When mixing ground beef for burgers or meatballs, handle meat as little as possi ble to avoid compressing strands of meat together which could give a heavier, denser result.
When browning ground beef, preheat the pan.
Pat beef withi a paper towel to minimize liquid before you start.
Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef to pull the grease away from the meat.
Add salt after the meat is browned. Salting before cooking drawns moisture and juice out of meat.
When grilling, don't press down on the meat to push out juices.
Turn meatballs gently with tongs.
Fresh ground beef can be stored in the fridge up to 2 days.
Cooked ground beef will keep, refrigerated, 4 days.
Freeze raw ground beef up to 4 months.
Freeze cooked ground beef up to 2 months.
Thaw frozen ground beef slowly in the refrigerator or more quickly in the microwave.
For safety, do not thaw out on the counter.
