How to make the Perfect Hamburger or Cheeseburger

article on how to make a great hamburger or cheeseburger for a cookout

Making the perfect hamburger is easy, and takes very little time. The following recipe is how my Dad taught me, and it tastes great! This sure will be a hit during your cookout in the upcoming summer barbecue!

• hamburger meat
• charcoal grill
• charcoal

The first thing you need to do is to take your hamburger meat and patty it into the size you want. I like to do this by hand, because if you use a patty maker, it mashes the meat together too much. If you think it will tear apart from cooking, you may be right. But remember, if you only flip the burger once, it will most likely not fall apart. Once pattied, add a little salt and pepper, or seasoning salt, but not too much. You do not want to take away the flavor of the meat.

Second, heat up your charcoal in your charcoal grill. I prefer to use charcoal without lighter fluid, but this is just my preference. Once the coals are hot, now you are ready to start cooking.

Now cook the meat over the hot coals. When you begin to see the outer edge of the meat getting hot, and turning brown, flip the burgers over. Now let cook evenly on the other side, until the burger is cooked to a good warm temperature. Always be careful to not serve hamburger meat too raw. Trust me, food poisoning is not fun to deal with.

Now if you like, place a slice of American or swiss cheese and let it melt. Now sit down in a comfortable chair, relax, and serve to yourself and guests, with a variety of options. My favorite is ketchup, slaw and pickles. However, every now and then, chili is great as well. This is definitely a winning combination.