Looking for a smash burger recipe with onions, But what if you have that sudden craving for a juicy, flavorful burger but not the will or energy.
to make one from scratch? Then came the smash burger, an easy way to level-up your burger game. Smash burgers are different from the classic burger in which you gently form a patty between your hands, these require smashing down on raw meat directly onto a hot griddle or pan forming an intense searing crust while still allowing all of those flavors to end up inside. Now, bring onions into the picture and your burger just got a whole new layer of goodness with their sweet caramelized sweetness/umami-oniony flavor.
This article will walk you through all of the steps to make an incredibly delicious smash burger with onions. We cover all the ingredients, how to cook one at home (with some pro tips) and then answer 10 commonly asked questions about smash burgers. Let’s dive in!
What is a Smash Burger?
A smash burger is a type of hamburger intended to be smashed onto a griddle or cast-iron pan, creating the seared outer shell and tender center. It might be a lowbrow technique, but the end result delivers crispiness on the outside and juicy flavor packed meat within all while achieving it in an uncomplicated manner.
Onions: The onions in these burgers are a game changer with their sweet smoky flavoring that is oh so good. The onions can be added into the beef or cooked separately and put right on a burger.
Classic Smash Burger With Onions Ingredients
Rock n Roll Burger Ingredients
For the Burger:
1 lb ground beef (80/20 ratio recommended) — makes 4 burgers
Salt and pepper to taste, for the beef
4 slices of cheddar or American Sliced Cheese
Burger buns: 4 buns
Butter, optional for toasting the buns
Vegetable oil for cooking
For the Onions:
1 large onion, yellow (thinly sliced)
Oil, ghee or butter to sauté the onions
Salt for seasoning
Optional Toppings:
Pickles
Lettuce
Tomato slices
Mustard
Ketchup
Mayo
How To Make The Perfect Smash Burger with Onions [A Step-By-Step Guide]
1. Prepare the Onions
Thinly slice the onions as shown. Heat a skillet or griddle to medium and grease with 1 tbsp of butter or oil. Put the onions in and give them a good season with salt. Stir occasionally and cook until softened & slightly golden in colour. 10 to 15 minutes. If they are getting too brown, just lower the heat. They key to this sauce is slowly caramelizing the onions until they become sweet.
Set them aside once caramelized.
2. Shape the Ground Beef
Tear your ground beef into 4 sections and forming them around a few ounces each. Quit bugging that meat — just roll it into a quenelle shape and let er ride. Sprinkle each ball with a pinch of salt and pepper from the outside.
3. Heat the Griddle or Pan
Smash burgers are most easily and tastily made with a cast-iron skillet or flat-top griddle. Put the pan over medium-high heat, and let it get very hot. The idea is to get the pan really hot, so that as soon as you plop down a piece of meat it pretty much sears on contact.
Oil: Layering vegetable oil to the pan will help prevent sticks, and layered that thin crispy lips.
4. Smash the Burgers
Add the beef ball on top of a hot surface and press hard with a spatula or burger press right away. Smash it with all you got until it’s roughly 1/4-inch thick. You need to press hard enough that you get a nice sear, but not so much as the burger flattens. Press down for 10 seconds—the beef will flatten and sear;
At this point, season the patty with a little more salt and pepper.
5. Flip and Add Cheese
Again, cook the burger until it begins to crisp around the edges and juices are beginning to form on top. This step should take about 2-3 minutes. Y our spatula to the patty and flip it over so you can remove from griddle. As soon as you flip it, put a slice of cheese on top and let them melt for another 1-2 minutes.
6. Toast the Buns
Toast up your buns while you’re wolf-packing the patties. Spread roughly 1 tsp of butter on each half and place them, cut-side down in the griddle or another pan. A few seconds until crispy and golden.Toast ON A HIGH HEAT.
7. Assemble the Smash Burger
Then…. its BURGER TIME! On the bottom half of your toasted bun, put one cooked patty with cheese on top. Place a generous spoonful of the caramelized onions onto the top of your patty. If prefer, you can toss a pickle on there or some lettuce and tomato too and squirt the top bun with ketchup or mayo/mustard.
8. Serve
Place another bun half on top, and it is a smash burger with onions. Served immediately while the burger hot, juicy and tasty.
Instructions on How to Make the Best Smash Burger with Onions
80/20 ground beef: 80% lean meat and 20% fat ratio is best for a smash burger since the higher percentage of fat helps prevent your patty from drying out, while also adding flavor.
Be gentle with the beef: overworking it is a recipe for tough burgers. Loosely shape the beef into balls for each smash.
Heat the pan: A hot griddle or skillet is what makes a nice crispy crust. When the sauce submerged to heat, should be sizzle immediately beef surface.
A heavy spatula: You will be pressing the beef down, so a heavier metal spatula is ideal. A burger press helps too if you have one.
If you cheese right after flipping the patty, it’ll be melted perfectly by the time your burger is done.
SLOWLY caramelize the onions: When caramelizing, you want to go low and slow. If this step is rushed, you’ll likely end up with burnt onions and not beautifully golden turned.
Toast the buns: Toasting your bun can add some texture to prevent it from getting soaked by all of those burger juices.
Top it off: Spice up your burger with some of your favorite toppings. Is finished with an added hint of flavor) is a great breakfast or brunch dish, (try it topped with bacon OR fried egg for bonus YUM!)
FAQ: Smash Burger Recipe with Onions
1. How is a smash burger different than your average burger you might ask?
A smash burger is called so because the patty as smashed onto a hot plate, creating that crispy seared outer. This process not only traps in the juices but helps create a nice crust as well.
2. So, can you use any ground beef for smash burgers?
Typically 80/20 ground beef is best. This blend has more fat in it because of this nature would be a part that assists the burger to become juicier. Lean beef also tends to dry out more while cooking.
3. What Onions for a Smash Burger
Yellow onions are the go-to for their milder, slightly sweet taste. But you could use white or red onions if you feel like it.
4. How do you smash burgers without a griddle?
Can you use a cast-iron skillet to grill onions? The trick is to get the pan hot enough that it will really sear up your burgeer.
5. But how do I get my onions to caramelize.
Saute the onions over low to medium heat in oil or butter, stirring every so often. You need to caramelize the onions: this can take 10–15 minutes, and that is good!
6. Should I only flip the smash burger once?
False just flip the burger once. Smash it on the griddle, heat for 2-3 minutes in first side then flip and do a couple of minutes second side.
7. Freezing Smash burger patties
Can you freeze these beef patties before cooking?? Freeze the balls on a baking sheet, then transfer to an bag for storing in freezer. Just thaw then smush on the griddle to cook.
8. Which Cheese for Smash Burgers?
This recipe uses American cheese for perfectly melty, classic flavor (which our test cooks swear by), but cheddar, Swiss or pepper jack also melt nicely.
9. Grillable Smash Burgers
Smash burgers are usually cooked on a flat griddle (or pan if you want to make these at home!) If your grill has a griddle attachment or if you can set a cast-iron skillet in the bars of your grill, those will deliver similar results.
10. If there is one thing i want you to get from this article, it would be that Smash Burgers (and plenty of other burgers) can actually BE HEALTHIER than regular ol’ schoolhouse FG-burgs.
Deliciousness not health What makes a smash burger is flavor and texture —‘diet’ does not even enter the equation. The beef itself is high in fat, and the burgers have a crispy seared exterior without breaking under pressure like leaner burgers usually do — so it’s probably slightly better for you than traditional fast food options.
Conclusion
Cooking a single smash burger in the smahburger onions style is all about: keeping things simple, using high quality ingredients and having an ultra-hot cooking surface. You get a nice crispy exterior and juicy center that it screams out the words burger perfection. This brings increased sweetness and a subtle savoriness to the palate, is sinfully alluring. Make this at home, and you’ll never have to go back out for a smash burger!