Beef Burgers

beamo

Hi Guys

I'm tryna gain weight and i just want to ask about beef burgers, what kind should i go for? does 100% beef mean they are lean? I know i'm probably as well off making my own out of minced beef but is there any pre-made ones i can buy that are close to 100% lean?

Cheers

Al_Fernz

All I know is that the Big Al's ones are defo not lean meat. I nearly set myself on fire with those bad boys from the amount of fat that drips off them.

In fact I'd be fairly confident in saying that all mass produced and packaged burgers are
sh1te.

If you're talking about pre-made ones from butchers - my experiences have shown me that these are quite fatty too.

Much better just getting a 1/2lb lean mince - use your hands to make into a burger shape - throw on George Foreman for 6 minutes and your in Burger town. Just as easy as the pre-made ones IMO.

crotalus667

beamo wrote: »

Hi Guys
is there any pre-made ones i can buy that are close to 100% lean?

errrr no stick to cuts of beef mince is generly full of fat and the off cuts

Canis Lupus

Any burger you make yourself by hand beats the arse out of anything you can buy premade.

Lean mince (or get the butcher to mince up decent pieces of steak), a chopped onion, salt, cracked black pepper, small bit of tomato puree and thyme (some people say to also use an egg to bind it but I've never hada burger fall to pieces on me). Mush together and make loads at once. Freeze the ones you don't need to use so you have a plentiful supply. Takes all of 20 mins one night of the week to make a crapload.

DAVE_K

I've made nice burgers using lean Turkey mince, a finely chopped onion, some finely chopped chilli (if that's your thing) salt, pepper, an egg and a hand full on porridge oats. High in protein, and low in fat.

Rebel_City

Hey I agree, just like Canis said - so easy to make one eve a week! I get a pack of lean beef mince from the supermarket, throw in finely chopped onion, a good bit of mixed herbs (can get it in a little tin, in the salt/spices etc section in the supermarket), some salt and black pepper, beat an egg and pour it into the mix to help it stick. (I've never had it without the egg, prob safe either way) Make the burger shapes outta the mix and pat with a small bit of oil before popping onto the pan for a few mins! Easy and so tasty! Defo worth a shot!

Dave K - I must try that turkey mince idea too, with the chilli!
Al Fernz - never even thought of using the George Foreman! Sometimes I find when I bite into the bugers, they're dripping with juices. The GeorgeF might cut that down! Cheers!

Degsy

Get the butcher to mince up equal portions of sirloin and round steak.You get the same flavour as sirloin but half the cost as teh round pads it out.I usually mix a finely chopped onion,a shake of black pepper and a dolop of worcester sauce into the mince then form it into burgers.They can be either fried or done on the george foreman,dont forget a fried egg on top!

Colm_OReilly

In addition to meat (hmmm, meat good) if you're looking to gain weight milk and nuts help you get in those extra calories.

unreggd

The worst advertising is "100% Irish Beef"

This can mean that the burger is about 85% beef [or lower!! ], but whatever beef is in it is Irish


Most butchers sell mince burgers. Or else just get loads of round mince

Hanley

Colm_OReilly wrote: »

In addition to meat (hmmm, meat good) if you're looking to gain weight milk and nuts help you get in those extra calories.

In addition to the above, it's important to remember the role of carbs in gaining weight. They're VERY important. You'll need to increase your protein of course, but don't forget to take your carbs up too.

unreggd wrote: »

The worst advertising is "100% Irish Beef"

This can mean that the burger is about 85% beef, but whatever beef is in it is Irish

:eek: I never even thought of that :eek:

rubadub

Hanley wrote: »

:eek: I never even thought of that :eek:

Ignore the covers of packs, go straight to the ingredients and nutritional info, for what is really in there. The marketing men use all sorts of scams.

LOW IN FAT!= high in sugar, and vice versa.

Most WW meals are all watered down. They are about 75% the weight of "normal meals" and then the water dilutes this down, so you end up paying twice the price, per actual kilo minus the water.

A lot of hams are watered down, if they do not clearly say it you can work it out from the protein contents.

One ham pack could have 5% fat, the other 4%, while if you take the added water into account you might be better off with the 5% one.

You can get cheap rib or round steak, trim the fat off and liquidise it, this is suitable for burgers or meatballs, but too ground up for spag bol.

After reading up on sat fats more and more it doesnt really bother me anymore.

I also get cheap rib steak trim excess fat and mix it with curry sauce and pressure cook it. A pressure cooker makes it really tender. I would recommend this one http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/8610351/Trail/searchtext>PRESTIGE.htm there are cheaper ones in argos but avoid them, most go to 12psi, that goes to 15psi, also the fancier expensive ones have crap seals, I know a lot about them.

Also the 85% burgers are usually full of breadcrumbs and very little fat comes out of them when frying, since the stodge absorbs it.

Tesco do "healthy living" low fat frozen burgers, I think they are around 85% but low in fat too.

Hanley

rubadub wrote: »

Ignore the covers of packs, go straight to the ingredients and nutritional info for what is really in there.

A lot of hams are watered down, if they do not clearly say it you can work it out from the protein contents.

One ham pack could have 5% fat, the other 4%, while if you take the added water into account you might be better off with the 5% one.

You can get cheap rib or round steak, trim the fat off and liquidise it, this is suitable for burgers or meatballs, but too ground up for spag bol.

After reading up on sat fats more and more it doesnt really bother me anymore.

I also get cheap rib steak trim excess fat and mix it with curry sauce and pressure cook it. A pressure cooker makes it really tender.

Also the 85% burgers are usually full of breadcrumbs and very little fat comes out of them when frying, since the stodge absorbs it.

Tesco do "healthy living" low fat frozen burgers, I think they are around 85% but low in fat too.

I generally just buy lean mince or get some round steak minced up so I think I'm ok? I was just surprised to see the cunning marketing tools used to make it look better.

It's kinda like on protein products when people mention their special protein blend as being something like; (isolate, hydrosolate, concentrate) and they of course fail to mention that the concentrate is probably 95-99% of this, but since it's a blend it doesn't have to be listed by volume.

I'm actually off to walk to the dog and I'm gonna try and make some chili burgers when I get back. I'll let y'all know how that works out!! Another favourite is to get some of the old el paso burrito mix and add that to mince. Probably the nicest thing ever!

rubadub

Hanley wrote: »

I generally just buy lean mince or get some round steak minced up so I think I'm ok?

Yeah fine, but lean mince usually ends up more expensive than getting round steak, or the same, ~€10/kilo, with a steak you see what goes in too! I also cut it up finely with a scissors for spag bol, I prefer bigger bits. I fry burgers on a dry pan, the fat just falls out, you can blot them with tissue. If you make thin patties you blot more since the fat is exposed more, not trapped inside. To make manageable thin patties you can flatten them on tinfoil to you can lift it and drop directly on the pan, or use "magic sheets", black heat resistant nonstick sheets in the tinfoil section, around €5 and reusable

I read a few sites discussing lean meats have a look at this http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055287591

It's kinda like on protein products when people mention their special protein blend

Yes, Holland & Barret do this with creatine, have a price per kilo that looks cheap but it is full of cheap sugar, same with PWO blends. Also on bulkpowders I worked out that the 80% whey was cheaper than the 70% when you worked out the actual protein content. Similarly, smirnoff blue (45-50%) might work out cheaper than smirnoff red (37.5-40%) and is better quality. Same with beer in pubs, people comment on my "rip-off" german pints of erdinger, yet drink €5 bottle of heineken, €5 per 330ml works out at €8.60 per pint!

Malteasers only xxxkcal!, -yeah cos they weigh half what a mars bar does!, same with aero, wispa etc, just get the bigger snack size bars, same amount of chocolate.