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Get ready for a quick, delicious, and satisfying single serving hamburger! This recipe is perfect for those cooking for one or anyone craving a classic burger without the fuss. It offers the traditional hamburger flavor you love, plus the flexibility to add your own favorite toppings. With simple ingredients and easy steps, this will become your go-to recipe for a fantastic burger.
Enjoy this juicy hamburger with a choice of sides: Baked French Fries, Sweet Potato Fries, German Potato Salad, Macaroni Salad, or Mac and Cheese. Add a flavorful touch with Pickled Onions on top!
Why You’ll Love This Hamburger Recipe
- Uncomplicated and User-friendly: The simple steps and easy-to-find ingredients in this recipe make it a breeze for anyone to follow, regardless of their cooking skill level.
- Flavorful Outcome: The minimal seasoning used allows the taste of the ground beef to shine through, resulting in a juicy, flavorful burger every time.
- Cooking Method: The skillet cooking method ensures an evenly cooked, perfect burger patty.
- Versatility: This recipe gives you the flexibility to tailor your burger to your taste, with scope for adding any toppings you enjoy.
Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this classic hamburger recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
- Ground beef: Good beef equals a great burger – plain and simple. The ideal ground beef for burgers should be 80% lean and 20% fat. I’ve found that 85% lean ground beef can also deliver a delicious burger but anything leaner than 90% will leave you with a dry and mostly tasteless burger. While beef is traditional, feel free to substitute it with ground chicken, turkey, or a plant-based meat alternative for a vegetarian version. If you’ve got ground beef leftover, consider using it in Lasagna Rollups, Chili Mac, Stuffed Peppers, or Nachos.
- Salt and black pepper: I like to keep it simple and generously season both sides of the meat with kosher salt and pepper. Feel free to add your favorite spices like garlic powder, onion powder, or Italian seasoning if you prefer.
- Olive oil: I add a small amount of olive oil or vegetable oil to the skillet.
- Cheese: Consider using cheddar, Swiss, American, provolone, or your other favorite cheese. Opt for dairy-free cheese to accommodate lactose intolerance or skip it entirely if you prefer. Use any extra cheese in Crack Chicken or Jalapeño Poppers.
- Optional hamburger toppings: Sliced tomatoes, avocados, sliced onions, lettuce, pickles, ketchup, mustard, bacon, BBQ sauce.
- Hamburger bun: Whole wheat, gluten-free, or even lettuce wraps can replace the traditional white bun.
Recipe Variations
Feel free to get creative with your hamburger. Customizing it can make the meal even more enjoyable. Here are a few variations you might consider:
- Extra Toppings: Add a unique spin with toppings like avocado, bacon, or a fried egg.
- Cheese Varieties: Experiment with different cheeses like blue cheese, smoked gouda, or pepper jack for an added flavor boost.
- Spice It Up: For a bit of heat, add jalapeños, spicy pickles, or a spicy sauce.
- Vegetarian Burger: Substitute the ground beef with a plant-based patty or a portobello mushroom cap for a vegetarian-friendly version.
How To Make A Hamburger
Note: The full printable recipe card is at the bottom of this post.
- Shape the hamburger patty: Place the ground beef on a plate and gently press it into a disk about 1 inch thick. With your fingers, gently press the middle of the patty to create an indentation. The patty should be slightly larger than your hamburger bun. Season each side with salt and pepper.
- Warm the pan: Heat the oil in a medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat. I like using a cast iron skillet when I make hamburgers, but a non-stick skillet or a griddle will work just fine.
- Cook the burger: When the pan is hot, carefully place the patty in the skillet. You will know that the pan is hot enough when you hear the burger sizzle when you place it in the skillet. If it doesn’t, increase the heat just a little. Cook until the surface is browned, about 3 minutes. Slide a spatula under the burger and flip to cook the other side until the desired doneness is reached, about 2 to 5 minutes. The FDA recommends cooking ground meat to an internal temperature of at least 160 degrees F (71 degrees C).
- Add cheese to the burger, if using: Place the cooked hamburger patty on a plate and top with a slice or two of cheese. Cover the plate with aluminum foil and let the patty rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Assemble the burger: Place the patty on one half of the hamburger bun and finish with your favorite burger toppings and the other half of the bun.
Expert Tips
- Minimize Handling: Gently form the beef into patties with minimal handling to maintain a juicy texture. Aim for uneven edges for a better sear.
- Shrinkage Expectation: Patties typically shrink by 20% when cooked, so avoid overworking the meat to reduce excess shrinkage.
- Temperature Check: Use an instant-read thermometer to ensure proper cooking. Let the patty rest for 5 minutes post-cooking for continued internal cooking.
- Bun Toasting: After cooking the burger, toast the bun halves on low heat in the same pan to soak up flavors and add crispiness.
- Recipe Scaling: Easily double or triple the ingredients if you’re making multiple burgers.
- Storing Leftover Hamburgers: Keep leftover burgers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Freezing Hamburger Patties: For unused ground beef, shape into patties, wrap in plastic, and freeze for up to 3 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Burger Cooking Times:
* Medium-Rare (red in the middle): 6 minutes total – 125-130 degrees F / 51-54 degrees C
* Medium (light pink in the middle): 7 to 8 minutes total – 135-140 degrees F / 57-60 degrees C
* Medium-Well (brown with a hint of pink in the middle): 9 minutes total – 145-150 degrees F / 62-66 degrees C
* Well Done (brown center, no pink): 10 minutes total – 150-160 degrees F / 66-71 degrees C
Yes, you can cook burgers in the oven. Check out our Juicy Lucy recipe for the best oven-baked burger!
Grilling the hamburger patty can provide a wonderful smoky flavor.
If you want to grill your burger instead of cooking it on the stove, follow these easy directions:
Heat the grill to 375 degrees F (medium-high).
Shape and season your hamburger patty as instructed in the recipe.
Place the burger on the grill. Cook for 4-5 minutes on the first side. Flip the burger over and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes, until the burger has reached the desired doneness.
If adding cheese, lay a slice of cheese on the burger patty for about 1 minute before taking the burger off the grill, so the cheese melts well.
Place the burger on a plate, cover and let it rest for at least 5 minutes.
Serve your burger on a bun with your favorite burger toppings.
You can, but I don’t recommend it. Fresh is best for a juicy stovetop burger.
To prevent your hamburger from falling apart, make sure to handle it gently when forming the patty. You should also avoid overmixing the ground beef, as this can make the patty tough.
RELATED: Easy Ground Beef Recipes
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
If you’ve tried this stovetop hamburger recipe or any recipe on One Dish Kitchen please let me know how you liked it by rating the recipe and telling me about it in the comment section below.
If you take a picture please tag us on Instagram (@onedishkitchen) we’d love to see it!
Hamburger For One
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 ounces ground beef (The ideal ground beef for burgers should be 80% lean and 20% fat. I've found that 85% lean ground beef can also deliver a delicious burger but anything leaner than 90% will leave you with a dry and mostly tasteless burger.)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt (If using regular table salt, use ⅛ teaspoon)
- ⅛ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- ½ tablespoon olive oil or vegetable oil
- 1 hamburger bun
- Burger toppings: Sliced tomatoes, sliced onions, lettuce, pickles, ketchup, mustard, bacon, BBQ sauce.
Instructions
- Place the ground beef on a plate and gently press it into a disk about 1-inch thick. With your fingers, gently press the middle of the patty to create an indentation. The patty should be slightly larger than your hamburger bun. Season each side with salt and pepper.
- Heat the oil in a medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat, about 30 seconds.
- Carefully place the patty in the skillet. Cook until the surface is browned, about 3 minutes. Slide a spatula under the burger and flip to cook the other side until the desired doneness is reached, about 2 to 5 minutes. Note: The FDA recommends cooking ground meat to an internal temperature of at least 160°F (71°C).
- Place the cooked hamburger patty on a plate and top with a slice or two of cheese, if using. Cover the plate with aluminum foil and let the patty rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Place the patty on one half of the hamburger bun and finish with your favorite burger toppings and the other half of the bun.
Notes
- Minimize Handling: Gently form the beef into patties with minimal handling to maintain a juicy texture. Aim for uneven edges for a better sear.
- Shrinkage Expectation: Patties typically shrink by 20% when cooked, so avoid overworking the meat to reduce excess shrinkage.
- Temperature Check: Use an instant-read thermometer to ensure proper cooking. Let the patty rest for 5 minutes post-cooking for continued internal cooking.
- Bun Toasting: After cooking the burger, toast the bun halves on low heat in the same pan to soak up flavors and add crispiness.
- Recipe Scaling: Easily double or triple the ingredients if you’re making multiple burgers.
- Storing Leftover Hamburgers: Keep leftover burgers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Freezing Hamburger Patties: For unused ground beef, shape into patties, wrap in plastic, and freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Love your recipes bought your cookbook cooking for one enjoyed watching your videos
Thank you so much, Susan!
Stellar recipe.
Thank you for the wonderful adaptation of recipes – very useful, flavorful, and quick for those late nights. I have to add a funny story though – I grew up in a cafe/service station/motel on the side of the interstate in Wyoming that my grandparents started in the mid-50’s. All our burgers were pan-fried, the sheet grill vanished decades before I was born. My mom, who passed two years ago, made the very best cheeseburgers (we flipped the bun so the bottom was on the meat, the outsides of the bun met, then the cheese was melted on the top bun). How can I guarantee that? My best friend’s husband, my husband, and her best friend repeatedly requested that she make them – it became something of a running joke with her friend. It amazes me that people disdain burgers made this way, as they rarely dry out or get crispy-crittered.
I live alone and like to have my own beef patties ready-to-go, in the freezer.
I spread plastic wrap over an upside-down jar lid of the desired side. I press ground beef lightly into the lid and close the plastic wrap snugly over the beef. I set the wrapped patties on something flat and set them into the freezer. When they are frozen I can bag or box them for convenient storage, and take out one at a time. It will thaw enough while I prepare the toppings.