You Don't Need A Meat Grinder To Make Ground Beef — Just Grab The Food Processor

If you've ever walked through the beef section of the grocery store and wondered how, exactly, cuts of beef become the ground-up stuff you buy to make burgers (and about a billion other things), you're not alone. The process actually isn't too complicated, and you can absolutely make it happen in your own kitchen — even if you don't have a meat grinder. All you'll need is some beef, a little bit of time, and a food processor. 

Start by cutting up your meat into roughly 1-inch cubes, keeping in mind the amount of fat you're aiming for in your ground beef (if you're going to make juicy burgers, shoot for a higher fat percentage). Then, you'll want to chill the cubed meat and the blade of the food processor in the freezer until the meat is cold but not quite frozen — half an hour or so should do it. This will help the fat stay solid as it grinds in the processor, which is key to creating an end product with a texture similar to the ground beef you'd buy in the grocery store. 

Grinding your own meat in a food processor can cost more, pound for pound, than ground beef in the store. If you've saved up scraps of beef in the freezer that would otherwise go to waste, it might make financial sense to make your own ground beef at home. If you've decided to go for it and mix up some soon-to-be-burgers in your food processor, we've got a few tips for you to keep in mind.

You've got your cold beef and your food processor — now, it's time to make the process worth your while. You'll want to be sure you don't overmix your ground beef, as doing so can give it a paste-like consistency. Pulse your food processor for a second or two at a time, just enough to get the consistency you're looking for (usually around eight times), and avoid overmixing. There's not a hard-and-fast rule for how long it will take to get your beef to the right consistency, so you'll need to take a peek every few pulses to make sure you're on the right track. Once you take the ground beef out of the food processor, you'll want to handle it as little as possible — overhandling ground beef can actually make it taste like cardboard, so tread lightly.

If you're not going to use all of the ground beef from your food processor, it's important to package it properly to preserve quality. To start, divide your beef into meal-size portions. Wrap them as tightly as possible — a vacuum sealer is a great way to get air out and help your ground beef hold up in the freezer. Once you have each portion sealed or wrapped, put it inside a resealable freezer bag, and be sure to write the date on the outside (it'll keep in your freezer for up to four months). This way, you'll always have home-ground beef, courtesy of your humble food processor, at the ready.