I am sure by now you have heard of smash burgers. They are juicy burgers made on a flat surface area with crisp edges and served like typical burger patties. When placed on a toasted bun, you have the perfect burger.
This is the perfect burger for a summer cookout. This is one of the best options in order to get great flavor and take your burger game to the next level. These are great to serve for Memorial Day, July 4th and Labor Day barbecues with family and friends.
This was inspired by my Smash Burger recipe on this site, and pairs well with this Mac and Cheese Recipe.
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Indoor vs. Outdoor Grill
An outdoor grill will definitely give the best results when it comes to cooking a good smash burger. It is suggested that you either use a flattop grill, such as a Blackstone, or get a cast iron flat top grill attachment.
If you are making your smash burgers inside, you can either use an indoor grill or a panini press or panini maker. This may be a little more difficult and messy, but it is possible. If you still want to use a grill burger press, you can also cook them in a large cast iron pan or on an electric indoor griddle.
The Best Grill Press
When it comes to choosing the right grill press for burgers, there are a few things to think about. One thing to consider is the size of the burgers. Will you be creating multiple smaller burgers and stacking them? Or will you be creating one large burger. You also need to consider how smashed you want a burger. If you still want a little bit of a thicker burger, that is another thing to take into consideration.
If you are working with thicker burgers, I suggest a heavy weight cast iron grill press or a steak weight.
I like to work with a thinner burger. When working with a thinner burger, a light weight grill press will work perfectly.
Hint: always remember to add oil to your grill press or place a piece of parchment paper in between the burger and the grill press so that the meat does not stick to your grill press. Forgetting this is a common mistake that can easily ruin your burgers.
Common Mistakes and Solutions
Now one place you do not want to use a grill press is on a gas grill with open grates. I am sure you can imagine why this would be a bad idea but just in case you don't let's talk about it! When you use a grill press on a gas grill or charcoal grill that has over grates, you are pushing the meat down into the grates. Now you might get some pretty intense grill marks with this, but you will lose a lot of meat when you go to flip the burger since it is pressed down into the open grates. You also are creating a lot of clean up for yourself trying to get the meat off of the grates.
A solution to this problem if you only own a gas grill with grates but want to make some delicious smash burgers with your new grill press, get a cast iron flat top griddle attachment to place on top of your grill grates. This will allow you to get that perfect smash burger without needing to buy a whole new flat top grill.
Another common problem you can come across is the meat sticking to your grill press.
Now the solution here is very simple. You can either make sure your grill press is coated in oil or add a small piece of parchment paper in between the grill press and the burger when smashing it down.
Ingredients
To make a smash burger, you will need a few ingredients. The most important ingredient you need is the ground beef. For this, always go for a 80/20 ground beef. This means it is 80% meat and 20% fat. When the extra fat in the burger melts it becomes juicy. When you press the burger down, this compresses the juices and ensures that you have a juicy burger with tons of extra flavor.
Other than the ground meat, you want to also have your typical burger ingredients. A good bun is very important and after that you can have some fun with it. I always suggest to add some cheese and after that it is whatever you want! If you want some delicious burger recipes for inspiration, check out my Copycat Big Mac or my Honey Sriracha Blue Cheese Burgers.
Grilling Tips
While grilling might sound easy, there are some important things to remember, especially when cooking meat like burgers.
One of the most important things to remember is to preheat your grill. Placing your burgers on a grill that is already at high heat will help the meat not stick to the grates. You also need to make sure you are cooking your burger to an appropriate and safe temperature. To do this I suggest using a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the burger, especially if you are making a thicker burger. For a good medium rare burger, your temperature should be about 135 degrees.
When cooking burgers on a griddle, make sure you are using an oil with a high smoking point. Avocado oil has the highest smoking point. Some other great options are vegetable oil or canola oil.
These ingredients do/don't stand up well to freezing for X days/weeks/months.
Top tip
Toast your burger buns always. This will help keep the sauce and burger juice from soaking into the bun and making it soggy. You can either toast your bun on the upper grate of your gas grill or directly on your flat top griddle. I always spread a little mayonnaise on my bun to help give it a nice toast.
FAQ
Simplicity is best. I typically stick to just kosher salt and black pepper. Sometimes I will add some garlic powder but I rarely add others. I like to let the delicious burgers truly shine.
This is a simple no. You want all of the delicious juice. The fat is the flavor and when you are draining out the grease, you are draining out the flavor.
When making a smash burger, I actually find that the cheese melts on it's own. Since the burger is so thin, the heat comes right through the meat to help melt the cheese. If you are making regular burger, I suggest using a basting cover.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with a smash burger:
Food safety
We sometimes take for a granted that we have years (or decades) of cooking experience, that the average visitor may not. Add to, or remove from, the list below with health and safety tips.
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
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