Grilled Burgers

An American Classic

"Grilling season is upon us, and this year it's time to master the art of America’s summertime grilling favorite—the hamburger."

Everyone's goal... a burger that is easy to throw together on a weeknight, flavorful enough to stand up to the person who adds every condiment known to mankind to his or her burger, and yet balanced enough to satisfy the minimalist burger eater (ketchup only, please!).

In my house we cook a lot of burgers indoors on a fat-slicked iron skillet, and you can do that on a grill as well. But sometimes you want a smoky grilled burger. For that, a charcoal grill is best, but a gas grill can do the trick, too.

Resist the temptation to press down on the burgers with a spatula, which only spews juice and fat on the fire, causing the flames to flare up and the burger to lose flavor. If you feel your burger is cooking too quickly, use the cooler sides of the grill to rest them. And remember: lowering the top on the grill helps cheese melt!

Cheese or NO CHEESE... That is the question! 🤣

Grilled Burgers

Servings – 6 Prep Time – 10 Min

Cook Time – 8 Min

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds (32 ounces) 80/20 ground beef, cold

• 2 cloves garlic, minced finely

• 2 tablespoons onion, minced

• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

• 1 3/4 teaspoons freshly ground pepper

• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

• 6 hamburger buns

• Butter for buns

Directions:

Put the cold ground beef in mixing bowl. Add in onion, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, and salt. Fold the meat over a few times to get everything incorporated. This entire process should only take about 30 to 45 seconds. Don’t over handle the meat.

Rather than forming the patties in your hand, form them on a tray. This makes it easier to shape the patties without over-handling or warming the meat. I prefer to use a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, but any tray or platter will do.

On the tray, divide the meat into 6 equal parts (about 5 1/4 ounces each). Gently form each portion into a patty that is 4-inches across with 1-inch sides and create a shallow depression in the middle. You want the outer 1/2 inch of the patty to be slightly taller than the inside. This keeps the patty from shrinking too much and from puffing up in the center during grilling. This helps cook the burger evenly and it will create an even level.

Cover the patties with plastic wrap and transfer to the fridge while you heat up your grill and butter your buns. 🙃

Heat a gas or charcoal grill to 450 to 500°, or hot enough that you can only hold your hand above the grill grates for about 1 second.

Butter the insides of all the buns and set them aside; near the grill.

Place patties on the grill over direct heat. Cook to your desired doneness:

For rare burgers, cook for 4 minutes total (125°F)

For medium-rare burgers, cook for 5 minutes total (135°F)

For medium burgers, cook for 6 to 7 minutes total (145°F)

For well-done burgers, cook for 8 to 9 minutes total (160°F)

Flip the burgers only once during cooking. Do not press down on the patties at any time.

When you have about 1 minute left on the cooking time, add the cheese to the burgers and the buttered buns to the grill over indirect heat.

Remove burgers and buns from grill and transfer to a clean platter. Let the burgers rest for 1 minute before serving.

Serve with mayonnaise, blue cheese sauce, sautéed mushrooms, Thousand Island, or the classic and always wonderful lettuce, tomato, pickles, and red onion!

Notes:

This recipe will make 6 burgers that are 1/3 pound each. The patties should be 4 inches across and 1 inch thick at the edges before cooking.

In general, follow these total grilling times:

• For rare burgers, cook for 4 minutes total (125°F)

• For medium-rare burgers, cook for 5 minutes total (135°F)

• For medium burgers, cook for 6 to 7 minutes total (145°F)

• For well-done burgers, cook for 8 to 9 minutes total (160 °F)

With that said, ultimately, the time it takes for a hamburger to reach a certain temperature depends on how hot your grill is and how thick your patty is.

In my experiences, my 1-inch thick, 4-inch diameter patties were medium done at 5 minutes total (2 1/2 minutes on each side), and well done at 6 minutes total (3 minutes on each side). So it will all depend on your liking of grilled burgers.

Nutrition:

Calories 586 | Saturated Fat 12g | Cholesterol 140mg | Sodium 936mg | Carbohydrates 29g | Fiber 1g | Sugars 4g | Iron 6mg | Potassium 692mg

"There is nothing better than an all American classic burger off the grill on a hot summer day!"

CWT is not a certified dietician or nutritionist. Any nutritional information shared on this site is an estimate counted through measurements and package nutritional information used in each recipe. If calorie, macro counting and other nutritional values are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through your choice of nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary depending on national brands used per recipe.