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How can I stop my burgers from shrinking?

Matt McSpadden

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posted 2 weeks ago

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I like burgers that fit the buns, but my burgers always shrink and I don't always have time to make smaller buns.

I use typical 80/20 ground beef with a little salt and pepper. I tried making them bigger so they shrink down, but making them by hand is time consuming and the biggest hamburger makers I have found are only 4". Does anyone have any ideas on how to either stop the burger from shrinking? Or a large hamburger maker? Or something I have not thought of?

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Robert Ray

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posted 2 weeks ago

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Try putting a divot in the center of the patty the size of the bottom of a shot glass.

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Hi Matt;
How large (weight) are your burgers?
We buy Kyser rolls (1/3 larger) than standard burger buns.
I make 1/2# burgers, and sometimes they are too large after cooking and hang out of the bun.
The burger is 80/20, just like yours, and comes from a small, reliable butcher.

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Matt McSpadden

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Robert Ray wrote:Try putting a divot in the center of the patty the size of the bottom of a shot glass.

Interesting. The shape helps them not to scrunch up? Or does it like trap heat in that area?

Matt McSpadden

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thomas rubino wrote:Hi Matt;
How large (weight) are your burgers?
We buy Kyser rolls (1/3 larger) than standard burger buns.
I make 1/2# burgers, and sometimes they are too large after cooking and hang out of the bun.
The burger is 80/20, just like yours, and comes from a small, reliable butcher.

They are typically between 1/4 and 1/2 pound depending on how many burgers I'm trying to make from the package. Even a half pound burger shrinks in diameter... it's just thicker. Do you do a sort of smash burger thing? Or form your own patties? That is amazing that they can fit kyser rolls.

Carla Burke

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Matt McSpadden wrote:

Robert Ray wrote:Try putting a divot in the center of the patty the size of the bottom of a shot glass.

Interesting. The shape helps them not to scrunch up? Or does it like trap heat in that area?

It does help them shrink less. This was going to be my suggestion, too.

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Carla Burke

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Another way to reduce shrinkage is to use leaner meat. I'll admit - it's not my favorite way, because I think meat with a little more fat is much juicier & more flavorful.

Tom Bexley

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I think some shrinkage is probably just unavoidable with 80/20 because you're cooking out fat and water. What I'd try is forming them noticeably wider than the bun to begin with and a little thinner than you ultimately want.
The center divot sounds like a good trick for keeping them from turning into little meatballs, but if the problem is mostly diameter, starting oversized may be the simplest answer. I'd probably make one comically wide test burger and see where it ends up after cooking.

Joseph Lofthouse

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During my childhood, the local restaurant put a heavy weight on burgers while cooking—I presume to flatten them. Or perhaps to reduce cooking time?

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Anne Miller

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Making the perfect burger can be a challenge.

Here are some common mistakes:

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Douglas Alpenstock

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Dear Wife makes burger patties that are sort of like a meatloaf -- mixing in a bit of big flake oatmeal, finely minced onion, and a ketchup/mustard BBQ-ish-sauce. (That's what I recall offhand.) They stay gorgeously moist and hardly shrink.

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