How To Cook Burgers On The Stove
To cook burgers on the stove, choose a cast iron skillet. This will give you a beautiful char. I like to use the same skillet I cooked the bacon in and leave about two tablespoons of bacon drippings. Heat the skillet over medium high heat until it smokes lightly, this can take up to two minutes, so be patient!
We want the skillet nice and hot so it will create a nice crust. At the same time, we dont want it so hot that the outside will burn before the center is cooked. I find medium-high to be perfect to start with, but you may need to reduce the heat if you like your burgers more well done.
Cook the burgers until brown and charred on one side, about 3-4 minutes, flip, and reduce heat to medium. Glaze each patty with about 1 tablespoon barbecue sauce then cover. Covering the pan ensures the burger will cook evenly all throughout and reducing the heat is necessary so they dont burn. The pan will still have residual heat, so the bottom will still char. You will cook on this side for 2-5 minutes, depending on the thickness of your burgers and how well done you like them. I suggest using an instant read thermometer to check for doneness.
Can I Use Ground Sirloin
Ground sirloin is leaner than ground chuck, usually 90/10 so it is much leaner, less flavorful and tends to dry out when cooked at high heat. If you use ground sirloin, I recommend same as ground beef adding a couple tablespoons of the bacon drippings directly to the panade before adding the sirloin to prevent dry, cracking burgers.
Tips From The Betty Crocker Kitchens
- tip 1 Patties can be made the day ahead of grilling and stored covered in the refrigerator until ready to grill. Remove patties from refrigerator about 10 minutes prior to grilling so they wont be ice cold going onto the grill.
- tip 2 For a lighter version, you can use ground turkey just adjust the cooking time. Cook about 6 minutes on each side, turning once, until meat thermometer inserted in center of patties reads 165°F.
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How To Make These Juicy Grilled Burgers
First, heat your gas grill by turning on only one side of the burners. Keep one side off, which will keep that side a bit cooler. Shoot for 250 degrees temp. If using a charcoal grill, get the coals going very hot, then move them to one side so you can have a hot side with medium-high heat and a cooler side. Gas grills are easier, but you get extra flavor with charcoal grills.
Make the Burger Patties. To a mixing bowl, add ground chuck, 2 tablespoons barbecue sauce, chili powder, and salt and pepper to taste.
Hand mix, but do not overmix or the burgers can become mealy. Form the meat mixture into 2 8-ounce patties, ¾ inch thick each.
Lightly oil the grill grates.
Set the burger onto the cooler side and cover, then grill. Cook for 10 minutes, then flip and cook another 5. The burger will cook slowly, til it is nearly to your desired doneness. Measure the internal temperature with a meat thermometer. Refer to the following:
- Rare: 120 to 125 degrees F
- Medium Rare: 130 to 135 degrees F – More pink in the center
- Medium Well: 150 to 155 degrees F
- Well Done: 160 to 165 degrees F
When it is just about how you want it, move it to the HOT side and finish it up with a quick sear.
Top it with a bit of pepper jack cheese and some extra barbecue sauce, because BARBECUE SAUCE ROCKS!
Serve onto toasted hamburger buns with extra barbecue sauce. Top with your favorite toppings!
Life is complete.
How To Make The Best Burgers
Lets talk about what meat you should use when making burgers. Even if you normally use lean ground beef, I do not recommend it when making burgers. Its best to use 80/20 ground chuck for the most juicy and flavorful hamburgers.
Next, mix in some salt, pepper, and finely minced onion and garlic. It is important that they are very finely minced. If they are cut into larger pieces, your burgers may fall apart on the grill.
Then, add my secret ingredient: BBQ Sauce! You can make your own BBQ Sauce using my recipe HERE, or just use your favorite store bought brand.
Use your hands to mix everything together until combined, but try not to overwork the meat or your burgers might end up tough.
Form into patties, and remember that the burgers will shrink on the grill. It is best to make them about an inch larger in diameter than the bun to account for shrinkage. Also, use your thumb to put an indent in the middle of the burger patty to keep it from doming on top.
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The Barbecue Burger Recipe
Heres a way to infuse the evocative spice and smoke flavors of true barbecue into a conventional fast-cooking burger. Recipe from Secrets to Better BBQ in the May 2017 issue of TOH magazine
SERVES 4
2 pounds ground beef
2 to 3 tablespoons Kansas City Sweet and Smoky Rub, or your favorite barbecue rub
4 romaine lettuce leaves
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 onion rolls or hamburger buns, sliced almost in half through the side
4 thick strips bacon
4 thick slices of ripe red tomato
6 tablespoons Smoke Wranglers BaconBourbon Barbecue Sauce, or your favorite barbecue sauce
YOULL ALSO NEED
1 12 cups hardwood chips, soaked in water, then drained
1. Form the ground beef into 4 patties, each about 3 nches across and inch thick. Make a slight depression in the center . Generously season the burgers on both sides with the Kansas City Sweet and Smoky Rub let marinate in the refrigerator while you light your grill.
2. Set up the grill for direct grilling, and preheat to high. Add the soaked wood chips. Brush and oil the grill grate.
3. Lightly brush the romaine lettuce leaves on both sides with olive oil . Brush the cut sides of the rolls or buns with the remaining oil.
4. Arrange bacon strips on the grill grate, and grill until browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
5. Grill the burgers until cooked to taste, about 4 minutes per side for medium.
6. Grill the lettuce leaves over the hot fire until lightly browned, 30 seconds per side. Toast the rolls or buns, cut sides down.
What To Serve With Bbq Burgers
BBQ Burgers are best with all your favorite potluck foods! You can go as simple as chips and watermelon or amp it up with pasta salad, fruit salad and grilled corn. Here are some of our favorite sides to serve with burgers:
- Veggies. If you skip the salad, go for one of these nutritious veggies: Roasted Parmesan Asparagus, Roasted Broccoli Roasted Carrots, Sautéed Brussels Sprouts, Roasted Root Vegetables or Roasted Squash.
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Can You Make Burger Patties Ahead Time
Yes! You can make all of the elements for these BBQ Burgers ahead of time so all you have to do is grill and eat:
- Burgers. You can completely assemble the BBQ burger patties, place them on a parchment lined plate or tray, cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook. Store them in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. DONT bring to room temperature before cooking cook straight from the refrigerator.
- BBQ Sauce. Make BBQ Sauce according to recipe directions. Allow to cool to room temperature then transfer to a mason jar or an air-tight container. Store for up to two weeks in the refrigerator.
- Toppings. You can prep your toppings while the burgers are chilling so they are all ready to go as and all you have to do is cook and eat!
- Onion Strings. Fry onions according to directions. Let onions cool COMPLETELY before transferring to an airtight container. Store onions at ROOM TEMPERATURE for up to three days.
What Goes On A Bbq Burger
Now that weve masted the best burgers, lets talk toppings! These BBQ Burgers can be extremely simple with just meat, cheese and BBQ sauce or as epic as you like. No matter what you choose, just take care you have the condiments ready to go before you make the burgers otherwise your burgers can get cold. Heres what I love on my BBQ Bacon Burgers:
- BBQ sauce: you can use homemade BBQ sauce that is sweet, tangy, spicy and smokey and can be made two weeks in advance or your favorite store-bought BBQ sauce.
- Buns: you can use whatever your heart desires! Usually the bakery section will have soft buns. We will also toast the buns for added flavor and texture.
- Cheese: my favorite cheese for BBQ Burger is sharp cheddar because it cuts through the sweetness of the BBQ sauce.
- Bacon: makes everything better! Use thick cut bacon so it stands up against the robust burgers.
- Onion strings: the onions are soaked in buttermilk and then coated with crispy panko/flour mixture then fried to golden crunchy perfection. They can also be made days in advance and will stay super crunchy so theres no reason not to make them!
- Lettuce: any of your favs! Iceberg, Romaine, baby arugula or I like to use butter lettuce as a single leaf is perfection and just so pretty.
- Tomatoes: pick ripe yet firm tomatoes.
Other condiment ideas:
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Can You Bake Frozen Hamburger Patties
Baking burgers-from-frozen is a great option because it cooks them more evenly than grilling from frozen or cooking on the stove from frozen.
To bake frozen BBQ Burger patties:
Make Ahead And Freezing Instructions:
To Make Ahead: The sloppy joe meat filling can be made up to 2 days ahead of time, depending on the freshness of the beef. Store in the refrigerator and reheat and serve on toasted buns when ready to eat.
To Freeze: Allow the mixture to cool completely and store it in an air-tight, freezer safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat on the stove.
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Bbq Sauce For Burgers
- Publish date: Aug 12, 2016
We like a vinegar-based BBQ sauce that is not too sweet to top the best burger you will ever have.
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- 1 – 2 tablespoons tamarind paste
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Store remainder in the fridge 1 to 2 months.
Note that the last three ingredients have a very strong flavor. You may adjust the quantities of these to suit your personal preference.
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Why I Love This Recipe:
- Homemade Sauce: It has the perfect sauce/beef ratio that is packed with flavor.
- Adaptable: There are so many ways to vary this recipe by adding veggies, switching the meat, etc.
- Kid Friendly: My kids love this recipe and it makes for a relaxing and fun family dinner. Check out all my kid friendly recipes!
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Grilled Bbq Burgers Recipe
Its no secret that we are big burger fans! While I love a classic burger, I love finding ways to add flavor and mix things up when burger night rolls around.
This BBQ burger recipe is no exception! Mix smoky and sweet BBQ sauce into the ground beef before forming patties for an extra pop of flavor in every bite. Serve them on buns with all of your favorite toppings!
Be sure to try my Smash Burgers and Air Fryer Turkey Burgers, too!
Make Patties Larger Than Buns
Burgers will inevitably shrink when cooked as the proteins constrict so it is important to make the burger patties larger than the buns no one wants a sad burger patty much smaller than the bun.
To make the patties, divide the meat into 4 equal sections. You can use a kitchen scale to make sure they are equal, but I just eyeball it. Form each section into a loose, big meatball, handling as little as possible. We dont want the balls too compact or overworked or youll have a hard burger.
Flatten the ball with the palm of your hand until it is about 1-inch larger than your bun, then proceed to dimple per below instructions.
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Ingredient Notes And Shopping Tips
- Ground Beef: Meat Man suggests using 80/20 ground beef. This means the meat is 80% meat and 20% fat. Dont skimp here as Fat=flavor and juiciness. Using 90% lean will lead to dry burgers with little flavor.
- Buttermilk: Make sure to use buttermilk for the onion strings as it helps soften them so theyre not stringy. It also helps mellow the flavor. If you dont have any on hand you can make your own with 1 tablespoon of vinegar per 1 cup of mik.
- Onions: You can also use canned onion strings if you want to make this recipe ourdooutdoorsors 100% on the grill.
- BBQ Sauce: I like Sweet Baby Rays.
- Mayo: Mayo haters I hear you! BBQ sauce is also great mixed with ranch. Or use a thousand island dressing instead for a more classic burger sauce.
- Avocado: Look for bright green avocados with flesh that gives slightly.
- Bacon: If cooking outdoors take a shortcut with microwave bacon. I lik the brand Hormel Black Label.
- Buns: I like using a hearty brioche. Toast your buns to help prevent them from getting soggy.
- Salt: I like to add salt and pepper after forming my patties. This leads to a nice crust without sucking out any of the moisture.
Bourbon Bbq Sauce Cheeseburgers
Sometimes you just need a good ol fashioned messy, sauce dripping, 10 napkin required kind of cheeseburger. And that is what this one is. And, friends, it is glorious. Sweet and smoky Bourbon BBQ Sauce, melted cheese, succulent burger and crisp, creamy coleslaw. It would be the perfect addition to your upcoming Memorial Day celebrations.
I cant believe that it is almost Memorial Day which means that it is almost time to meet our Little Dude. Thats right. We are getting down to the wire. I know, I havent given a pregnancy update in a while. Im 31 weeks today. Things are going pretty well. Hes a very active little guy, a lot more active then Kellan was. I feel like hes a bit bigger too. I was even told at my 20 week ultrasound that he was in the 85th percentile! He makes me crave things like tomato sandwiches, strawberries and all things with mayo, just like his brother did. And if this little guy decides to be early like his big brother was then he could be here in 6 short weeks.
6. Weeks.
But alas, we still have a few more weeks until we get to meet our new little guy. Until then, Im going to rest up, nest and probably eat a few of these burgers, baby boy seems to like it when I do judging by the kicks 🙂
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The Best Bbq Burgers Ever
I dont say something is the best very often, because I firmly believe that anything can be made differently to make it the best and best is subjective of course. But these these are The Best BBQ Burgers EVER!
Full of flavor, melt in your mouth, juicy and perfect.
I dont even think I can begin to tell you how amazing these burgers are how delicious and full of flavor they are.
I chose to use a burger press to get a uniform burger and I feel like that made a big difference in how they all cooked up too so even and perfect.
So if you dont have a burger press, you need one.
I used the one pictured below, but it is no longer available.
I have since received a different one so I go between the two when making burgers.
I feel like a burger press sorta lends to these burgers actually being the best BBQ Burgers EVER.
With the freezing temperatures and snow all over the ground, some might think we are crazy to be outside grilling.
BUT! we are still heading out often to grill up dinner frequently.
And tonight we are grilling up some burgers. Why not?
We have the best BBQ burgers recipe and a handful of tips to cook up ridiculously perfect and juicy burgers every time!
Plus, I find myself missing the grill during the winter.
I forget how cold it is, head outside to flip the burgers or brush them with sauce and come back inside where often the fireplace is burning and a blanket is waiting.
So who cares if its cold?
The Best Bbq Burgers To Rival Any Restaurant Will Have You Skipping The Takeout Forever
These BBQ Burgers are an amazingly juicy explosion of sweet, tangy, spicy, smokey, crispy deliciousness all at the same time. Theyre smothered in homemade BBQ sauce, sharp cheddar, salty bacon, crispy lettuce, juicy tomatoes and crispy onion strings. Of course, all of the toppings are customizable to make it YOUR best burger recipe! Ive included tips and tricks on how to cook burgers , how to make ahead and how to freeze and my secret to the JUICIEST burgers!
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