Stovetop Burgers are easier than you might think! Once we learned How to Cook Burgers on the Stove it’s our go-to easy dinner for anytime of year. This is a great way to make sure you cook a JUICY and PERFECT cheeseburgers each and every time. Now you can make the best burgers year round.
Best Stovetop Burgers Recipe
Once we learned how to make burgers on the stove that were juicy, perfect, and easy every time, this has become our go-to stovetop burgers recipe.
I love that you can cook cheeseburgers year round; regardless of a grill! These ridiculously delicious hamburgers are delicious and cooked to order every time!
If you’re a true hamburger or cheeseburger lover, then you NEED this Stovetop Burgers Recipe. Get ready to sink your teeth the BEST PAN FRIED BURGER you have ever tasted!
See all the tips and tricks below for making it absolutely perfect every time. There have become a reader favorite recipe and we love them too!
Once you know how to make stovetop burgers, you’ll be able to make them in any season–no grill needed!
Burger Guide
Cook Burgers ALL the Ways
Our Burgers Guide has all the tips and tricks for perfect burgers each and every time.
Tips for Stovetop Burgers
The key to a perfect Stovetop Burger is knowing how long to cook burgers, testing your internal temperatures, and keeping things simple.
There are lots of great loaded burger recipes out there, and we have some we love ourselves like our Mediterranean Chicken Burgers and these Cowboy Burgers. When it comes down to it, we love a simple and classic cheeseburger better than anything.
These Stovetop Burgers are the type of meal I could eat every day for the rest of my life. It’s seasoned with just salt and peppers, letting the juicy beef really shine.
Tip!
Of course there are lots of variations you can make, but we stand by the fact that a perfectly cooked pan fried burger covered in melted cheese is the ONLY way to make a Stovetop Burger.
Can you cook frozen hamburgers on the stove?
You can, and sources say if done correctly you can get them to taste almost as juicy as a fresh beef burger, but I don’t recommend it. Fresh is best for cooking a truly juicy and amazing burger on the stove!
Can you cook a burger in the oven?
Yes, you can cook burgers in the oven if you prefer. We just want to make sure we can make delicious burgers year round, so oven or stove top works!
Check my recipe on How to Broil Hamburgers for the perfect oven baked burgers.
What are the internal temperatures when cooking beef?
Internal temperatures for a ground beef burger are as follows:
- Medium Rare: 130-135°F
- Medium: 145°F
- Medium Well: 150-155°F
- Well Done: 160-165°F
*NOTE: The FDA officially recommends that hamburgers be cooked to an internal temperature of 160°F to ensure all bacteria is killed. If you choose to do more of a Medium cook, be sure you’re using the freshest beef or even making your own ground beef!
The Best meat thermometer!
I love using this meat thermometer for making sure the meat is at 165 degrees! Easy for beginners & totally worth the $10 cost!
We have created an internal temperature guide as well as FREE PRINTABLE for easy tips on cooking meats! Click HERE to print your free version.
How long to cook burgers for medium rare – well done stovetop burgers?
GOOD QUESTION! This is the easiest and safest way to make sure your burgers are cooked to perfection every time. Cook times for cooking burgers in a skillet (that are about 1 inch thick and cooked on medium high heat) are as follows:
- Medium Rare (red in the middle): 6 minutes total (3 minutes on each side)
- Medium (pink in the middle): 7-8 minutes total
- Medium Well (smidge of pink in the middle): 9 minutes total
- Well Done (no pink): 10 minutes total
Again, the FDA recommends at least close to a well done burger at 160F. So about 9-10 minutes total cooking time is what we are shooting for.
What do you serve with Stovetop Burgers?
When we finally learned how to make burgers on the stove, I knew we also needed the perfect side dishes. We love to serve these juicy stovetop cheeseburgers with a few favorites.
How to Make Skillet Burgers
You too can cook the PERFECT Stovetop Burgers! I believe in you. Be sure to fully read the instructions as well as all the tips for how to cook burgers on the stove above.
Decide which temp you’re going for and then kick some butt! Your family is going to love these. Who needs Summer? We can excel at cooking perfect cheeseburgers ALL YEAR LONG!
You can jump to the recipe card for full ingredients & instructions!
More Burger Recipes we Love
We love creating fun and delicious burgers. Here are some favorites to try after you master the Stovetop version!
If you make this recipe be sure to upload a photo in the comment section below or leave a rating. Enjoy! You can also jump to recipe.
Stovetop Burgers – How to Cook Burgers on the Stove
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chuck 80%-85% lean
- kosher or sea salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 4 slices American or Cheddar Cheese
- 4 Burger Buns
Optional Toppings
- condiments of choice such as ketchup, mustard, and mayo. Toppings such as lettuce, tomato, red onion, and pickles.
Instructions
- Place ground chuck in a medium-size mixing bowl and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Mix gently to combine, but don’t overwork the meat.
- Divide the meat into four equal portions.
- Place one portion on a plate and gently press it into a 1-inch, round patty. (The patty should NOT be smooth – leave some craggy edges and don’t press it too flat.)
- With your thumb or fingers, press a “moat”, approximately ¼-½ inch from the edge, around the circumference of the burger – be sure the edge of the burger is a little higher than the indentation. This will ensure the burger will flatten out while cooking. Repeat this process with each portion.
- Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat. When the pan is hot, carefully place the patties in the skillet (no need to grease skillet) leaving some space between each patty.
- Cook the burgers until nicely seared and they have browned halfway up the sides.
- Flip the burgers and cook to your liking. (*NOTE – To ensure all bacteria has been killed, the FDA recommends cooking burgers to an internal temperature of 160°F.)
- If adding cheese: remove the pan from the heat and place the cheese atop the burgers. Cover the skillet and allow the residual heat/steam to melt the cheese.
- Serve on toasted buns topped with your favorite toppings.
- Enjoy!
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Nutrition Information
This site is garbage. So many ads.
Hi, Brian! Unfortunately, the ads are what allow me (and most other bloggers) to continue to provide recipes for free. Without them, I would have to charge a subscription fee! That said, there are quite a few built-in tools to help! At the top of each recipe, there is a “jump to recipe” button that will take you straight to the recipe card. On the recipe card, you can click the “print” button to open a clean, ad-free version of the recipe in a new window. I hope this helps!
I forgot! When I need to melt cheese to make an egg and sausage sandwich, or even toasted cheese, I always put the sliced cheese (Havarti) on a plate in the microwave for 10 seconds to melt. Then I don’t have to worry about overcooking the sausage or over browning the toast. Perfectly melted cheese over the hamburger!
Thanks for sharing, Marcie!
Thank you so much for this recipe! It is perfect and I needed it to cook the “perfect hamburger.”
I am an extremely experienced cook who has made “advanced” recipes for over 40 years, treating my family every night to something new and fancy. It was my hobby, and I would start the preparations as soon as the kids left for school. HOWEVER, I never cooked anything like hamburgers for dinner, and when my husband recently requested a hamburger for dinner this evening—something he always orders when we eat at a restaurant—I looked up your recipe, because I was afraid I would overcook it. I followed your directions for a medium rare hamburger and he said it is the best he had ever had! Thank you again!
Thank you for sharing your experience, Marcie, and I’m glad your husband loved it. No matter how much we cook, there’s always something new to learn, so I’m happy it could be helpful to you.
Delicious ! i try in pizza and i get results its very testy i like it thanks for sharing recepie.
Thanks for stopping by!
Thank you for the recipe. It was perfection. I cook at home all the time and usually like making fancy stuff. My neighbors here in the Mississippi sticks say I’m not normal. But sometimes I like something simple and delicious and I don’t mind admitting that I do not know everything about cooking. I’d read about putting an indention in the middle of the patty. I was not impressed. I’d never heard abmaking a mote. It really makes a difference! I cooked it in a cast iron skillet and had it with steamed broccoli and garlic butter pasta on the side.
I’m so glad you were able to learn something new! Sounds like a tasty dinner!!
Great recipe and I appreciate the tip about watching the burger as it browns up the sides! I hadn’t heard that before and it helped! Thanks for posting this recipe! Also, just ignore the “Karens” of the world. You keep doing you, girl!
Thanks for letting us know, Emily!
For everyone who asked why such a basic recipe is necessary, I find it kind of rude. I’ve been cooking for decades too and found on a website – just browsing – about dimpling the middle of burgers to avoid underdone centers. Sometimes things are just missed when you learn to cook and other people are self taught without a lot of examples. I like reading basic recipes as sometimes you can learn to improve your technique.
Thanks for sharing, Cat! We can have decades of cooking under our belt and still have not learned everything!
Thanks for the basic recipe. I don’t know how to cook at all. It helped.
I fully agree. As someone who WAY overthinks things, I need to see simple things too to help me get my confidence. And not everyone is a veteran at cooking. It’s very helpful
New to cooking and this helped me! Thank you Becky!
Happy to help, Nicholas!
Delicious! I used a burger seasoning instead of S & P but did the rest as instructed, they were the best burgers I’ve ever made indoors. Don’t skip toasting the buns. It makes a world of difference. Thanks for the great tips & an amazing dinner!! :)
Thanks for sharing your success with us, Tammy!
I have been pan frying burgers of all kinds for over 50 years! Is this article really needed by the latest generation???
Some people haven’t been around for over 50 years! The internet is a great resource for newer-to-the-kitchen cooks to find their way around, make yummy meals, and branch out and try something they may have never had growing up!
I read the article under the assumption that it would give me an additional tool to add to my knowledge of technicsto use 8n the kitchen. .This was so utterly basic, offering and would be filed right along side of directions for boiling water. Beyond that opinion I need to comment on this website itself. I have never, and I mean ever clicked into a page that was more unorganized, difficult to follow, repetitive and so crammed full of adsthat I could not even see the words I was typing as I was doing so. The X’s meant to close the ads did nothing other than being you to a separate site of which should be apparent to the website owners that 8f one is clicking the provided X’s to close the ad, they had absolutely no desire to visit the site. I was treated to endless pictures of a simple cheeseburger, but not before each one took individually loaded taking 5 to 8 seconds a piece. All this to finally reach the creme Dela creme,, which strangely enough came After the numerous links for burger recipes that were the actual point of of the entire page. Finally I read directions slip down to the comments where the second comment asked about the necessity of the instructions even for beginners and the response confirmed for me exact5 what I been concluding. Responding that some people are begginers, having virtually no kitchen experience, as such this article is meant to educate them while giving them opportunities to try some things they may have been deprived of growing up. Okay……….. Could you have possibly indicated that fact, if not in the article title, maybe somewhere in paragraph 1?
In order to get high on the search page when you google recipes, those long blog post stories are necessary! We don’t think we need to write a story with every recipe, it’s just how it works. Without them, this recipe could end up on the 50th “O” on your google search page! Please use the jump to the recipe at the top of the page to skip the fluff and go straight to the recipe.
Ok, Karen. Couldn’t you tell that this was a beginner’s recipe by the title of this recipe and reading the first sentence of paragraph 1?
It’s ironic your name is Karen.
Innocent Karens across the globe are cursing you right now.
lol ok, Karen… never mind that ‘rookie’ is even in the site title.
Why is it necessary for you to be so snarky? Not everyone knows how to cook ANYTHING and some just want to see if there’s a better technique. Don’t be rude.