Grilled hamburgers (twelve rules)

Keep the ground beef cold, straight from the fridge, so the fat stays in solid pieces.

Form patties quickly and gently with as little handling as possible, patting a pile of meat into shape on parchment paper on a tray. Add nothing to the meat, salt included.

Make all patties the same size, by eye or weighed on a scale, so they cook at the same rate.

For a thick patty, press a dimple in the centre so it cooks flat; for a thin patty, press the meat between two sheets of parchment paper with a tray into a round, even shape.

Season the outside liberally with kosher salt and ground black pepper.

Build a two-zone fire: coals on one side of the grill (or half the gas burners on high, the rest low). Move burgers or spin the grate to the cooler side when flare-ups start, and finish thick burgers there with the lid on.

Brown thick burgers on both sides; brown thin burgers about 90% on one side, then flip only briefly.

Check with a thermometer: around 120 degrees for medium rare or a little below, 130 for the upper end of medium rare; by 160 it is grey and well done throughout.

Serve thin burgers on generic white buns and thicker ones on brioche-style buns; toppings to taste, onions and pickles under the patty.