- If your meatloaf always sticks and clings to the bottom of the pan, try laying a strip of raw bacon on the bottom of the pan before filling with meat. The bacon not only helps prevent the meatloaf from cooking to the bottom, it also adds flavor.
- Wet your hands with cool water when shaping burgers to help prevent the mixture from sticking to your hands.
- Be sure the pan or grill fire is hot before you add the burgers. This helps sear the surface and seal in the juice.
- Never use the spatula to press down on the burger patty as it is cooking. You will squeeze out all the juice and flavor. Poking holes in the burger with a fork also causes loss of moisture and flavor. Use a spatula or tongs to turn them.
- Don't over mix when combining meat with other ingredients. Don't squeeze or compress the meat when shaping it into patties or you'll end up with dry, tough burgers
- For juiciness and best flavor, use relatively lean meat (80 to 90 percent lean) but not the very leanest; you need a little fat for mouth-watering burgers.
- Cook your chili the day before or early in the morning of the day you're going to eat it. By cooking the day before, letting it cool, then refrigerating overnight, you give all the flavors in your chili time to blend. If you're short on time, preparing the chili in the morning and letting it simmer all day is a good method of cooking.
- Form burger patties to desired thickness and then make a deep depression in the center with your thumb. As the meat cooks and expands, the depression will disappear, keeping your burger from bulging in the center into a flying saucer shape.
- When using very lean ground beef for hamburgers, add a spoonful of V-8 juice, tomato juice or wine to keep the meat moist as it cooks, and add some additional flavor.
