Use this helpful tip to get perfectly crumbled pieces of ground meat without having to struggle with the wooden spoon or spatula. Put down the spoon and reach for the potato masher!.
Whether you fill them with ground beef, sautéed vegetables, seafood, or dessert (ice cream tacos rock! ), Taco Tuesdays are a real thing. However, I’ve always kind of secretly disliked making the meat-filled ones because I could never get those perfect little pieces. I was the one that had inconsisent chunks of meat. A few flawlessly consistent pieces with 486 mamouth chunks mixed in Even though the flavor was perfect, mine didn’t look photogenic.
So I thought I’d ask the authorities last month while I was in Mexico. I said, “So I have an embarrassing question to ask as I can’t figure something out in Mexican cooking, while I am with a few chefs. I make it and it’s tough and I’ll go from boulders to pebbles in size in the meat, how do you get your cooked meats for tacos so uniformly sized?”
We went into the kitchen, where they just so happened to be preparing ground beef. As the ground meat cooked, one of the assistants was seen mashing it. He listed a few techniques that were essential for producing the meat:
It worked, so I had to give it a try when I got home, and from now on, this will be the only way I make taco meat filling. Yes, it takes a little time, but it’s well worth it.
Now, the type of masher I use will depend on the pot I use. But I personally recommend the following:
How to Cook Ground Beef
Ground beef is the ideal protein for meal preparation because it is so versatile. It cooks quickly, can adapt to any flavor profile, and holds up well. My only complaint would be that I don’t enjoy slaving over the stove, aimlessly prodding at each tiny block of beef with a spatula as it cooks in an attempt to break it all up. This hack is going to change the way you cook your ground beef by repurposing a simple kitchen tool you probably already have in your utensil drawer. I know overall, this takes mostly minutes, but time is precious in this busy season of life, and I am all for making even the little things in life as easy as possible.
Kitchen Hack: Use a Potato Masher to Break Apart Ground Beef as it Cooks
I’m aware that there are products on the market designed specifically for breaking down ground meat, but I prefer to keep my kitchen simple and avoid buying single-use items. Here’s how to shred your ground beef using an inexpensive, s-shaped potato masher:
- Heat your skillet. Heat your skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add your beef. Use your potato masher to briefly smash the ground beef in the pan, rotating your wrist throughout. Then let your meat sit and cook on that side.
- Flip and mash. After the meat has been cooked on one side, flip it over and mash it once more with a potato masher. Let the beef continue to brown in the pan.
- Use the ground beef in your preferred beef recipe, serve it immediately, or freeze it for later use.
Tips for the Best Ground Beef
Here are some tips for how to brown ground beef:
- Get your pan hot. Before adding your ground beef, heat your pan over medium-high heat until it is nice and hot.
- Let it cook. Avoid stirring and moving your ground beef around a lot. Before flipping it over and continuing to separate the meat on the other side, let it cook and take on some color on one side.
- Use a large enough pan. Try not to overcrowd your pan with the meat. This causes the meat to steam versus caramelize and brown.
How to Season Ground Beef
You can season your beef simply with salt and pepper or with your favorite spices to give it a more specialized flavor, as ground beef can truly take on any flavor profile. It’s best to season your ground beef after it’s been browned to avoid removing too much moisture, especially if you’re using salt.
Here are some of our favorite ground beef recipes:
Kitchen Hack! Perfectly Crumbled Ground Beef!
FAQ
What is the best way to crumble ground beef?
How to Actually Brown Meat Dry the raw meat on paper towels and allow it to acclimate to room temperature Don’t touch the meat after adding it to a hot, lightly oiled cast-iron pan and smashing it into an even layer. When the edges are crisp, divide the patty into pieces with a spatula.
How do you brown and crumble ground beef?
Set the heat to medium-high and take care when cooking the ground beef to prevent it from clumping. While cooking, shred the ground beef using a potato masher. As the meat cooks, continue to do this at random intervals to create a fine crumble.
Why doesn’t my ground beef crumble?
If you’ve ever wondered how some taco meat is so incredibly finely ground in restaurants or in chili, it’s because the hamburger is actually boiled first. This method of cooking keeps the meat ground finely while gradually raising the temperature and preventing clumping.