burger binder?

[Jake T]

i tried making bear burgers the other night on the grill.  they fell apart. 

i put two eggs in the mix, ground up bear meat, and some wostershire sauce.  mash it all together and make patties. the bear meat is pure, i didn't add any pork or anything when i ground it up.

this recipe works for my deer burgers, but that had pork ground up with it.  so i am thinking the pork is the answer.

is there anything i can add to my bear to get it to stick together better in burger form or should i regrind it with some pork?

thanks

[BLKBEARKLR]

re-grind it, went through the same thing you did. One thing that I did do, was wrap it tight in foil and then cooked it that way, but still crumbled some when I took it out.

Joe

[Goldeneye]

You can always add some pork or beef suet to your grind to help hold it together.  Pork suet would probably work better for bear.

If you already have your meat ground.  Mixing in some ricotta cheese will also serve as a binder. 

Just my 

[huntmando]

mix in alittle bit of bread crumbs, it works well

[Ghost1941]

Regrind it with pork.  Bear is too lean and not enough fat content in the meat to hold together.

[Da stump]

    You can add some whey to it as well.  That is what a lot of sausage use as a binder.

[NRA4LIFE]

Powdered milk or some soy protien powderwill also work.  I use both in my sausages.

[bucklucky]

When you make wild game burgers use oatmeal and egg to hold it together. The oatmeal helps a ton. We make elk burgers alot and have no problems falling apart anymore.

[whacker1]

oatmeal and egg
dry onion soup and egg works good with some worchestshire
my new program is dry onion soup, egg, bacon bitts, johnnys, worschestshire

[EastWaViking]

don't add anything!  temperature is the key.  I grind up antelope, deer, wild turkey, bear, etc and never add anything.  Wild game is lean, why make it fatty and unhealthy with pork fat?  If you let it thaw and warm to near room temp it becomes stickier  and holds together great.  Spray one side with olive oil before throwing it on the grill so it doesn't stick, and they will hold together perfectly.  Trust me if pure antelope meat with all of the fat trimmed off will hold together and make a perfect burger, bear will too.

[Jake T]

thanks for the ideas.  i have heard about the oatmeal trick but i guess i didn't remember.  is there a certain amount or is it just about using what "feels" right? 

[huntnphool]

great ideas guys, keep them coming