Don't play with your burgers. Don't press and squish the burgers with a .flipper This squeezes the fat out, and that's a bad thing, but doesn't make them cook any faster. Flippers are just for flipping!

Let your beef rest at least 5 minutes before slicing. Remove from heat and cover with foil. This allows the juices to be absorbed back into the meat. Slicing before it has properly rested let's the juices out of the meat and onto the cutting board, and that's not where I want them!

Put the fork down. Don't use a fork to turn your meat. This pierces the meat allowing natural juices to escape, causing it to lose flavor. Some will argue with this.

Never fry bacon in the nude. Unless you're wearing an apron.

How do you like your meat? Rare? Medium? I won't even mention the other one. Here's a nifty list of recommended temperatures for every shade of doneness:
120 degrees = Rare (my favorite)
125 degrees = Medium rare
130 degrees = Medium
As far as I'm concerned anything above medium rare and you might as well throw it out.

Use a digital meat thermometer to get the most accurate reading. To achieve the desired temperature, remove meat from the heat source when it's 5° to 10° below your target temperature as the residual heat will finish cooking the meat in about five to ten minutes. Then it's time to chow down!

Did someone say soup? When I decide to make soup and head to the store, I buy whatever I like. By that I mean rutabaga, cabbage, celery, corn, zucchini, peppers, peas, potatoes, tomatoes, beans, rice, barley, carrots, whatever I like and especially what's in season. I won't buy all of these for one batch of soup but I will get a good variety. I like chunks of meat rather than ground beef so I'll buy a cheap cut of beef and cut it into cubes. It doesn't have to be an expensive cut as I plan on cooking it a long time so it will be tender.

No matter what the meat is I sometimes use chicken broth instead of beef broth or a combination of both.

Cream of Mushroon Soup. Probably one of my main ingredients. Mix it in with a pound of hamburger, throw in some frozen veggies, serve over potatoes, noodles or rice and you've got yourself a simple and quick meal anytime.