Japanese-Style Hamburgers

Update: I have tried this recipe and didn't like the way it turned out. Combining the eggs, milk the breadcrumbs separately made the mixture clumpy so it was difficult to incorporate it with the beef. Since I don't want to waste food, I crumbled the beef patties and made chili and shepherd's pie instead. I will not attempt to make burgers again. I will just wait for my brother-in-law to send a batch of his burger patties. I will definitely continue to cook burgers the way they do in the recipe below.

I haven't tried this recipe yet, but I like the way the burger is cooked. I usually am wary about cooking hamburger, especially for my son's lunch, because I'm not quite sure if it's cooked all the way through. The technique used here guarantees that the meat is cooked evenly.

Burger:
14 oz (400g) ground beef
1/2 tsp salt
ground black pepper to taste
1/2 onion
vegetable oil for frying
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1 cup breadcrumbs

Sauce:
2/3 cup water
3 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon sake
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon butter

1. Season the beef with salt and pepper and set aside.

2. Chop the onion very fine and saute in a little oil until transparent. Remove from heat and set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, combine egg and milk and mix, then add breadcrumbs and mix briefly. Set aside to allow flavors to combine.

4. Add the onion mixture and the breadcrumb mixture to the beef. Mix lightly by squeezing the meat 2 or 3 times with your hands. This will make the meat light and fluffy.

5. Dab a little oil on your palms and divide the meat into four portions. Toss each portion from one hand to the other, as if you were playing catch, to remove any excess air. Shape into 4 hamburgers, indenting the middle of each with your thumb.

6. Heat a little oil in a fry pan and saute hamburgers over medium heat until nicely browned on one side. Turn and brown the other side.

7. Add enough boiling water to the pan to half-cover the burgers. Cover the pan and simmer over medium-high heat until burgers are cooked through. Remove the lid, lower heat to medium, and continue cooking until all the liquid has evaporate. Place on individual plates and set aside.

8. To make the sauce, add water, ketchup, sake, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and butter to the same pan, and bring to a boil. Simmer until slightly thickened and ladle the sauce over burgers. Serve with your favorite vegetables.