Condiment ideas (optional, not included in nutrition info)
1 tomatobeefsteak, sliced ½”
4picklesdeli style, sliced (substitute relish)
½cuplettuceIceberg, shredded
1medium onionsweet or yellow, sliced ½”
ketchup
bbq sauce
Instructions
Make beef patties. To make the patties, use a scale to measure 8 oz burger patties, or ½ LB burgers, that are about ½ inch thick. (If you don’t have a scale, you can eyeball dividing up each LB of burger meat in half.)
(optional) Season ground beef into burger patties for smoking. To a large bowl, add ground beef. You can choose to season the meat now by mixing in the salt and pepper before forming the patties, or you can wait to add it on top when you add the burgers to the grill. (we have tested and like both methods).
Shape burger patties (smoosh the meat together gently) so each one is about ½ inch thick. The goal is to create burger patties that are a bit wider than the diameter of the hamburger buns. Chill burger patties in the fridge for at least 15 minutes, or up to a few hours before smoking them.
Preheat Traeger Grills or Pitt Boss or whatever pellet grill you’re using to 225 degrees F. In the Sip Bite Go recipe video you’ll see we like using Hickory wood pellets for burgers because they provide phenomenal smoky flavor to the beef.
Smoke burgers. Remove burger patties from the fridge and season them with salt and pepper (if you haven’t already seasoned them). Then add them directly to the preheated smoker grill grates. Close the lid and smoke burger patties for 60 minutes. Optionally, you can flip the burgers at the 30 minute mark (but usually, I don’t).
(Optional) Toast buns and turn it into a smoked cheeseburger about 5-10 degrees prior to your ideal doneness temperature. So for medium smoked burgers, you’ll add the buns (inside facing down) directly onto the grill grates and add cheddar cheese on top of the still-smoking burgers when the temperature of the patties measure about 135 degrees F internally. From this point, you’ll smoke them another 15-20 minutes, with cheese on top, until the next step. Check the buns periodically and pull them off when they look toasted.
Continue smoking burgers until done. They’re ready when the internal temperature reaches your desired level. Our burgers in the photos measured 145 degrees F for medium burgers. Transfer to a platter.
Finish smoked burgers with your favorite condiments and enjoy.
Video
Notes
Done temperatures for smoked burgers…
Rare (125-130°F) is still red inside.
Medium rare (130-140°F) is red to pink inside.
Medium (140-150°F) is mostly pink.
Medium well (150-160°F) has just a slight bit of pink inside.