[jyl]

When I want to make burgers, I buy a solid cut or two, trim off or sear the exterior, and grind it myself. You can use a meat grinder or cut the meat into cubes and use the food processor. I like to mix a fatty cut and a leaner cut, trim out any gristle.

This makes a tastier burger, and also I don't trust grocery store ground meat, I believe a significant percentage of it is contaminated with harmful bacteria. Since I like my burgers very rare, I'm eating nearly raw meat at the center of the burger. With solid cuts as I described, you can actually eat the home-grown beef completely raw, as beef tartare or in French, boeuf hachee.