By Farideh Sadeghin
Published Aug. 7, 2024
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Prep Time
- 15 minutes
- Cook Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- 4(39)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Smashburgers get their name from just that: smashing the meat onto a griddle using a metal spatula or burger press, resulting in a thin burger with seriously charred edges. Use ground beef that has a 20 percent fat content, roll the meat into balls, then chill for at least 30 minutes before cooking to keep the fat solid. The result? Juicy burgers with brown, crisp edges. Unlike a typical burger that you might throw on the grill, thinner smashburgers cook best on a griddle or cast-iron skillet. Smear some mayonnaise on the insides of the buns before toasting them; the fat leftover from the mayo should be just enough to slick up the griddle to cook the burgers, but you can use a touch of oil in between batches as needed. Top your burger how you like: Finely shredded lettuce, homemade pickles and thinly sliced red onion are enough to make this fast food staple feel fancy. A simple combination of mayo, ketchup, mustard, relish and vinegar creates the perfect sauce, but fry sauce would also hit the spot.
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 1½pounds ground beef
- ¾cup mayonnaise
- ¼cup ketchup
- 2tablespoons sweet relish
- 1tablespoon yellow mustard
- ½teaspoon white vinegar
- 4hamburger buns
- 2teaspoons vegetable oil, plus more as needed
- Salt and pepper
- 8slices Cheddar cheese
- Pickle slices, shredded iceberg lettuce and thinly sliced red onion, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
1131 calories; 90 grams fat; 29 grams saturated fat; 2 grams trans fat; 31 grams monounsaturated fat; 23 grams polyunsaturated fat; 32 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 9 grams sugars; 47 grams protein; 1185 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Cut eight (5-inch) square pieces of parchment paper and set aside.
Step
2
Divide the ground beef into 8 equal balls. Place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use (preferably for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight).
Step
3
In a medium bowl, mix together ½ cup mayonnaise with the ketchup, relish, mustard and vinegar. Refrigerate sauce until ready to use.
Step
4
Heat a large cast-iron skillet or griddle over medium-high. Spread about 1½ teaspoons mayonnaise onto the insides of each of the buns and toast the insides of the buns until golden, about 2 minutes. Set aside.
Step
5
Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in the skillet. Add 2 of the balls of meat and place a square of parchment over each ball. Using a burger press or large metal spatula, smash the burgers directly onto the skillet until about ¼-inch thick. Remove and discard the pieces of parchment and season the burgers with salt and pepper.
Step
6
Cook the burgers, without pressing or fussing with them, until a nice crust has formed, about 2 minutes, then flip and season with more salt and pepper. Add a slice of cheese to the top of each burger and cook until the cheese has melted, about 2 minutes more. Stack the burgers on top of one another and place inside a bun. Add the reserved sauce to the inside of the bun and top the burger with pickles, lettuce and red onion. Top with the top of the bun. Repeat with the remaining ingredients to form 4 burgers.
Ratings
4
out of 5
39
user ratings
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Cooking Notes
K A Tate
You can get virtually the same effect under the broiler in the oven too and it's less messy. Smash the burgers, chill them till ready to cook, and put them under the broiler for 5 mins on a rack set in a foil lined pan. Cut the heat, add cheese, let it melt, eat. It's great, charred edges and all but I season the meat before I make the burgers. Makes all the difference, in my experience.
Stephan Ford
couple of suggestions. try using more than salt and pepper to season. i would suggest garlice powder and or onion powder. i recommend american yellow cheese as the best cheese for burgers. for the buns you can toast them but don't use mayonnaise. I suggest buttering the buns first with salted butter. you can use the salted butter to oil the griddle and skillet as well. do these steps as the added salt/seasoning from the butter and cheese bring out the flavors of the other ingredients.
Llebles
No way 3oz takes 4 minutes to cook. MAYBE if the patties are 1/2” thick and 3” in diameter which is an odd size for burgers. I worked at McD when they flipped burgers, a 2oz frozen patty too 2 minutes and 12 seconds start to finish. I make them all the time. Either 2 or 3 oz…I make double cheeseburgers. My son likes more meat..so 2 3oz patties for him. With not frozen meat…it’s about 30-45 seconds and flip. Another 20-30 and they are done. Ready to flip when juice starts coming to the surface.
Nicola R.
Beef was awesome just as the recipe is written (although K A Tate's broiler Rx looks promising and efficient for serving 4 hungry family members). But I strongly recommend the use of really great, sturdy burger buns ... brioche perhaps? Our supermarket wonders fell apart even after toasting and with just a modest amount of shredded lettuce, pickles and onions.
Xeethra
How do you toast a mayonnaise smeared bun?
Matt
On the griddle
Marco
Toast the buns in a skillet. We do it all the time, it works great. (On a separate note, this technique also works perfectly for hot dog rolls, if you can get the New England style rolls which are top split. These rolls are the best hot dog rolls as they can be toasted and used for a large number of fillings. But obviously, not for burgers.)
jmack
We toast ours in a skillet. Makes for the best grilled cheese sandwiches.
CS Odeen
Been making "smashburgers" for years, as Culver's is a WI (and now IL) chain that specializes in them. I use cast iron, get the pan actually quite hot, then turn heat down slightly (not to the smoking point, but cast iron will hold the heat, so you don't need to keep it on High while cooking). The suggestion to use a bit of parchment is brilliant!! Wipe skillet with oil, and agree with Llebles; smash thin, you'll see juices within a minute. Try steak seasoning in lieu of salt/pepper. Enjoy!!
J R Elliott
You cannot achieve the same level of Maillard effect under a broiler, as others have stated. Before you try the exact instructions here, I recommend following the instructions for an Oklahoma Smash Burgers popularized by George Motz (AKA, The Burger Scholar). Essentially, julienne about a half of a medium white onion at the thinnest setting for each burger. Use 2.3oz balls of 80/20 topped with half the julienned onion and smash them with all you've got--1/4" may be too thick. Then top with salt.
BEEFWELLINGTON
Fantastic! Mayonnaise is a great idea for toasting the buns, as it works far better than butter. That is exactly how you would make a grilled cheese sandwich.
Llebles
No way 3oz takes 4 minutes to cook. MAYBE if the patties are 1/2” thick and 3” in diameter which is an odd size for burgers. I worked at McD when they flipped burgers, a 2oz frozen patty too 2 minutes and 12 seconds start to finish. I make them all the time. Either 2 or 3 oz…I make double cheeseburgers. My son likes more meat..so 2 3oz patties for him. With not frozen meat…it’s about 30-45 seconds and flip. Another 20-30 and they are done. Ready to flip when juice starts coming to the surface.
Mike in Maine
I thought smashburgers had like half a pound of thinly sliced onions per burger cooked with the meat?
Stephan Ford
couple of suggestions. try using more than salt and pepper to season. i would suggest garlice powder and or onion powder. i recommend american yellow cheese as the best cheese for burgers. for the buns you can toast them but don't use mayonnaise. I suggest buttering the buns first with salted butter. you can use the salted butter to oil the griddle and skillet as well. do these steps as the added salt/seasoning from the butter and cheese bring out the flavors of the other ingredients.
K A Tate
You can get virtually the same effect under the broiler in the oven too and it's less messy. Smash the burgers, chill them till ready to cook, and put them under the broiler for 5 mins on a rack set in a foil lined pan. Cut the heat, add cheese, let it melt, eat. It's great, charred edges and all but I season the meat before I make the burgers. Makes all the difference, in my experience.
Andy
If using a flat top or griddle, a glass pie plate works well to smash the burgers. Don't forget to use parchment paper!
LBF
I also like to add avocado…
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