How To Cook Ground Beef For Sauce

How to Cook and Brown Ground Beef the All-time Way

Go perfectly browned meat for tacos, chili, and more.

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Browning ground beef is a skill every domicile cook needs in their tool kit. And while it might seem fairly intuitive, there'due south a lot that tin can go wrong without proper technique.

Ever wonder why your footing beefiness turned out more than gray than brownish? Keep reading to learn how to get perfectly browned ground beef using a skillet. Plus, refer to our troubleshooting guide for all your ground beef questions.

How to Buy Ground Beef

Cooking the best basis beef starts with choosing the correct meat at your supermarket. Ground beef only lasts nigh ii days in the refrigerator, which ways you'll want to choose the freshest meat possible, and use information technology every bit soon equally y'all can. That is, unless yous plan to freeze information technology (more than on that to come).

Fresh ground beef should exist bright ruddy in color. You should besides refer to the sell-past date on each bundle. Choosing the meat that has a sell-by date furthest from today'due south engagement will ensure your ground beef won't become bad on you likewise before long.

You'll also want to consider fat content. The higher the fatty content, the more flavorful and juicy the meat. Well-nigh ground beef you observe at the supermarket has a beef to fat ratio of 85/15. This is a good pick for well-nigh culinary purposes. However, if you're wanting the juiciest burgers possible, you can opt for a college fat content similar 70/thirty or 80/20.

Lean or extra-lean ground beefiness on the other hand is best for taco meat, since it won't shrink up when cooked quite as much as beefiness that is higher in fat. Really, it comes down to personal preference and how you intend to use it.

How to Cook and Brown Ground Beef

The skillet method is the tried and true way to brown ground beef. Here we'll break downward the best mode to cook ground beef using a skillet.

Browning ground beef in stainless steel pan with wooden spatula

Credit: Marty Baldwin/Meredith

Hither'southward What Yous'll Demand:

A big, stainless steel or cast atomic number 26 skillet
A spatula, sauté paddle, or wooden spoon
1 ½ lb fresh or thawed ground beefiness
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
½ teaspoon common salt
Other spices (optional)

Instructions:

Allow your meat to sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes.
Heat the oil in a large stainless steel or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. If yous're using a nonstick pan you don't have to use oil (unless you're using extra-lean ground beef). Bandage iron and stainless steel are the best choice for getting that beautiful, brownish sear.
Once the pan is hot, add the meat, and use a spatula to break it up into pieces.
Let the meat brown without touching for nigh 5 minutes. This gives the meat more contact with the pan, and thus, a improve sear.
Sprinkle salt and whatsoever other spices (like taco seasoning). Continue to let the meat chocolate-brown, stirring once after every infinitesimal, until all the moisture has evaporated.
Make certain in that location are no signs of pinkish, and break up whatsoever larger pieces. You've done it! Now it'due south time to drain the fatty. (More on that below.)

How to Drain Fat from Cooked Ground Beef

Fat is an inevitable past-product of cooking ground beef. One time your ground beef is completely browned, your next stride is to advisedly separate the fat from the meat. Hither'southward how:

Tilt the pan to 1 side and so that the liquid is on 1 side and the meat is on the other. Watch out for whatever splatters of hot fat.
Use a slotted spoon to remove the ground beef and place it on a paper towel-lined plate.
Allow the remaining fat to sit in the skillet until completely cooled. Discard it in the garbage. Never dump it down the drain! Whether solid or liquid, fat volition clog up your drain and atomic number 82 to a futurity plumbing headache.

Ground Beef Troubleshooting Guide: iii Common Mistakes To Avoid

i. You put cold meat in a hot pan.

Pulling ground beef straight from the fridge and placing it in a hot pan is going to crusade the meat to release those juices immediately. For best results, allow your meat to sit at room temperature for near fifteen minutes before cooking. Just never leave footing beefiness out at room temperature for more than ii hours.

2. You overcrowded the pan.

If yous want to achieve that crisp, brown chaff, overcrowding the pan is only going to work against you. Because the meat doesn't take enough contact with the pan, it's not going to sear — it'south going to steam. The consequence? Wet and grayness basis beef. No thanks.

If you're cooking a big corporeality of ground beef, either cook it in batches or make sure you have a skillet that's large enough to accommodate it.

iii. You use a nonstick pan.

Okay, you can use a nonstick pan to brownish ground beef if that's what you lot prefer. It'southward certainly convenient. But for truly the best sear, yous'll want to go with bandage fe or stainless steel. The reason is nonstick pans but don't retain rut as well. And not all nonstick pans can handle the high heat that'due south required for browning meat. To prevent the meat from sticking in stainless steel or cast iron pans, merely use a little oil and make certain your cast fe is well seasoned.

How to Store Basis Beefiness

Raw basis beef can be stored in the refrigerator for upward to two days or in the freezer for up to three months. To freeze, wrap the package tightly in freezer wrap or transfer to a freezer-safe bag and characterization with the date.

Cooked ground beef, like many other leftovers, will final three to 4 days in the fridge, or iii to four months in the freezer. Keep information technology stored in an airtight container or freezer bag.

5 Delicious Ground Beef Recipes That Aren't Burgers, Tacos, or Meatballs

Piece of cake Korean Ground Beefiness Bowl: Footing beef is flavored with garlic, fresh ginger, sesame oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, ruddy pepper, and light-green onions to make a quick and easy dish that'due south set up to serve over rice in nigh 25 minutes.
Beef and Bean Chimichangas: Shake up Taco Tuesday with chimichangas! Ground beef, onion, bell pepper, and corn get spiced up with taco sauce, chili powder, garlic salt, and cumin, then rolled into tortillas spread with a layer of refried beans. To crisp them up, castor with butter and broil in the oven.
Instant Pot Lasagna Soup: Everything y'all love almost lasagna, but in soup form. Cooking this comforting soup in your Instant Pot slashes the time down to well-nigh 45 minutes from start to end.
Kibbee Lebanese Style: This Heart Eastern recipe calls for ground lamb, but you tin substitute basis beef if you like. Ground meat is combined with bulgur, onion, and fragrant spices, and layered with pine nuts in a baking dish. Scoring the footing meat mixture into a diamond pattern before baking gives information technology center appeal and makes it easier to cut and serve.
Stuffed Peppers: Whole bell peppers are hollowed out and stuffed with a mixture of basis beefiness, rice, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt, and pepper before baking nether a coating of more sauce.

Related:

xx Ground Beef Dinners for Beginner Cooks
fifteen Budget-Friendly Footing Beef Recipes
Browse our entire drove of Ground Beefiness Recipes.