Summer is our favorite time of year to spend barbecuing and being with family! These burgers are smoked to juicy perfection and will leave everyone feeling extra satisfied. Using the best quality meat is what will give your burger the best flavor. We order our grass-fed ground beef through Butcher Box and 44 Farms. HEB has their All-Natural ground beef and Prime Sirloin patties that are also legit. We love using our electric smoker to make our burgers, but these are also delicious pan-fried!
Cooking Methods
SMOKER Method. Smoked meats are our favorite and these hamburgers always turn out delicious! The first thing you will want to do is pre-heat your electric smoker to 225 degrees. The smoker should take about 10 minutes or so to preheat. While the smoker is preheating, prep and season the burgers. When the smoker is ready put the burgers on and let them do their thing. We check them using a meat thermometer and pull them off when that reaches 145 degrees. That temperature will give you a medium finish, leave them on longer until they reach your preferred finish.
Temperatures for Preferred Finish
- Rare – 125 degrees Farenheight
- Medium-Rare – 135 degrees Farenheight
- Medium – 145 degrees Farenheight
- Medium-Well – 150 degrees Farenheight
- Well – 160 degrees Farenheight
SKILLET Method. When pan-frying hamburgers I like to use my cast-iron skillet. The first thing you will want to do is get your pan HOT over medium heat. Make sure your patties are seasoned and ready to go! QUICK TIP…you do not want to put a super cold patty on the hot skillet, the meat will not cook correctly and could cause your preferred finish to be off! Once your skillet is hot, add an optional tablespoon of bacon fat, then add no more than two patties at a time. I like my patties medium so I cook them about 3-4 per side. Once they are cooked set them on a cutting board/baking sheet to rest.
Temperatures for Preferred Finish
- Medium-Rare: no more than 3 minutes per side
- Medium: 3 – 4 minutes per side
- Medium-Well: 5 minutes per side
- Well: 8 – 10 minutes per side
Favorite Topping Ideas
- Crisp, Organic Romaine
- Sliced Organic Tomato
- Onion
- Sliced Avocado
- Pickles
- Jalapenos
- Primal Kitchen Mayo
- Mustard
- Primal Kitchen Ketchup
- Crispy, All-Natural HEB Applewood Bacon
Classic American Hamburger
Equipment
- Electric Pellet Grill/Smoker
- Cookie Sheet
- Spatula
- Cutting Board
- Chopping Knife
- Meat Thermometer
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Grass-Fed Ground Beef Butcher Box, 44 Farms, or HEB All-Natural
- HEB BBQ Salt and Pepper Blend
- Hamburger Buns optional
- 1 Organic Romaine, small head
- 1 Organic Large Tomato sliced
- Pickle Slices
- Cheese Slices We love Tillamook Mild Cheddar and Pepper Jack!
- 1 tbsp Primal Kitchen Mayo optional
- 1 tbsp Mustard optional
Instructions
- Divide the hamburger meat into 8 one-quarter pound balls then form into hamburger patties. Place the patties onto a cookie sheet. Season with the HEB BBQ salt and pepper blend on both sides.
- When ready to cook, preheat your smoker with the lid closed to 325°F.
- Place the hamburgers patties directly on the grill and smoke for about 30 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. Remove from the smoker!
- Toast the buns and prepare your burger with all of your favorite toppings!
