The Best Smash Burger Recipe (2024)

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15 minutes minutes

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Karly CampbellPosted:7/1/24Updated:7/4/24

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Our Smash Burger Recipe makes burgers with crispy edges and juicy interiors that cook in minutes and are perfect for stacking. Nothing beats a double smash burger with our smash burger sauce!

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We’re upping the burger game with this smash burger recipe, served up with double patties, double cheese, and our homemade smash burger sauce.

Crispy + Juicy + Drippy + Saucy Smash Burgers

Nothing beats a big, juicy cheeseburger – except for a thin, crispy, juicy smash burger. <—Sorry, but a double stacked smashburger will always have my heart!

The crispy edges, the layers of cheese, the drippy saucy goodness that is not at all ladylike or dainty. Obsessed. Sign me up for a smash burger every day of the week.

We shared our pimento cheese burgers last week (also smashed!), but wanted to get the classic smash burger recipe in front of you ASAP. Your summer really just isn’t complete without this one.

And whatever you do, don’t forget our smash burger sauce. It’s the icing on the cake, AKA the drippy saucy goodness on the burger.

Table of Contents

What is a Smash Burger?

Smash burgers are pretty much just what they sound like – hamburger patties that have been smashed! They are smashed flat with a burger press over very high heat.

The high heat and pressure cooks the small patties (only a few ounces) very quickly and forms a flavorful “crust” on the bottom side from all the heat and pressure.

It gets flipped and finishes up from there in no time at all. These cook much faster than your typical hamburger and their small size makes them perfect for stacking! Enjoy a double, or even triple burger with these patties!

♥ What We Love About This Recipe:

Fast: A traditional burger can take a fair amount of time to cook through, but smash burger patties are small, only a couple of ounces of meat, and are cooked very quickly on high heat. Double them up for a quarter pound burger that cooks in less than 5 minutes!
Juicy: Ever overcooked your burger and ended up with a dry, tasteless, hockey puck? That’s not going to happen here!
Trendy: Smashburgers are all the rage these days, often available at expensive burger joints. Making them at home is so much more economical and you get to show off your kitchen skills!

Ingredient Notes:

For the burgers:

Ground Beef – We like to use an 80/20 blend of ground chuck. Don’t try to use a lean beef for burgers – they won’t be as flavorful or as juicy.

Smash Burger Seasoning – We keep it pretty simple with some salt, cracked pepper, garlic powder, and a splash of worcestershire sauce.

American Cheese – We like the gooey meltability of American cheese, but you can use any cheese you like.

How to Make A Smash Burger:

Mix the ground beef with garlic powder and Worcestershire while you heat up a cast iron skillet over high heat. Portion the meat into 8 balls that are 2 ounces each.

When the skillet (or flat top grill) is very hot, add 1-2 balls of beef to the skillet, leaving plenty of space around them for you to smash them flat.

Smash the burgers very thin with a burger press or two large spatulas. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Let the burgers cook until edges are browned and tops are turning gray-ish, about 45 to 60 seconds. Flip, season again, and place a slice of cheese on top.

Stack 4 of the cooked burgers on top of the other 4 to make 4 double burgers. Remove from the grill and place on the toasted buns with your choice of toppings.

Helpful TipS!

Wax Paper – Use it to keep your hands clean and the burger press from getting all covered in stuck on hamburger. Pick up the ball of meat with the wax paper, place it on the skillet, and use the burger press to flatten the patty with the wax paper between.
Skillet – Use a heavy cast iron skillet or a flat top grill for the best results. You’ll want to get it hot – very hot! The whole point of smash burgers is to cook quickly with high heat and pressure and to create a crispy and flavorful exterior.
Timing – If you’re using a skillet to make these burgers and want to serve them all at the same time, we place the cooked burger in a bun with no toppings and wrap it in foil, repeating until we’ve finished cooking all the burgers. This will keep the burgers hot, the cheese melty, and the buns soft. Unwrap and let your family top their burgers how they wish when you’re ready to eat.

Flat Top Grill:

We are straight up obsessed with our Blackstone Grill. This is a newer version of the model we have (conveniently found at Walmart) and we use it multiple times a week. Perfect for breakfast (bacon, eggs, and pancakes all in one go!) and a must for smash burgers!

How to Toast Hamburger Buns:

It’s really simple to toast hamburger buns and it is absolutely worth the extra time and effort! It really transforms what can be a pretty dull part of a hamburger into something much tastier.

To toast the buns heat a skillet over medium low heat and butter the insides of the buns. Toast them butter side down on the hot skillet until they’ve turned a nice golden brown or to your liking.

That’s it! It’s simple but it’ll really up your hamburger game and your guests will appreciate the effort.

What to Serve With Smash Burgers:

You’ve got all kinds of options for serving these smash burgers! Pretty much anything you’d normally serve with burgers is a good choice. Here some suggestions for serving:

Toppings – Get creative with the toppings! Fried onions or jalapenos, some crispy air fried bacon, a fried egg, chili, avocado, mushrooms and just about any other toppings you can imagine!
Sauces – We’re adding our special smash burger sauce but just about kind of sauce is okay! Our tangy Carolina BBQ sauce is a good one, or try it with some spicy sriracha sauce! A drizzle of honey mustard might be tasty too!
Sides – We’ve got the toppings and condiments covered, what about the side dishes? You can’t go wrong with fried pickles and our loaded baked potato salad!

Recipe FAQs:

What is the secret to smash burgers?

High heat and pressure! Also keeping the patties on the small side. Smashing thin patties flat over very high heat cooks them quickly and it creates a very flavorful “crust” that makes smash burgers so popular!

What meat is used for smash burgers?

You’ll want at least 80/20 ground beef. We prefer ground chuck for our burgers.

Do you flip a smash burger?

Yes, you will want to flip the smash burger one time. They cook so fast and so hot that they only need one flip and it doesn’t take long at all to finish them.

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Smash Burger Recipe

Our Smash Burger Recipe makes 4 double burgers with cheese and is perfect for BBQs or gatherings. Serve these burgers with our favorite smash burger sauce and all your preferred toppings!

5 from 2 votes

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Prep10 minutes minutes

Cook5 minutes minutes

Total15 minutes minutes

Serves 4 burgers

Ingredients

For the burgers:

▢ 1 pound 80/20 ground beef
▢ 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
▢ ½ teaspoon garlic powder
▢ 1 teaspoon salt more to taste
▢ ½ teaspoon cracked pepper more to taste
▢ 8 slices American cheese see notes

For assembly:

▢ 4 hamburger buns toasted with butter
▢ Shredded lettuce, sliced tomatoes, pickles, onion
▢ Smashburger sauce

Instructions

To make the burgers:

Add the ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder to a bowl and work it together with your hands to distribute the seasoning throughout the meat.
Portion the meat into 8 balls, 2 ounces each.
Heat a large cast iron skillet or flat top grill over high heat. You want this to be very, very hot before cooking the burgers. If you’re cooking on a flat top grill, you should be able to cook all the burgers at once, working quickly so as not to overcook the burgers. If you’re cooking in a skillet, you’ll need to make these in batches of 1-2 burgers each.
Add the balls of beef to the skillet or grill and then immediately smash each one with a burger press or two large spatulas. The burgers should be smashed very thin, a bit larger in diameter than your hamburger buns as they will shrink as they cook.
Sprinkle the flattened burgers with salt and pepper.
Let the burgers cook until the edges are browned and the tops are turning more of a gray-ish color, 45-60 seconds.
Flip the burgers, season again with salt and pepper, and immediately place the cheese on each burger, working quickly. Immediately stack 4 of the burgers on top of the other 4 burgers, making 4 double patties.
Remove from the grill and place the burgers on the toasted buns and top with your choice of toppings. Serve immediately.

Tips & Notes:

We prefer American cheese because of the way it melts, but you can use any type of sliced cheese that you prefer.

For the buns, we prefer cheaper store brand buns or potato buns to something like a brioche bun. These are more of a simple burger than a gourmet burger and we want the beef to shine through, which can be hard with larger, more flavorful buns.

We often keep it simple with our mix of seasonings listed here, but a few other favorite burger seasonings include theBlackstone Cheesesteak seasoning(seriously good stuff and reasonably priced at Walmart) andKinder’s Buttery Burger seasoning(also amazing and easiest found on Amazon).

When pressing the burgers, we use a piece of wax paper between the burger patty and the burger press. It makes clean up a little easier and nothing sticks to the press.

If you’re using a skillet to make these burgers and want to serve them all at the same time, we place the cooked burger in a bun with no toppings and wrap it in foil, repeating until we’ve finished cooking all the burgers. This will keep the burgers hot, the cheese melty, and the buns soft. Unwrap and let your family top their burgers how they wish when you’re ready to eat.

To toast the buns, heat a skillet over medium low heat, butter the insides of the buns and toast on the hot skillet until golden brown.

Nutrition Information:

Author: Karly Campbell

Course:Main Course

Cuisine:American

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5 from 2 votes