Smash Burger Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Smash Burgers consist of a loosely packed, thin patty that “smashed” on a hot griddle, until its edges are crispy and delicious. This recipe for Smash Burgers consists of 100% grass-fed beef, a piece of American cheese draped on top and placed in between a soft potato bun, along with lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, pickles and of course, a special sauce.

Prep Time10

Cook Time20

Assembly10

Total Time40

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American, Summer

Servings:

Author: Adrianna Adarme

Cost: $12

Equipment

1 cast iron skillet
1 heavy spatula

Ingredients

Burger Buns:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter at room temperature
6 potato buns halved

Burger Patties:

2 pounds ground beef 85%/15%
Kosher salt (I used Diamond Crystal)
Freshly ground pepper
Neutral oil (such as vegetable or avocado oil)

Burger Assembly:

American cheese (or any other type of cheese you like!)
Mayonnaise
2 roma or vine ripe tomatoes
1 head of butter lettuce
Kosher salt
2 dill pickles sliced

Instructions

To Toast the Buns:

Place a pan over medium-low heat. You’re going to have to do this in batches. Add the butter and when melted, add as many potato bun halves, interior side down, as you can, and cook until toasted and lightly golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside. Repeat with the remaining potato buns until they’ve all been toasted. Add more butter to the pan, as needed.

To Make the Patties:

Portion out the 2 pounds of ground Wagyu beef into 4-ounce piles that are loosely packed (no need to form patties). I like to place them on a baking sheet since I needed to cook them in batches. Top each pile of beef with a few pinches of salt and a few rounds of freshly cracked pepper.
Place a cast iron over medium-high heat. Preheat the pan until hot and then add about a teaspoon or two of oil. Add two patties, spacing them about 4 inches apart, and then smash them flat with a spatula to form patties that are 4-inches in diameter. Cook until the edges are brown and craggy, about 2 minutes. Flip the patties, season with salt and pepper, and cook for an additional minute or two. Transfer to the baking sheet to a warm oven to keep warm. Repeat with cooking the patties until you’ve worked your way through all of the beef.
Remove the baking sheet with the patties from the oven and top each patty with a slice of American cheese. Transfer back to the oven until cheese is melted. American cheese melts pretty easily; you may need only 2 to 3 minutes in the oven.

To Assemble the Smash Burgers:

Add a swipe of mayonnaise to both halves of the bun. Add the patty, top with slices of pickles, tomato and lettuce. Serve immediately.

Notes

Tips and Tricks

Biggest tip is to NOT, I repeat NOT form them into patties. Not doing this actually makes it way easier.

The beef should be cold, straight from the fridge. There's no need to bring this to room temperature like you would, say, a steak.

If you don’t have the perfect spatula for smash burgers (some restaurants have heavy smashers), don’t worry. I used a plastic pancake spatula, and then pressed that spatula with the back of a wooden spoon! No fancy tools necessary.

Select your bun carefully. I think brioche buns are delicious. Regular burger buns work, too. But my favorite is a potato bun because of how soft and flavorful they are.

Nutrition