homemade mcdonalds cheeseburger on a white plate

Ever been disappointed by a McDonald’s hamburger or cheeseburger? It happens to me, a lot! It’s even more frustrating since it is one of my favorite restaurants, and sometimes it’s still good. But usually, something goes wrong and doesn’t taste right, or you get that regret from eating something you know is SUPER processed and terrible for you. So, I decided to take apart the simple McDonald’s cheeseburger and figure out how to construct a homemade Mcdonald’s cheeseburger!

Now, this has been done before. There are probably 100 sites out there with McDonald’s burger recipes, Homemade Mcdonald’s cheeseburgers, Copycat McDonald’s Cheeseburgers, etc. But in a brief amount of sleuthing, I couldn’t find a good recipe for the actual burger patty. So, with a little bit of research, some science, and I am convinced this is what McDonald’s burgers tasted like before corporate profits removed the soul from the recipe. Enjoy!

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Why I Love This Recipe?

With prices rising across the board for almost every product, McDonald’s menu prices are no exception. So, I tried to bring this one home so we can enjoy their cheeseburgers without all the preservatives and without the “McDonald’s” experience if you know what I mean.

HomeIngredients

Hamburger Patty: There are a couple of things to notice about a McDonald’s burger patty. It’s thin. This is the original smash burger without the smash. I’ll cover how we made them thin and tried to keep them that way.
- It’s a bit salty. Here is where most of the science comes in, getting the saltiness of the patty is crucial to getting that flavor.
- It’s a bit fatty. I used 80/20 ground beef so there was plenty of fat in the burger, and I added an egg for good measure.
Hamburger Bun: Simple, white bread bun. The top is smooth, not split, and entirely void of sesame seeds. Toasted quickly using butter gives the desired effect.
Condiments: There is no special sauce for the simple cheeseburger, but the combination below is magic nonetheless.
- Ketchup: Ketchup is the main condiment on these sandwiches, so use about 1 Tablespoon. I am not sure why it’s so good, but it is. Tastes like childhood.
- Mustard: Use simple yellow mustard to give a bit of tang, about half a teaspoon or so. You don’t want to overdo the mustard, but you can’t skip it.
- Minced Onions: Not the star of the show, but these little morsels of oniony flavor add so much to the burger, I think they are necessary. I rehydrated dried onions to ensure they would be super mild, and it worked wonders. Half a teaspoon of minced onion on top of the ketchup and mustard.
- Pickles: Of the condiments, the Mcdonald’s pickle is the hardest to reproduce. It’s a super mild dill pickle, and Olympia Pickles we used were a bit too sour, but they worked. Two pickles per sandwich are ideal.
- Cheese: Why anybody eats a hamburger is beyond me. I guess lactose intolerance is a good enough excuse, but the cheeseburger is far superior to the hamburger, period. American cheese is the go-to here, and it melts perfectly. One slice per sandwich, two slices if you’re making a double cheeseburger.

How to Master the Saltiness of a Hamburger

Science is a strong term, but I needed to figure out how much salt was in the patties. Correct salt levels are the best starting point to good flavor, so here is step by step of how I got to the right numbers:

1. According to MyFitnessPal, there is 125mg of sodium in a plain Mcdonald’s hamburger patty. Sodium roughly equals saltiness.

2. McDonald’s patty is about 1/6 of a pound before cooking, so multiply by 6 for the pound of ground beef. So 750mg Sodium.

3. There is roughly 2400mg of Sodium in a teaspoon of salt. By that logic, 1/4 tsp salt to 1 lb of ground beef should make the perfectly salty beef patty. HOWEVER, Sodium only accounts for half the weight of the salt, with a Chloride hanging onto the other half. With that in mind, increase the salt to 1/2 tsp for the perfect patty.

Preparation

Preparing the Beef Patties

McDonald’s beef patties are heavily worked, modified, machined, mechanically separated, etc. Don’t worry about overworking the meat. You can’t do in your kitchen worse than they do in the factories.

Combine the ground beef, eggs, bread crumbs, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Make sure the bowl is big enough to mash everything without making a giant mess.
Mash everything with your hands until it’s a uniform consistency. It took me around 3 minutes of proper kneading to get it right.
Roll the beef mixture into a ball and flatten it roughly into a disc. This makes it easier to cut it into six roughly equal pieces without going to the trouble of weighing anything. Divide the beef into 6 equal portions.
Using parchment paper and a rolling pin, smash each burger into a 1/4 inch thickness. It will be really wide, but this accommodates for shrinkage when you cook it. Stack them up with layers of wax paper in between. This is a great time to stop and freeze your hamburger patties for later!

Cook the Beef Patties!

Now, get your cooking surface set to medium heat. Butter the inside of the buns and toast the inside of the buns, should take about 2 minutes. Set them aside.
Time to cook the patties! Still over medium heat, Toss the patties on the cooking surface, whatever you’re using. They should sizzle and shrink as they cook. 2-3 minutes per side and they should be cooked through since they’re so thin. That’s the best part of the skinny burger patties. Once cooked, set them aside in a warm place to wait for assembly.

Assemble the Cheeseburgers!

Now the fun part. Take a bun, add a patty, and place a slice of American Cheese on top. Don’t worry about melting it, we will get there with a secret finishing move.
Condiments. Add 1T ketchup, 1/2t yellow mustard, 2-3 pickle slices, and 1/2 tsp minced onions.
Stack it all up and microwave it for 15 seconds. This part is crucial for some reason. It melts the cheese and softens the bun, just like the stores.
Enjoy!

Homemade McDonald’s Cheeseburger Recipe (With Patty Seasoning)

Kyle E.

The cheeseburger that launched an empire, now in your kitchen.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 20

Total Time 50

Course Dinner

Cuisine American

Servings cheeseburgers

Equipment

Parchment Paper
Cutting Board
Mixing Bowl
Skillet or Griddle
Rolling Pin

Ingredients

Patty Seasoning

1 lb Ground beef 80/20
2 Tbsp Bread Crumbs
1 Large Egg
½ Tsp Salt
½ Tsp Ground Black Pepper

Cheeseburger Assembly

6 Hamburger Buns
3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
¼ C Ketchup
2 Tbsp Yellow Mustard
3 Tsp Minced Yellow Onion
6 Slices American Cheese
12 Hamburger Sliced Dilled Pickles

Instructions

Prepare the Patties

In a mixing bowl, combine ground beef, breadcrumbs, an egg, salt, and pepper. Mix together until combined and uniform.
1 lb Ground beef, 2 Tbsp Bread Crumbs, 1 Large Egg, ½ Tsp Salt, ½ Tsp Ground Black Pepper
Divide the meat into 6 equal balls. Between two sheets of parchment paper, smash the balls into ¼ inch thick patties. Set aside or freeze for later.

Prepare the Burgers

Heat a skillet over medium heat. Butter the inside of each bun and toast the inside of the buns in the skillet for 1-2 minutes.
6 Hamburger Buns, 3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
Build the cheeseburger in the following order:
Top Bun
Ketchup, mustard, onions, pickles
Cheese
Patty
Bottom Bun
1/4 C Ketchup, 2 Tbsp Yellow Mustard, 3 Tsp Minced Yellow Onion, 6 Slices American Cheese, 12 Hamburger Sliced Dilled Pickles
Microwave each assembled cheeseburger for 15 seconds for the perfect finish.

Notes

WARNING, these are much more filling than normal McDonald’s burgers. I would scale down a patty from what you usually eat and go from there.
For a double cheeseburger, add an extra patty and extra cheese.
For a triple cheeseburger, add two extra patties and cheeses.

Keyword cheeseburger, Dinner, Hamburger, sandwich

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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