Ground Brisket Burgers

[lkissell]

After recently buying a new meat grinder I decided to make my first attempt at brisket burgers. While the result was good, it was not as good as expected.

Of particular concern was the texture of the burgers. They were a bit grainy, almost like there was very fine sand in the meat. This wasn't overwhelming, but it was not what I expected. Here is the process that I followed:

I bought a small brisket flat at Costco.

I cut it into small (1" - 2") cubes.

I did not trim off any fat from the brisket.

I put the meat and the metal parts from the grinder in the freezer for about 20 minutes until everything was well chilled.

I then ran the meat cubes through the grinder using the smallest grinding plate. The meat ground up well, and the fat didn't smear or mix into the meat. The end result looked good, although it was a bit fattier than I normally like.

So what should I do to improve my outcome? Different cuts of meat? Trim the fat?

Thanks for any suggestions that you can offer.

[HeSmellsLikeSmoke]

Perhaps you just don't like brisket burgers. You could run the meat through the grinder again and see if that solves the problem for you. If you still don't like them, mix with some ground chuck.

[Wampus]

I ground up about 35-40 lbs of ONLY brisket from trimmings from last year's comp season a while ago and we've been eating it regularly. Haven't made burgers yet, but have made meatloaf, meatballs, spaghetti, taco meat, enchiladas, etc. with it. Haven't noticed any problem at all.


Others will likely chime in, but I'm not sure what to tell you. Was it only the texture and not the flavor you thought of as "not as good as expected"?

[Bludawg]

Grind twice; course then med. Also you might want to do a whole packer and not just the flat. The point add a lot of flavor and better texture.

[plakers]

I'm no expert but here's what I have for advice.

Brisket in whole packer form makes great burger and is extremely cheap. Around here Costco flats are relatively expensive.

I'd rather grind up the point and use the flat for pastrami or for a small smoke dinner

I grind everything but the hard fat and only use one pass on the KitchenAide attachment using the larger of the two plates(considered a medium)

You'll see more of the fat(it will be whiter) then store boughten burger because it hasnt been mixed around alot.

I like to grind everything in long slices as it feeds better.

[lkissell]

Plakers,

How do you remove the hard fat? Is this just the outer layer of fat around the brisket?

Thanks.

[CarolinaQue]

THe hard fat is usually the fat that sit's between the point and the flat of a whole packer. Some times, there is hard fat on the fat cap over the fat, but it's usually only a little.

As far as your issue, I think that you went to fine of a grind and you didn't chill the meat and attachments long enough. 20 minutes isn't very long. I leave all of my attachments in the freezer unless I'm actively grinding and put the housing attachment in the freezer first thing in the morning that I plan on grinding.

I also freeze the meat for at least an hour and usually cloer to 2 and mixing it periodically during that time to make sure all of it is getting as close to freezing temp as possible. Also, using a stainless steel bowl helps concerning getting the bowl very cold also.

I also put the stainless steel bowl inside another bowl with ice in it while I'm grinding to make sure it stays very cold.

I also agree with mixing other cuts in with the brisket. I have been doing a 50/50 of brisket and chuck lately and am really liking the result.

[plakers]

Originally Posted by lkissell

Plakers,

How do you remove the hard fat? Is this just the outer layer of fat around the brisket?

Thanks.

No Im talking about that small blob that sits atop and starts the separation of the flat and the point. Costco flats are already pretty well trimmed. I thinned down the layer on the CAB packer I did. What I dont cut out is the real fatty outter edges that sometimes gets trimmed from the brisket(as seen in videos I have watched.)

Anybody who can explain this alot better than me?

[CarolinaQue]

[QUOTE=plakers;2382977]No Im talking about that small blob that sits atop and starts the separation of the flat and the point. Costco flats are already pretty well trimmed. I thinned down the layer on the CAB packer I did. What I dont cut out is the real fatty outter edges that sometimes gets trimmed from the brisket(as seen in videos I have watched.)

Anybody who can explain this alot better than me?[/QUOTE]


If you can push on it with your finger and it's squishy, it's soft fat that will render nicely when cooked. If it feels hard and unforgiving (almost always the type of fat that sits between the flat and the point on a whole packer brisket), it's hard fat that will remain as such and is no good for eating. Hard fat can be found on other large cuts of beef also...especially the primal and subprimal cuts.

How's that?

[lkissell]

Thanks guys. The explanation for trimming makes sense. I'll try a combination of the suggestions above and I'll let you know how it goes.

[Gnaws on Pigs]

I think the main problem is that brishket hjust isn't the best cut for burgers. It's really, really hard to beat ground chuck for a burger-good flavor, good texture, and a perfect ratio of fat to lean. Not to mention, it's a lot cheaper than brisket. More expensive isn't necessarily better for all applications. Ground ribeye or t-bone steak or sirloin doesn't make nearly as good of a burger as the cheaper cuts do, either. I'd rather have the brisket as brisket, the steak as steak, and burger from chuck. Try grinding a couple chuck roasts the next time they're on sale and see what you think.

[CarolinaQue]

Not sure where you're getting your meat from, but where I'm at, whole packers and chuck cost about the same with brisket usually a little cheaper per lb.

[Gnaws on Pigs]

Originally Posted by CarolinaQue

Not sure where you're getting your meat from, but where I'm at, whole packers and chuck cost about the same with brisket usually a little cheaper per lb.

Here, a medium-sized packer is usually about fifty bucks or more, if you can find one. I can often find chuck roast on sale cheap for $2 and change or so.

[Bludawg]

Originally Posted by Gnaws on Pigs

Here, a medium-sized packer is usually about fifty bucks or more, if you can find one. I can often find chuck roast on sale cheap for $2 and change or so.

Just the opposite here chuck roast are 5.00 lb brisket is 2.18 lb