Cooks Illustrated

8 strips bacon (about ½ pound)

2 large slice high-quality white sandwich bread, crust removed and discarded, bread chopped into ¼ -inch pieces (about ¾ cup)

3 Tablespoons whole milk

1 teaspoon table salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

½ teaspoon garlic powder

1 Tablespooon steak sauce, such as A-1

2 pounds 80 percent lean or leaner ground chuck

Vegetable oil for cooking grate

8 cheeses slices, American or cheddar

8 hamburger buns or rolls

COOK 8 strips of bacon (about 1/2 pound) in medium skillet over medium heat until crisp, 7 to 9 minutes.

TRANSFER bacon to paper-towel-lined plate; set aside. 

MEASURE 3 Tablespoons bacon fat into heatproof bowl; refrigerate until just warm.

TURN all burners to high, close lid, and heat until very hot, about 15 minutes. Use grill brush to scrape cooking grate clean. Lightly dip wad of paper towels in vegetable oil; holding wad with tongs, wipe cooking grate. Leave primary burner on high; turn other burner(s) to low.

MEANWHILE, mash bread and milk* in large bowl with fork until homogeneous. Stir in salt, pepper, garlic, steak sauce, and reserved bacon fat; mix until thoroughly blended.

BREAK UP the beef into small pieces over bread mixture. Using fork or hands, to lightly mix together until mixture forms a cohesive mass. 

Divide meat into 8 equal portions. Gently flatten into 3/4-inch-thick patty that measures about 4 1/2 inches in diameter. 

PRESS the center of patty down with fingertips until it is about 1/2 inch thick, creating a slight depression in each patty. Repeat with remaining portions of meat.

LIGHTLY dip a wad of paper towels in vegetable oil; holding wad with tongs, wipe cooking grate. 

GRILL burgers on the hot side of grill, covered, until well seared on first side, 2 to 4 minutes. Using wide metal spatula, flip burgers and continue grilling, about 3 minutes for medium-well or 4 minutes for well-done. 

PLACE cheese on burgers about 2 minutes before they reach desired doneness, covering burgers with disposable aluminum pan or sprayed baking sheet to melt cheese. 

WHILE burgers grill, toast buns on cooler side of grill, rotating buns as necessary to toast evenly. Serve burgers on toasted buns, topping each burger with  a strip of bacon.

*Adding a panade (a paste of bread and milk paste) to the ground beef creates burgers that are juicy and tender even when well-done. For a burger that cooks up flat, press the center of each patty down with your fingertips before grilling. Serve the burgers on your favorite buns or rolls.

**Freeze extra bacon fat in a plastic zip bag. Then you’ll have the bacon grease to make more burgers so you don’t have to fry the bacon.