One simple way to keep your ground meat based dishes moist, tender and flavorful is to add a Panade. Learn how to make one here.
Have you ever eaten a hamburger or meatball that tasted dry and inedible like hockey pucks? Recipes that use ground meat can be spruced up with just a few ingredient tricks to turn dull dishes into ones people crave!
Whenever you bake, grill or braise meat that need to be cooked well done, you run the risk of losing juiciness and flavor. One simple way to keep ground meat dishes moist and flavorful is to add a Panade.
What is a Panade?
A panade is a mixture of starch and liquid that is added to ground meat. Any combination of starch (bread, panko, crackers) and liquids (milk, buttermilk, yogurt, stock, water) can be used. Varying the combination of panade ingredients and incorporating aromatics and spices can add more or less flavor depending on your taste preference.
Basic Panade Guide:
1 pound meat + 1 large egg + 1/2 cup panade
- Cut the fresh bread into 1/2 inch pieces and allow 1 cup bread cubes to soak for at least 10 minutes in enough liquid (milk, buttermilk, stock) to cover the bread. Mash with a spoon to make sure there are no dry spots, then remove 1/2 cup of the the soaked bread and add to your meat mixture.
- You may want to use less panade (about 1/4 cup) for burgers, more for meatballs and meatloaf (1/2 cup).
- Experiment with the panade amount until the desired texture is achieved.
You can taste how adding a panade makes a recipe more moist and tender by trying my Italian Meatball Recipe.
What happens when ground meat is cooked without a Panade?
When the muscle fibers of meat proteins are cut or ground into smaller pieces, this causes sticky soluble proteins to be released which can then affect the texture of the meat. After the meat is mixed and cooked the proteins tighten and contract, causing significant amounts of moisture to be squeezed out. If a panade is not added to the mixture, then this often results in ground meat dishes reducing in size and becoming dry or tough.
What is the Function of a Panade?
1) Adds moisture directly to the ground meat mixture. Liquids like milk, buttermilk, yogurt, stocks, or just plain water can be added.
2) The starch in the bread absorbs the liquid in the mixture and creates a starch paste. The paste coats the proteins and sets into a gel when cooked, preventing the proteins from linking too tightly together and squeezing out moisture. This keeps the shape of the ground meat while moisture is retained.
Source: The Science of Good Cooking
How do you make it? How long do you leave the milk set?? I mean, instructions at all? *scratches head*
I’ve been doing this for at least 45 yrs. all I did was tear up a slice or 2 of bread & add enough milk for the bread to soak up. I started doing this while in early teens, I think
That’s awesome Susan! Happy to hear that adding a panade works for you π
How much do you use per pound of hamburger?
Hi Ed, great question! I would start with 1/4 cup panade and up to 1/2 cup, for 1 pound of beef and 1 egg as a binder.
Yes – milk soaked bread has been in my mom and grandmother’s recipe since, since forever. Now I know the proper term for it.
I’m sure your grandma’s recipe is amazing Blythe! So happy that the post was helpful to you π
Do you see this in the meat after cooking? Like chucks of white bread in your burger.
Hi Larry- Great questions! If you are using fresh bread as ling as you mix it well and it absorbs the liquid you shouldn’t have visible pieces of bread in the burger.
This is GREAT information that I can use for my next meatloaf, and I’m glad to know about this site. Thank you.
Thank you John, I’m glad that you find it helpful! Let me know if you have any questions, I’m here to help π
Hi,
Can I use bread ends for this? Thank you
Hi Nick- Yes, you can use bread ends, but I would use a mix of center pieces and ends as the center pieces will soak up the liquid a little better.
Thank you for the information! I’ve used a panade for years, but never knew the science behind the magic. I really appreciate what you are doing here.
Thank you Deborah! Your feedback really keeps me motivated π
Now I know why I always add milk and bread to my meatloaf. Didn’t know it hada name..Thanks .β´¯`β’.ΒΈΒΈ. ΰ½²β₯ΰΎ.
My mother always used bread and milk when making burgers or meat loaf, I had asked her why and she said because her mother always did. I wish she was still here and I could tell her about this.
Awww, that made my heart smile Rick! Thanks for checking out my post π
my nanna always soaked 4-5 slices of white bread in milk and added them to her meatballs. It honestly makes such a difference! Nice to have a fancy name for it now π
Could you substitute beef broth for the mile or would that not work?
Milk not mile – sorry
Absolutely Ron! I think any liquid would work, the flavor may just be slightly different, but the texture should be similar. Great question!
Great I think I will give it a try. I am new to your website but I see some other recipes I like the looks of as well. Thanks for the quick response!
Thank you for checking out the website Ron, WELCOME! I would love to hear how it turns out for you π
Panade improves the texture of my Italian meatballs. No more cannonball version. Tender and toothsome.
Absolutely John! Nobody likes inedible meatballs!
Hi! Can you freeze the hamburgers (or, whatever meat you’re using) after you put in the panade?
Absolutely Deanna! I don’t think freezing will after the texture of the hamburger. You could also cook, then freeze and reheat if you are in a hurry. Great question!
This is how I learned to make meatballs from my parents and grandparents. I often also add a good cheese (either Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano Reggiano) as well chopped herbs like parsley and basil, and crushed black pepper to the mixture.
Those additions sounds amazing Fred! That’s a great idea to add cheese, herbs and pepper to make the meatballs even more flavorful. Great suggestion!
Can this be used in turkey meat as well?
Yes!
I wonder if the liquid used was bacon grease if this would still work. Not healthy but would taste awesome.
It would definitely taste yummy but I am concerned that too my added fat would prevent the meatballs, patty or meatloaf from sticking together. Perhaps just adding some chopped bacon to the mixture for the flavor?
If you check out traditional sausage recipes (handmade, but non-commercial), they often use wine + bread to keep the sausage mix moist as it’s being made. It also functions to keep the sausage moist and not drying out when cooking. Nothing worse than a dry-crumbly sausage (!)
I couldn’t agree more! Thank you for the additional information in traditional sausage making and the use of a panade π
Will beer for the liquid be a good idea when making the panade for burgers
Hi Loren! I like the idea of using beer for the panade for burgers. Should add a nice depth of flavors, and maybe a little bitterness depending on what kind of beer you use. Let me know how it goes!