The Best Grilled BBQ Hamburgers

This is the best grilled BBQ hamburger recipe you'll ever eat. BBQ sauce, onions, garlic, and more come together with juicy, melt-in-your-mouth results. We like to double the recipe and freeze uncooked hamburgers for a quick meal later. BBQ burgers are must for all your summer cookouts!

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Last year, on Memorial Day, I posted my then favorite hamburger recipe.

I have a new favorite, so I thought this would be a good time to share it. This recipe is not a "3-ingredient burger!" It has a list of ingredients, but it is so worth the work. The burgers are spicy - full of garlic, full of grilled onions, full of BBQ sauce - and oh so good.

We put the rest of the burgers in the freezer so I wouldn't eat them all we'll have a quick supper another time we stay out too late in the evening.

Why this is the best BBQ burger recipe

These burgers have a longish list of ingredients, but that's what makes them taste amazing! You're going to add garlic, onions, barbecue sauce, and a few more ingredients, and all that together makes these burgers the very best you'll ever eat.

These BBQ burgers are simple, quick, and easy to make with common ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.

If you follow my instructions, you're going to end up with very juicy, flavorful burgers that your family will beg you to make.

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What you'll need to make the best BBQ hamburgers

Equipment

There is no special equipment required for this recipe. You will need a grill, griddle, or grill pan to cook the burgers. Although, I guess you could even cook them in a skillet so even that's not really necessary. But to get the best flavor in your burgers, you're going to want to cook them on a gas or charcoal grill.

I suggest you press the garlic cloves using a garlic press because that will get the best flavor. You can also mince or dice the garlic, but I think pressed garlic is far superior to minced garlic. Just my opinion. You do you.

I also suggest an instant-read meat thermometer. The best burgers are done to a medium temperature which means they are a little pink inside. This is an internal temperature of 140ºF. The only other way to reliably check to see if they're pink inside is to cut one in half, and who wants to eat a pre-cut burger? Use a thermometer, and you'll know exactly when your burgers are done. If you cook them past 140ºF, the insides will be grayish, and the burgers will be tough and dry. Juicy burgers are removed from the heat at 140ºF.

Other than the grill, you'll just need measuring cups and spoons and a large mixing bowl.

Ingredients

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See the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page for all measurements and nutritional information.

• Lean ground beef - I prefer to buy 93% lean ground beef, but that won't work in this burger recipe because it's too dry. In order to end up with nice, juicy, melt-in-your-mouth burgers, you need ground beef, ground chuck, or ground sirloin that is no leaner than 85/15. This means the beef is 85% lean muscle and 15% fat. You need the fat to make the burgers juicy. You can also use 80/20 if you want.
• Finely chopped onion - These are optional. I think the finer chop, the better, and I suggest you sauté them in some butter before adding them to the burger mixture. If you don't, you will have raw onion in your cooked burgers.
• Whole garlic cloves - This recipe calls for A LOT of garlic. I'm aware. But that's part of what makes it so good. I highly recommend you buy a bulb of garlic. They're super cheap (under $2), and one bulb will have enough cloves for this recipe. You'll want to finely mince or (preferably) press the cloves with a garlic press before adding them to the ground beef mixture. I do not recommend garlic powder!
• Large eggs - Eggs add moisture to the beef but they also bind the burgers together so that they don't crumble on the grill.
• Shredded cheddar cheese - I know all the purists say you have to buy a block of cheese and shred your own because the pre-shredded cheese has an anti-caking agent on it that prevents it from melting properly. Blah blah blah. I buy pre-shredded cheese because I don't want to be bothered shredding cheese and then washing my grater. If you want to grate your own, have at it, but if you don't want to be bothered, get the bag. Your burgers will still be awesome.
• Onion soup mix - This is the key to the spices in this burger recipe. It already contains all the salt, black pepper, and spices you need. Don't be tempted to salt the meat!
• Your favorite BBQ sauce - My favorite is Sweet Baby Ray's, but you can use whatever BBQ sauce you want, or even make your own. My Instant Pot sloppy joes recipe includes a sugar-free BBQ sauce that is very tasty, if you want to save some carbs and calories.
• Bread crumbs - I'm usually against putting breadcrumbs in meat, but in this burger, because you're using so much liquid, you need them. If you don't put breadcrumbs in this burger recipe, your burgers will crumble on the grill.
• Worcestershire sauce - This gives the recipe a delicious umami flavor and also adds salt.

And for serving the burgers (this is what I use; feel free to use whatever you like!):

• Large hamburger buns or brioche rolls
• Sliced sharp cheddar cheese
• Large tomatoes, sliced thick
• Pre-cooked bacon
• Butter lettuce leaves
• Red onion, sliced
• Miracle Whip or mayonnaise
• Barbecue sauce, if desired
• Ketchup - I don't use ketchup on my burgers, but my kids do.
• Pickles - I don't like pickles on my burgers, but you can add them if you want.

How to make the best BBQ hamburgers

This recipe is very complicated, so try to follow along. (Insert eye roll emoji - You've got this!)

1. Mix everything together in a large bowl.
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2. Use your hands to mix for best results.
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3. Divide the mixture into 8 equal balls. Flatten each ball into a patty and make an indentation in the center using your thumb. This prevents the centers from bulging in the middle and keeps the tops nice and flat.
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4. Place the patties on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper in the refrigerator for an hour. This step is important because it allows the breadcrumbs to soak up the liquid in the meat mixture and bind the meat together.
5. Preheat your grill to high heat. For medium burgers, cook the patties to an internal temperature of 140ºF, about 6 minutes per side. I use an instant read meat thermometer for this so that I don't have to cut anyone's burger in half to check the inside.
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6. For an extra special touch, butter the buns and place the butter side down on the grill grates for 30 seconds or until they're just toasted.
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7. After removing burgers from the grill, allow them to rest on a plate for 5-10 minutes. This allows the juices to redistribute, resulting in juicy burgers.
8. Serve with your choice of toppings. We top our BBQ burgers with cheddar cheese right before taking them off the grill, making cheeseburgers. The cheese melts in about 60 seconds. The burgers themselves are so flavorful and spicy that they need almost no condiments. We ate a little bit of Miracle Whip on the buns, but nothing else. 
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What's the best temperature to cook grilled burgers?

In my un-humble opinion, the best burgers are cooked to an internal temperature of 140ºF. This makes them medium which means there is a good bit of pink inside the patties. Medium burgers are juicy and melt in your mouth. Burgers that are cooked higher than 145ºF are approaching well done. There is no pink, and well-done burgers burgers are dry and sometimes tough.

Burgers cooked to a temperature less than 135ºF are rare to medium-rare with red centers, and I can't handle the red juice they release on my plate. It grosses me out. Medium or bust!

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Cook's tips for the best grilled burgers

Make sure your grill grates are very clean. I always clean mine before and after cooking. It's not overkill.

Always use an instant-red meat thermometer when cooking meat so that you know your burgers achieve the desired internal temperature. If you have a meat thermometer, you'll have no more dry, tough, well-done burgers!

You don't have to grill your BBQ burgers. You can cook them in a cast iron skillet on the stove, on a griddle, or even in the air fryer. Use the ingredients below in my air fryer burger recipe.

Don't use ground beef that's leaner than 85/15 for your burgers. Leaner meat will result in dry burgers.

Don't be afraid to ask the butcher at your grocery store to grind beef for you. Fresh ground beef tastes better and makes juicier burgers than pre-packaged meat. Tell him or her that you want ground chuck that is either 80/20 or 85/15.

If you want to use onions in your burger, sauté them first in butter, until they are soft and translucent. If you really like raw onion, go ahead and put the onions in raw, but just know that they won't cook in the short time it takes the beef to reach the correct temperature.

Don't skip the chilling step, and make sure you line the cookie sheet with parchment paper so that they burgers don't stick to it. Cold ground beef cooks up more evenly and stays juicier than room-temperature ground beef. Plus, as I said above, the breadcrumbs in this recipe need time to absorb the moisture and adhere to the ground beef. If you don't let the burgers chill for an hour, they may crumble on the grill. Then you will be very sad, so don't skip that step.

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Don't over-mix the beef. Use your hands to incorporate the ingredients completely, then stop touching it. Overworked beef will be dry and tough.

Don't pack or squeeze the burgers. If you really pack the meat tightly into a patty, it will be too dense, and this will lead to dry, tough burgers. Form a patty but don't squeeze it a bunch.

Along the same lines, don't squeeze or smash the patties on the grill. You'll lose the delicious juices that we want to keep inside the burger, and your burgers will be dry.

Make your burger patties bigger than your buns. All meat shrinks as it cooks, and ground beef with its delicious fat content is no different. If you start with patties the size of your buns, you will end up with sad little burgers that are too small. Aim for one inch bigger around than the bun.

Don't forget to flip the burgers! Flipping the burgers ensures they cook on both sides. Cook for 6 minutes, then flip and cook for 6 minutes more (or until they get to 140ºF). However, don't flip the burgers more than once. Put them on the grill, then leave them alone. Flip once, and leave them alone. Moving them around and turning too much could make them crumble and fall apart.

It's up to you whether you want to close the grill lid or not. If you close it, the burgers will have a smokier flavor and will cook a little faster. If you leave it open, they'll have a more traditional ground beef flavor and will probably take the full twelve minutes.

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Can you make BBQ burgers ahead?

Yes, you can! Because you have to let the ground beef mixture rest anyway, it's really easy to mix them up, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, stick it in the fridge (or even the freezer), and make the burgers later. I wouldn't keep the refrigerated BBQ burger mixture more than 2 days.

The uncooked burger meat will freeze for up to 2-3 months if wrapped up and stored in an airtight container. My favorite way to freeze burgers is this:

1. Form the burger patties and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Put the cookie sheet in the freezer for 1-2 hours or until the patties are no longer sticky.
2. Remove the cookie sheet from the freezer and cut the parchment into squares so that each patty has its own piece of paper. You can stack the patties, and each one will be lined with parchment and pre-frozen, so they won't stick together.
3. Place the stack of burgers into a plastic freezer bag, squeeze all the air out, and store in the freezer.
4. Keep up to 3-4 months. You can take out just one or two burgers and cook them as you please.
5. To cook frozen burgers, allow them to thaw overnight in the fridge, then go straight from the fridge to the grill or hot skillet.

Don't bring the ground beef to room temperature before cooking. It goes straight from the fridge to the grill!

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How to store leftover BBQ burgers

Place your grilled burgers in a zippered plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

It's tough to reheat pre-cooked burgers because they're going to become overcooked when you reheat them. You can reheat them on the grill, in a cast iron skillet, or in the microwave (or in the oven, I guess), but heat them for as little time as possible to make them hot so they don't get too tough.

What to serve with BBQ burgers

I love to serve these burgers with homemade air fryer potato chips, Instant Pot potato salad, or my favorite creamy macaroni salad. I also sometimes like to spring for Five Guys french fries, which my family really loves. (Sorry, I don't have a recipe for those. I wish I did!)

Try these other grilled recipes:

• Copycat Black and Blue Burger - caramelized onions, grilled mushrooms, blue cheese, and garlic aioli - these are amazing!
• Grilled Zucchini and Squash
• Southwest Chicken Marinade for Grilling
• How to Grill Pizza Dough
• Steak Tostada Salad
• Jamaican Jerk Chicken Skewers
• Mexican Hamburgers
• Chili Burgers
• Hawaiian Burgers

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