The Best Burger Recipe

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The Best Burger is grilled hot, juicy, and slathered in secret sauce. Of course, the most classic dinner you can make on a grill is a hamburger (or cheeseburger of course)! It never gets old and it tends to taste better the hotter it gets outside. I have the best Burger Recipe out there that results in flavorful, juicy burgers every time! Not to mention, my secret sauce. Make your next grill sesh complete with some Boston Baked Beans or Creamy Potato Salad (no eggs!) with your burgers.

What Makes the Best Burger?

A good hamburger recipe is made up of a couple of different sections that all work beautifully together. One doesn’t overwhelm the other and you get a perfectly juicy and balanced burger. For the Best Grilled Burger, I’m going to break down each of these sections so you can have summer grilling success!

Looking for a healthier burger? Check out my turkey burger recipes: The Best Turkey Burger Recipe, Cheddar Ranch Turkey Burgers, Southwest Turkey Burgers, and Greek Turkey Burgers.

How to Make Burger Patties

These homemade burgers will make you never want summer to end! For full recipe details, see the printable recipe card down below.

Make Ground Beef Mixture

In a large bowl, mix together Ground Chuck or Ground Beef, Gourmet Burger Seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, and BBQ sauce together until well combined. Do not over mix.

Form Hamburger Patties

Line a 4-inch wide lid with plastic wrap. Add a few spoonfuls of ground beef mixture to the lid and fold the plastic wrap over the top to press and mold the burger patty. Unwrap from plastic wrap and place onto a plate or platter. Continue this process until you have created 8 patties, about 1/4 pound each, 1/3-1/2 inch thick, 4 inches across.

Refrigerate Until Ready to Grill

Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour. (This will help the burgers keep their shape on the grill.)

Get Juicy Burgers Every Time

Here are a few rules I like to live by in order to get and keep a juicy burger.

• Start with good quality meat! This sort of seems like a “duh” tip, but it makes such a difference! For best results, use 2 pounds of of grass-fed 80/20 ground chuck. The fat content will add not only moisture, but great flavor as well.
• Add minimal salt to your hamburger mixture, and then salt burgers right before they come off the grill. Salt draws out moisture, so if you salt the meat ahead of time, it will work against you!
• Form even, wide patties for quick and even cooking versus smaller, thicker patties.
• While grilling, don’t push or press on your burger. This is the exact reason why thermometers were invented! You are getting rid of all that moisture every time you push on your burgers!  Yes, it helps you see if your burger has clear juices running through it, but it also defeats the purpose of maintaining the moisture in the meat. This digital thermometer would be good to have.
• Preheat your grill to moderate heat. You don’t want your grill blazing away over the high heat. ROOKIE MISTAKE! The outside will be nearly black by the time the inside is even close to being cooked. Keep your heat even and on medium.
• Use Residual Heat. Cook burgers on the one side, flip, then cook briefly on the other, turn the grill off and let them finish cooking in the residual heat with the lid closed. It seems a little odd, but it helps keep things extra moist and that’s the whole point of this list.
• A Lighter Recipe. To lighten up the recipe, make your burger with only one lean beef patty.

How to Grill the Best Grilled Burgers

Once you try grilling burgers this way, you’ll never go back to your old ways. Promise.

Preheat Grill + Bring Burgers From the Fridge

Place each burger onto the preheated grill. Cook 3 minutes per side.

Add Cheese to Each Burger

Add cheddar cheese slices to each patty, cover, and cook 1 minute.

Turn Off Grill + Continue to Cook

Turn grill off and then continue cooking another 3 minutes or until burgers register 160 degrees F.

My Secret Sauce

While the burgers are resting, make up the secret sauce! Whisk mayonnaise together with ketchup, pickles, pickle juice, ground pepper, and garlic powder. Place in refrigerator until ready to use.

Prep Toppings

After making the secret sauce, don’t forget to prep your burger toppings while the burgers are resting. Slice tomatoes, wash and tear lettuce, slice the onion, etc.

Other Common Burger Toppings to Consider

Now this is totally up to you because it’s your dinner! Some of my favorite toppings are lettuce, tomato, and red onions.

• Mustard
• Mayonaise
• Mushrooms
• Caramelized Onions
• Bacon
• Pickles
• Fries

A Note About Buns

There are a ton of different hamburger buns out there. I opted for a potato bread buns, which are soft and full of flavor. Consider toasting it for a slight crunch too! If you have a favorite bun that you already use, feel free to use that instead.

Assemble Your Burger

To assemble your burger, take a bun and add plenty of secret sauce and lettuce. Then stack two burgers together and place them on top of lettuce. Now pile on any other desired toppings and close it off with the top of the hamburger bun. Enjoy!

Side Dishes to Have with this Burger Recipe

Now that you have the perfect summer burger you’re going to need some side dishes. Don’t worry…I got you covered with these easy ideas.

• Garlic Fries Recipe – this recipe takes very little prep and can be done in 25 minutes or less!
• Grandma’s Best Potato Salad Recipe – cold potato salad tastes so much better on a hot day.
• Amazing Pico de Gallo Recipe – serve alongside chips.
• High Protein Ranch Dip & Dressing – break out the veggies with this delicious ranch dip!
• Classic Coleslaw Recipe with Homemade Coleslaw Dressing – the perfect coleslaw to go with your main course.
• Cucumber Salad Recipe – so refreshing!

Storing Leftover Burgers

Store leftover burgers in the fridge, in an airtight container for 3-4 days.

Freezing Directions: Grilled hamburgers freeze well, while maintaining their flavor for up to 4 months! Allow burgers to cool completely. Wrap each burger individually in foil, and then place in a sealed freezer safe bag.

More Burger Recipes to Try!

• Bacon Cheeseburger Sliders
• Blue Cheese Bacon Burgers
• Onion Ring Topped BBQ Bacon Burger
• Chicken Parm Garlic Bread Burgers
• Green Chile Cheeseburgers

This burger recipe is quite straightforward, so the photos should help send you down the right path! Plus, this recipe can be dressed up or dressed down for all your burger needs. Just be sure to print the recipe so you have it on hand 🙂

The printable recipe card is below. Have a great day, friends!

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5 from 10 votes

The Best Burger Recipe

The Best Burger Recipe is grilled, juicy, and slathered in secret sauce. These homemade burgers will make you never want summer to end!

servings 4 servings

Prep Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

for the burgers-

• ▢ 2 lbs. 80/20 Ground Chuck or Ground Beef of choice
• ▢ 2 tablespoons Gourmet Burger Seasoning
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
• ▢ 1/4 cup BBQ sauce

for the secret sauce-

• ▢ 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• ▢ 1/4 cup ketchup
• ▢ 1/4 cup dill pickles finely diced
• ▢ 1 tablespoon dill pickle juice
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• ▢ 8 slices cheddar cheese
• ▢ 4 potato hamburger buns
• ▢ lettuce
• ▢ tomato
• ▢ red onion etc.

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• In a large bowl, mix Ground Beef, burger seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, and BBQ sauce together until well combined.
  
• Line a 4-inch wide lid with plastic wrap. Add a few spoonfuls of hamburger mixture to the lid and fold plastic wrap over the top to press and mold the burger patty. Unwrap from plastic wrap and place onto a plate or platter. Continue this process until you have created 8 patties, about 1/4 pound each, 1/3-1/2 inch thick, 4 inches across.
  
• Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour. (This will help the burgers keep their shape on the grill)
  
• While burgers are resting, make the secret sauce: stir mayonnaise together with ketchup, pickles, pickle juice, ground pepper, and garlic powder. Place in refrigerator.
  
• Also, prep your burger toppings: slice tomatoes, wash and tear lettuce, slice the onion, etc.
  
• To grill, place each burger onto preheated grill. Cook 3 minutes on one side and then flip. Add cheddar cheese slices on each patty, cover and cook 1 minute. Turn grill off and then continue cooking another 3 minutes or until burgers register 160 degrees F.
  
• Stack two burgers* together and place onto hamburger buns. Add plenty of secret sauce and any other desired toppings. Enjoy!
  

Notes

*To lighten up the recipe, make with only one lean beef patty.

Nutrition

Calories: 923kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 68g | Fat: 53g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Cholesterol: 211mg | Sodium: 1387mg | Potassium: 1067mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 905IU | Vitamin C: 2.6mg | Calcium: 586mg | Iron: 10.3mg

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Keyword: best burger recipe, burger recipe, homemade burgers