Introduction
Ground beef is one of the most versatile and widely-used ingredients in home kitchens and restaurants alike. Whether you're whipping up a classic spaghetti Bolognese, juicy beef tacos, or a cozy weekend batch of chili, knowing how to perfectly cook ground beef can make cooking this staple protein a breeze. In this comprehensive guide, we share our techniques and tips to achieving perfectly cooked ground beef every time.
1. Choosing the Right Ground Beef
When selecting ground beef, consider the fat content.
- 70/30 beef will have the most fat, and therefore more flavor, but will render down in the cooking process leaving you with a smaller amount of meat in the end. This is a good option for dishes that will not be combined with sauces or heavy seasoning, like dirty rice.
- 80/20 beef is the most common and can be for all ground beef dishes.
- 90/10 beef is the most lean and healthy option, but does risk less flavor and potentially drying out. This is best for tacos, spaghetti, sloppy joes, casseroles, chili, etc. that add in flavor from seasoning or sauces!
2. Decide how much to cook:
- Whether you are making a small dish for two, a large family dinner, or meal prepping for the week, choosing how much meat to cook at a time will depend on the size of your pan.
- Be careful not to overload your pan because the beef might end up boiling in its juices rather than browning, it will get tough, and just won’t taste as good.
- Cooking too much at once will also take longer than cooking a lot of meat in smaller batches.
- As a guide, we cook 1 lb. in a medium frying pan or dutch oven or 2 lbs. in our largest frying pan.
3. Prepare – Bring your beef to room temperature:
Set your ground beef out about 15-20 minutes before cooking to allow it to come to room temperature. This will make for faster and more even cooking.
4. Heat your Pan!
When you are ready to cook, heat your pan before adding any meat or ingredients. This is important so you don’t slowly steam your meat. The steps here are a little different depending on the type of pan or pot you are using.
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Stainless steel:
The key to cooking with a stainless steel pan is to pre-heat the surface, then add in your oil to create a non-stick surface.- Heat the pan to a medium high temperature.
- Do the water test to make sure it is hot enough: add a few drops of water… If it sizzles and boils away, your pan is not hot enough yet. If it forms a ball and rolls around the pan, then your pan is ready.
- Add just enough oil to coat the bottom of your pan – You are using this to create a non-stick surface, not for frying, so you won’t need a lot – about 1-2 tablespoons depending on how large your pan is.
- Swirl the oil around to coat the bottom of your pan and heat until it is almost smoking. Then reduce your heat and let your pan and oil cool just slightly so it is not smoking.
- After a couple minutes, bring your pan back to med-high temperature. Now you are ready to add in your ingredients!
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Non-stick cookware or Dutch oven:
- You want to make sure you are pre-heating your non-stick cookware as well, but you can skip adding oil to your pan.
- Simply heat your pan to a medium high temperature and you are ready to start cooking.
5. Ready to Cook!
If using, add your onions and garlic first:
- If you are cooking with onions (and maybe bell peppers), add those first. Cook for about 3-5 minutes if you want a sharp onion flavor. Cook for about 10-15 minutes if you want a milder, sweet onion flavor.
- Add fresh garlic for the last 30-60 seconds.
- Note 1: Garlic burns easily so you don’t need to cook very long otherwise it can turn bitter.
- Note 2: If you are using freshly minced garlic, let it sit for 10 minutes before cooking. This allows for beneficial enzymes to strengthen before cooking. Cooking garlic too soon after chopping could kill the enzymes, eliminating some health benefits of garlic.
Step 1 – Add the meat and break up the large pieces
- Add the ground beef to the pan.
- If using the Geo Ground Meat Cooking Tool, use the “blade” on the front of the Geo to break up the large pieces of meat.
Step 2 – Let it cook!
Allow the beef to cook as larger pieces, mixing it around occasionally. Be patient and leave it mostly alone! This allows the meat to “brown,” which adds a lot of flavor.
Step 3 – Break up into smaller pieces
- Once the larger pieces are mostly cooked through, use the “grid” on the Geo Ground Meat Cooking Tool to smash up the meat into a fine ground. Geo’s patented grid is purpose engineered to break up ground beef into small pieces easier than any other cooking utensil so you can make ground beef faster and with less effort!
- Add salt & pepper.
Step 4 – Cook through
- Cook the beef through until there are no liquids left, continuing to break up the meat using the Geo Ground Meat Cooking Tool.
- If you are using lean meat, you might want to add a little liquid (broth or water) to keep the beef from getting too dry. If you are using a 70/30 beef blend, you may need to drain the pan.
- This is the time to add seasonings as your recipe requires!
Step 5 - Let it rest!
As a rule of thumb, it’s good to let all food “rest” for at least 5 minutes before serving and ground beef is no exception. This lets the juices redistribute for a juicier and more flavorful ground beef.