Making your own burgers vs. buying premade hamburger patties has lots of advantages. You get to pick the type of ground meat you like (beef, turkey, lamb, pork, venison, and so on), you are more likely to get fresher meat, and you can make the patties just the size and shape and thickness you like. Plus you can season the beef or other ground meat as you wish. Homemade burgers are more likely to be tender and (if you like) thicker than most preformed patties.

Burgers made with soy and plant-based meat substitutes like Impossible Beef or Beyond Meat can also be shaped this way, though you don’t need to add the indentation (or “dimple” or depression) to the patty as it won’t swell up in the same way. Same for these Southwestern Black Bean Burgers.

And then all you have to do is turn on that grill (or heat up that pan)! And make the perfect burger or turkey burger or whatever hamburger variation speaks to you at the moment. Top your burgers however you like — some of my favorite toppings are Grilled Onions, Chipotle Mayo, Sriracha Mayo, and Easy Herb Dip.

How to Make Hamburger Patties: The easiest way to end up with perfect burgers, however you choose to cook them.

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How to Shape Burgers

1. Form the patties: Using a gentle touch, mold the meat into patties anywhere from 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch thick. Try not to overwork, compress, or squish the meat. This could cause your burgers to become dry or tough when cooked.

2. Depress the center: Once you’ve made the patties, form a depression in the center of each patty. This will prevent the burgers from puffing up in the middle when you cook them. Make the dimple by using your thumb to press into the center of the burger, at least halfway into the burger. The depression should be about 1 inch in diameter. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Cook and serve the burgers: As the burger cooks, the depression will even out, leaving you with a perfectly shaped, flat-ish burger. And then when you top your burgers with condiments, tomatoes, onion, and so on, everything will be level and stay put.

Tips for Forming Hamburger Patties

• If you want your burgers to be all the same size, you should portion out the meat before forming the patties. The easiest way to do this is by weight. If you have a kitchen scale, this is a perfect place to use it. The average burger weighs about 1/4 pound before cooking, so measure out and weigh portions of meat before you start to shape the patties. You could also do this by volume — think about 1/2 cup of meat per burger.
• You can make a more generously sized burger by using 1/3 pound of meat per burger or 2/3 cup ground meat.
• Burgers shrink during cooking, so take that into account when determining your burger’s weight and circumference.
• Wash your hands with hot, soapy water and rinse very well before and after forming the burgers.
• If you have other ingredients blended into the ground meat, such as onions, garlic, peppers, or other chopped ingredients, make sure to mince them finely. If the chunks are bigger than 1/4-inch maximum, they could cause the burgers to fall apart.
• Keep the meat in the fridge until you are ready to shape the patties, which makes the meat easier to handle. Also, keep the patties in the fridge until you are ready to cook them. This will prevent bacteria from forming.
• Handle the meat as lightly and gently as possible while forming the burgers.
• Most chefs like using 80/20 beef for beef hamburgers, which has a higher level of fat and keeps the burgers nice and juicy. You can also use 90/10 if you prefer.
• Do not use a burger mold to form the burgers. This will likely crush the meat, making the burgers a bit tougher than hand-formed patties.
• The indentation should be smaller when you are making sliders, proportionate to the size of the patty. Try these Chipotle Sliders or Buffalo Turkey Sliders.

Burger Recipes

Asian Beef Mushroom Burgers

Grilled Cheeseburgers with Herb Sauce

Southwestern Vegan Black Bean Burgers

Also, see How to Grill the Perfect Burger and How to Grill the Perfect Turkey Burger.