration throughout that championship week.

The dish in query, The Champions Burger, is a lavish creation that includes shaved black truffles, a truffle-and-garlic aioli, Muenster cheese, caramelized onions, and arugula. Equally noteworthy is the composition of the burger itself, a mix of filet mignon and brief rib that’s floor in-house. In truth, the restaurant’s government chef, Farid Ahmed, constructed the burger (and chosen all of its accoutrements) to have fun that high-quality beef mix.

“First and foremost,” he says, “we want guests to taste the beef. We put a lot of time into it, so that has to be the star of the show. The second big flavor needs to be the truffles, and then the sauce and cheese needs to balance the texture of the burger.”

Replicating The Champions Burger at residence isn’t the best of duties, particularly given what it’s going to value to supply recent black truffles. But you don’t want to go broke on gourmand substances to make an equally satisfying burger; and as Chef Ahmed acknowledges, all of it begins with a balanced mix of various cuts of beef. In specific, he likes a 75/25 and even 70/30 ratio of flavorful meat to fats and says that a 50-50 mix of chuck and brisket is a superb mixture in that regard.

“There’s some intimidation when it comes to grinding your own meat, but if you talk to a butcher, they can do it for you,” he says, including that you simply’ll simply need to let the butcher know that you simply’re making your individual burgers. “From there, you just need to handle the meat properly.”

If a butcher is aware of that the meats are to be floor for burger patties, she or he will intermix the cuts of beef through the grinding course of, which suggests you gained’t want to do a lot to mix the 2 cuts collectively. This is vital, as over-handling the meat can produce a denser patty that lacks in tenderness as soon as it’s cooked. Chef Ahmed’s recommendation when forming patties is to first create a baseball-sized orb of meat after which toss it forwards and backwards in your arms, which is able to pack the meat collectively with out an excessive amount of manipulation.

“Keeping it cold will hold the integrity of the meat,” he says. “The more you touch it, the warmer it’s going to get, so less is more.”

The subsequent key step, he explains, is seasoning. At Links, the culinary workforce solely makes use of salt and pepper, and the cooks are beneficiant with each spices. “The more fat content a cut of beef has, the more salt intake it can handle,” says Ahmed.

Not surprisingly, a correctly made and seasoned burger wants to be correctly cooked, which is why Ahmed advises utilizing a forged iron pan. “It’ll give it a nice sear,” he says, “and it helps with the caramelization.”

After bringing a tablespoon of vegetable or canola oil up to an almost-smoking temperature over medium-high warmth, Ahmed sears his burgers to medium-rare, which he says equates to about three minutes on both sides. He sometimes pulls the burger off the warmth when the meat registers 115 levels, because the patty will proceed to prepare dinner because it rests. Speaking of which…don’t skip the resting step! It’s extremely essential, because it permits the meat to re-absorb a lot of the juices which are naturally drawn out of it through the cooking course of. Ahmed’s customary rule of thumb is to let a burger relaxation for 50 % of its cooking time — on this case, three minutes.

Now, you’re solely moments from a scrumptious burger, however the remaining step can make or break your sandwich. When choosing the toppings that you really want to embrace, consider your burger as a well-struck golf shot and every topping is a swing thought that will get you there. In different phrases, preserve it easy. “Less is always more,” says Ahmed, “so it’s best to start small. Let the burger shine first and then complement it with a topping or two, one sauce, and a cheese.”