Learn all my favorite tips and tricks for stovetop burgers - one of the easiest family-friendly dinners ever! Cooking juicy, decadent cast iron burgers on the stove is ultra fast and so simple.
Create four burger patties, creating a thumb print in the center.
Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
Add your butter to your pan, setting the heat to high.
Add burger patties into pan, searing on the first side for four minutes before turning.
for medium rare burgers, sear on the opposite side for approximately 3 minutes. Medium should take an extra minute or so.
Add cheese during the last 30 seconds of cooking to create the perfect melt!
Notes
Tips for Making the BEST Stovetop Burgers
The less you handle the beef, the better. Stirring and mushing it causes the proteins to break down which makes your little burgers less tender.
Don’t add salt to your beef mixture until you make them into patties. Salt dissolves water and protein out of beef which makes them cling to each other, eliminating that tender texture.
You can get the flavor while maintaining tenderness by adding the sea salt to formed patties just before cooking.
Add a thumbprint to your patties. Pressing a small, shallow cavity into the center of your burger patties helps them sear and cook evenly throughout.
Refrigerate for 10 minutes to lock juices in before throwing them onto the stove top pan or grill.
Heat your pan to medium-high heat. This sears the exterior of the burger and creates a little crust, locking the juices inside!
Adding butter to your pan. The fat content from the ground chuck should prevent them from sticking, but the butter adds FLAVOR and a perfect exterior crust.
Cover your burgers with a lid once you’ve added them to the pan. This not only prevents grease from flying, it helps seal in the juices.
Don’t push down with your spatula. It’s so tempting, but don’t do it! Lock those juices in!
Adding cheese? Put it on at the last minute. The heat from the burgers will melt it almost instantly.