Here’s some scientific truthiness to the age-old question, “How do you cook a burger?”

J. Kenji Lopez-Alt over at The Burger Lab scientifically tests the methods that I’ve described above, as well as many others in the article, and what they find may surprise you:

Flipping your meat multiple times produces meat that’s noticeably more evenly cooked (there’s about 40% less overcooked meat in a burger flipped every 15 seconds vs. one flipped once), browns just as well (just don’t expect distinct hash marks), and to top it all off, ends up cooking in about 2/3rds of the time. Faster and better? You betcha!

The multi-flippers win! Sure, you lose out on those delicious hash marks, but a better-cooked burger in 2/3 the time? That’s a win. And now you know…

via: The Burger Lab: How Often Should You Flip a Burger? [Serious Eats]

NOTE: Do your marinating in a refrigerator, steaks zipped tightly into an air-tight ziploc bag, and remove it a half hour prior to cooking (always cook steak starting at room temp).

See: The Best Damn Steak Marinade to prepare your own marinade. Here are a couple of rules-of-thumb for you, should you want to veer from my prized marinade:

1. Acids break down connective tissue which make your steak more tender. Good items to achieve this include: hot sauce, lemon juice, and vinegar.
2. Never add salt! Salt draws juices out of the meat – exactly the opposite of what we’re trying to do here.
3. Brown sugar caramelizes on the outside, acting as a great agent to achieve a well-seared outside and keep the center rare and juicy.

Check out the video below for my personal favorite verison of a steak marinade.

Cooking Your Steak:
Here is an easy easy way of cooking steaks that are .75-1.5″ thick. For anything thicker, add 30 seconds a side for every .5″ – it also might be a good idea to drop the $20 for a meat thermometer to make sure your meat is fully cooked, for steaks that thick.

Always let the BBQ warm up on high for 5-7 minutes.

Cook the steak for 2 minutes a side with the heat on high, flipping 3 times for rare, 4 times for medium, and 5 times for well done (well done – gross).

If you’re a have a meat thermometer and are a stickler for cooking temperatures (read: don’t want to get e-coli or mad cow disease), here is a breakdown of temperature measurements from the middle of the steak and what it will yield as far as desired redness (in fahrenheit):

Rare: 140° (don’t go below this – or die….possibly)
Medium Rare: 150°
Medium: 160°
Medium Well: 165°
Well Done: Never.

*Remember – the steak will continue to cook for another 5 minutes after it leaves the grill.

This should get you started. I love adding a little bit of bleu cheese crumbles to my steak on the last flip, letting it melt and brown for the last 2 minutes of cooking. AWESOME.

Anyway, as usual, enjoy, dudes!

The best steak marinade will only take you a minute to make. It’s so easy my 12 year old little sister can do it, and HAS! Watch this:

Cook Time:
1 minute

Ingredients:
1/3 cup of soy sauce
1/3 cup of worcestershire sauce
A spoonful of garlic
A squirt of brown mustard
A few tablespoons of Tapatio
A tablespoon or so of olive oil
A pinch of Italian seasoning
A pinch of steak seasoning (optional)

What You’ll Need:
1 cup

Directions:

1. Add all of the ingredients.
2. Stir vigorously.
3. Add to a ziploc bag containing steaks.
4. Allow steaks to marinade for anywhere from 30 minutes to a few hours.

Seriously easy and seriously awesome. Enjoy, dudes!

It’s easy to make and easy to clean up, perfect for a lazy night at home. Mexican food, gotta love it. Read on, my brothas!

NOTE: Makes about 6 servings: 300 Calories, 14g Fat, 10g Carb, 31g Protein.

Cook Time:
About 25 min

Ingredients: (click for photo)
About 1.5 lb. flap steak
1 sliced white onion
2 bell peppers
Tortillas
1 packet of fajita seasoning
Olive oil

What You’ll Need:
1 skillet

TIP: To warm your tortillas, wrap them in a towel and put it in the oven at 180 degrees when you begin cooking. Take them out when you’re done. You’ll end up with perfectly warm tortillas.

Reference Photos:

Directions:

1. Chop the bell peppers and the onion (see reference photo for a how-to).
2. Slice the steak into strips.
3. Heat a skillet on high heat with a couple teaspoons of olive oil.
4. Sautee the sliced onion and bell peppers for about 5 minutes (until tender).
5. Transfer the onion and bell peppers out of the skillet and onto a plate (or separate skillet, as pictured). Keep the heat on and put the steak strips into the same hot skillet. Let cook for 10 minutes (or until browned).
6. Drain juice from the skillet into the sink and return to heat.
7. Add fajita seasoning and about 1/4 cup water. Let boil uncovered for about 2 minutes.
8. Add the onion and peppers back into the skillet. Cook together for another 5 minutes.
9. Assemble the fajita and serve!

That’s it! My personal favorite accompaniment is Tapatio and sour cream. I’m gunna go eat now. Enjoy, dudes!