Ditch The Kitchen Scale And Try Rachael Ray's Effortless Method For Portioning Burgers

Cooking burgers is all about personal preference. The toppings, the fat content, and even the burger's size depend on who is eating them and what you're looking for. Still, there are some things that remain the same across the board; for example, you likely want your burgers to be all the same size, no matter how many ounces. But don't make the mistake of buying those patties pre-formed. Just use Rachael Ray's easy method: Measure with your eyes. While cooking on her talk show, Ray once explained that scoring the meat by eyeballing it is a reliable method for getting burgers that are just about the same weight.

There are a handful of reasons why your patties should be the same size. Ensuring each guest has the same portion is a big one, but using same-sized patties means more even cooking, too. Still, the patties don't have to be as exact as you think. If you're making four burgers from one pound of meat, they're all likely going to be just about the same weight if you score the meat into four eyeballed equal parts. And ultimately, if it's not absolutely exact, it's fine.

By scoring the beef with your eyes, you'll get patties that will cook in the same time frame. There are some other steps to take for even cooking, too — Ray shapes every patty before she starts cooking any of them. This is another way to make sure each burger looks about the same size. While you're at it, follow one sizing rule of thumb: Make the burgers 20% larger than the buns because they'll shrink up a bit as they cook.

Ray also recommends putting all of the burgers on the heat at the same time, so they all finish cooking at once. This is best if you're using a griddle because the griddle will heat evenly throughout. However, if you're cooking on a stove or a grill, make sure you at least know where any hot spots are — some burgers might cook quicker on the outside than others in this case. And finally, always let the meat rest for a few minutes once those burgers are off the heat. This helps finish the cooking process and lets the juices redistribute to give you the most flavor in each bite.