The Seasoning Mistake That's All Too Common When Cooking Ground Beef - Tasting Table

"Ground beef cooks pretty quickly, making it a versatile ingredient. But that also means there's a limited time for flavor to develop. You only have a short window in which to build flavor. So if you start cooking the beef before adding any seasoning, you're limiting how much flavor can develop. Salt dissolves protein in beef, so adding it causes ground beef to become a little stickier and bind together more."

"You do need to be careful about adding salt to your ground beef, especially if you are making meatballs, meatloaf, and burgers. If you add it too early, it will cause the proteins to break down too much and bind in a way that leaves behind its naturally crumbly and tender texture. That's why heavily processed burgers taste different from a homemade patty that still crumbles when you bite into it."

Ground beef cooks quickly, giving a short window for flavor development. Seasoning dry spices into raw meat allows salts and spices to penetrate rather than just sitting on the surface. Salt dissolves protein in beef, which makes ground beef stickier and helps flavors distribute throughout the mixture. Adding dry seasonings after browning limits flavor because the exterior receives most seasoning. Salt added too early in mixtures for meatballs, meatloaf, or burgers can overbind proteins and reduce the naturally crumbly, tender texture. Liquid seasonings like soy sauce behave differently and may be added at other times.

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