Choice of Hamburger Meat

The less fat in the meat the more tough and dry it is. Fat is what gives beef it's flavor. So get the less expensive meat and drain it more.

I'd say 85/15, or 80/20. (I find 80/20 to be too greasy. My husband prefers 80/20.) ) We use ground round, or just ground beef.

Why not add seasoning and cook to med rare? I eat lean meat all the time and it's only tatsteless and tough when I don't add seasoning and overcook them. There are a lot of options but it is what it is. Fat adds flavor as well. So you either season to add flavor or have fat to add flavor.

Sirloin makes awful hamburgers because it is too lean. I like ground round but no more than 85%.

Really lean hamburger makes some pretty tough dry burgers.
The 80/20 hamburger is pretty good.
Mixing ground pork and hamburger is a good meat mix for burgers.

My favorite is grass fed buffalo. It is naturally leaner and juicier than beef and has a wonderful, earthy flavor (although it's not to everyone's taste).

I'm a turkey burger kinda' girl :)

The more fat the better it tastes. For just casseroles and stuff I use the lean meat, but for hamburgers I use fatty. Of course, my husband can't have beef so if it's something we're sharing it's ground turkey, which is ok, but not has a hamburger.

I like Boca veggie burgers. Stopped eating beef over a decade ago. Not good for you or the cow.

I ask my butcher what's good.

Butcher ground groundbeef usually has lots if different cuts.

My personal fav beef option is when its half ribs scraps & part marbled steak scraps along with whatever else has been cut that day.

I love bison, lamb/beef combo, turkey & tap,

If you want to use less fat meat then try making them more rare. Otherwise I would use 80/20 or 85/15 for burgers. I just made tacos with the leanest ground beed (93?) and they were fine. But with burgers you need a little fat. I only eat a burger once every few months, so when I eat one I want it to be good!

85% lean if I use hamburger at all. I tend to use ground turkey or chicken, and have a great ground turkey burger recipe that my family loves that I get requests for to bring to barbecues.

As for myself, if I ever miss the taste of burgers I just get the vegetarian ones. It's not even the meat I crave, but what goes on the burgers. So I'm really looking for some good homemade recipes for veggie burgers that will taste good with a little cheese and BBQ sauce or hot sauce.

I like extra lean (93% fat free) - thick burgers cooked rare.

For hamburgers, I like the 93% lean. If you broil it, it is very flavorful and not tough at all.

I like the 85% lean for meatloaf. I have made meatloaf with the 93% and did find it tasteless and tough.

Mix ground beef and ground pork to get a good hamburger.

I use ground sirloin- I believe it is 85/15 or 90/10 and they always turn out good, whether I make them fat or thin.

We go in with friends and buy 1/3 or 1/4 a cow each year from a small local ranch. I have NO idea what mix our hamburger meat is but it's tasty and grass fed and we save money!

We make burgers with the 93% lean and have never had a problem. We barbeque, so maybe the way they're cooked is making a difference. We just sprinkle ours with a little garlic salt or Black Magic and we're good to grill. I'm not a big burger fan, but even I enjoy ours.

I will use leaner ground beef (90/10) for stuff like spaghetti sauce and chili, and more fatty stuff (but not much more - usually 85/15) for grilled burgers. Hubby always complains if the meat is too lean - fat adds flavor!

I like to use 80/20 ground chuck. Much more flavorful than ground round or sirloin.

For a burger, you want some fat!
Ground chuck.

Normally for other stuff I buy very lean ground beef, like 93% or at least 90.
To me what makes it ALL (no matter the fat content) better is the natural ground beef--no hormones or antibiotics. Pricier, but worth it to me.

For beef burgers, I prefer a 85/15 or 80/20 mix. You're right, the lean meats are not great as burgers.

I also love to mix 2 parts beef to 1 part ground chicken and 1 part ground pork (or ground lamb or ground turkey, really anything will do). Throw in some spices and pan fry or grill.

I'm like your SO - I like them on the skinny side, but medium rare.

Stomach growling now...and I've already had dinner.

I use 85/15 or 80/20, because it has the best flavor and texture...in my opinion. I do drain or pat the meat to remove whatever oil cooks out.

I use 90/10 all the time and don't have a problem. I feel anything fattier than that has too much fat. When I asked a butcher about it he mentioned anything less than that will probably be dry. I use the 90/10 for just about everything and it has just the right amount of juice. Not too much fat but enough to give it flavor and moisture. If it turns out dry you cooked it too long.

Superlean is chewy because of the lack of fat. I do make my burgers with it, but I make a loose burger and season it liberally. You can also mix super lean with chuck and you get kind of a mid range.

Don't overwork your meat when you are mixing the ingredients and making your patties (same goes with meatballs). It makes them tough.

I use garlic, dried onion, a little salt and pepper, and either Worcestershire sauce or teriyaki sauce, depending on my mood- sometimes I want an asian flavor.

85/15 is what I generally use for burgers when I buy meat from the store.

When I'm able to buy part of a cow, it comes from grass-fed organic cattle and is very, very lean. No good for burgers at all as-is. In that case, I'll mix 1 lb of the super lean beef with 1 lb of mild pork sausage or 1 lb of store bought 73/27 cheap ground beef.

I buy all our meat from the butcher shop vs grocery store. I get a lot higher grade of beef.

For ground beef I use the chuck which as some fat. Grilled some tonight and they were perfect. The beef we buy is higher grade than the grocery stores. It's the beef you get at high end restaurants and well worth the extra $$$.

Don't use a meat greater than 80% lean is what I have always been told. Otherwise the meat will be too dry for hamburgers. If you are grilling, you don't have to worry about the fat content, because the fat will drip out.

Someone has probably already suggested this but if you switch to venison, you'll be able to solve both issues. Venison is the leanest "red meat" out there and so your husband's preference will already be licked. Simply make stuffed burgers with the (ground) venison and your preference of liking savory/juicy burgers will be licked. If you don't know how to make stuffed burgers, go here: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/stuffed-burgers/.
You can treat ground venison just like you would treat ground beef, ingredient for ingredient. Bon apetit! :)