Name: Smash Burger Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 6 min
Total time: 16 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 pounds of ground beef; 2 teaspoons kosher salt; 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper; 1 medium onion, thinly sliced; 10 slices of American cheese; 5 hamburger buns; ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, pickles, sliced tomatoes, lettuce

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This Smash Burger recipe will have you skipping the drive thru to make these delicious burgers at home. Smash small balls of ground beef along with sliced onions on a super hot griddle for a burger like no other.

burgers cooking on a griddle on the grill while buns toast

My family loves to grill out. And one of our favorite dinners to grill is burgers. I upped our burger game by taking my flat griddle outside and putting it to use on the grill. My Smash Burger recipe not only tastes delicious but is fun to make.

smashing burgers topped with onions on a griddle

Smash burgers are different from the every day hamburger. Super thin with onions smashed into the burgers, they are cooked on a scorching hot griddle so the edges get charred and crispy.

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the ingredients in smash burgers on a griddle

Ground beef
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Onions
Cheese ~ American is my first choice for burgers
Buns
Ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, sliced tomatoes, lettuce, pickles

To get that smokey char flavor, I place a large flat griddle on my charcoal Weber grill. Grilling the thin burgers outdoors also helps control the mess. There isn’t a greasy stove top to clean up. But if your only option is to cook the smash burgers indoors, keep reading as I give you some tips to control the splattering grease. Because who likes to clean up a greasy stove top?

making smash burger recipe and flipping burgers cooked on a griddle

Chef cooking notes for smash burgers

Use 85/15 ground beef. This fraction is a ratio (whoa! higher math) of meat to fat in the ground beef. Since the grilling is done on a griddle, the fat does not drip through the grate. The fat is what gives the burgers fabulous flavor.
Make sure the griddle is good and hot before adding the burger balls. A scorching hot griddle will help achieve the crispy edges on the burgers.
Give the burgers a good smash! You want the onions pressed into the burgers and a flat burger.
As soon as you flip the burgers, top with the cheese. That way the cheese will melt to an ooey gooey goodness.
Spend a couple minutes toasting the buns on the grill. The crispy crunch is a nice contrast to the burgers.

smash burger topped with melty American cheese

You can also cook the smash burgers indoors on the stove top. A flat griddle or cast iron pan are the best options for cooking the burgers on top of the stove. Also, a strong exhaust fan helps control any smoke. To keep the mess to a minimum, lay sheets of foil on the sides of the griddle or pan to catch the grease splatters.

What to serve with smash burgers

smash burger with sliced tomato and pickles

Recent video – smash burgers in 1 minute

Also, if you make my smash burger recipe, I’d love hearing from you. Be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating ~ I do my best to reply to all your comments. And snap a photo to post to Instagram. I’ll add the photos to my Insta stories as I love seeing all your creations.