Use the photos below as a guide.

Assembly:

Take an 8-ounce portion of ground beef per burger, and divide in half. Place each mound on a sheet of plastic (to help with gently transferring the beef patties) with several inches of space between them.

Gently form each mound of ground beef into a loose ball and gently work each half by pressing down in the center, pressing just barely firmly, working toward the edges, and forming two  5 1/2 inch circular burgers. Make sure there aren’t any cracks or holes in the center of the burger. Leave the edges alone for now.

Season the burger with salt and pepper as desired. (Note: my preferred method of cooking is to use salt in the skillet, so go easy on any salt inside the burger.) Add the cheese to the center of the burger, breaking or folding cheese to leave a perimeter of cheeseless ground beef around the edges. Add any broken pieces of the cheese to the center. There should be more cheese in the center than along the outside edges of the cheese.

Use the plastic wrap as an aid to lift the second, cheeseless burger up and flip it on top of the burger. Go around the outside edges of the burger and tightly pinch the edges together. The center of the burger at this point will have a hump. Leave it alone.

Instead, smoosh the crimped edges of the burger up to the level of the top of the mound. Using the palm of your hand, curved around the burger, push and pat the edges of the burger, pressing them in so the burger is an even height all around. Your burger should be about 5 inches at this point, and the sides will be straight and about an inch tall, and the top will be even.

Inspect the burger and, with a fingertip, smooth over any cracks on the burger; see the photos. Any cracks can form a leak, later, as it cooks. Round off the edges as desired.

Cooking:

Heat your cast-iron pan (or another type of skillet if you must) or griddle over medium-high heat until it’s nearly smoking. Toss in a ridiculous amount of salt, about a teaspoon, and add your burgers. Use the plastic the burgers are sitting on to gently turn your burgers into the pan. If you’re making several, you may need to use more than one pan.

Turn the heat down to medium and let it sit for about six minutes or until the burgers are brown halfway up when looking at the side. Turn down the heat if they are browning too fast. If they aren’t browning, leave them until they are. If they aren’t cooking evenly, don’t move the burgers and disturb the crust; move the pan around on the burner!

When ready to turn, add a little salt to the still raw top, and preferably, using a thin metal spatula, not a thick plastic one, turn the burgers and cook for two to three minutes longer, to your desired doneness. You’ll begin to see the fat from the burgers oozing out when it’s done. If you see (or smell) cheese oozing, remove the burger immediately – turn it so the oozy side faces up. The more well-done the burger is, the greater the risk of leakage.

Resting:

Have your buns and all your toppings ready. Now the most important part – let your Juicy Lucy rest for about two minutes, lightly covered, keeping in mind they are full of molten hot cheese. As you hold the burger for that first bite, don’t press down on it firmly. You don’t want to create a lot of pressure and inadvertently cause the burger to blow out, spurting hot, hot cheese everywhere.