These baked hamburgers are so easy to make. Simply press seasoned ground beef into a pan and bake it for about 15 minutes in a 400°F oven.
Once the meat is cooked, add cheese, cut it into squares, and serve! It's so much easier than pan-frying.
Burgers are one of the menu items most often requested by my family members. Everyone around here loves them - yes, even the picky eater.
I make grilled hamburgers, broiled burgers, and bacon burgers often. But these baked hamburgers are the easiest to make. There's no need to form the meat into patties or keep an eye on the burgers as they fry or grill. And just as important - no grease splatters to clean up!
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Ingredients
Here's an overview of the ingredients needed to make this recipe. The exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below.
- Ground beef: I use lean ground beef (85/15).
- To season: Kosher salt, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and chili powder.
- Sliced cheese: I typically use sharp cheddar.
Variations
- A nice variation on the spices is adding a generous pinch of cumin, and I also like to add ½ teaspoon of dried oregano or thyme.
- I like to mix the cheeses up! I typically use sharp cheddar, but other great options include gouda, provolone, pepper jack, smoked cheddar, or Swiss cheese.
- As mentioned above, I typically use lean ground beef (85/15). Extra-lean (90/10) can be tricky in this recipe. It's drier and can also be more crumbly. Having said that, I occasionally use ground bison. Despite being 90% lean, it's delicious.
Instructions
See the recipe card below for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this recipe:
Your first step is to combine the ground beef with spices. Gently press the mixture into a glass or ceramic square 8-inch pan. There's no need to grease the pan.
Bake the mixture until cooked through. This should take about 15 minutes in a 400°F oven.
Top the cooked beef with cheese slices. Return the pan to the oven and bake just until the cheese is melted, for about 2 more minutes.
Allow the burgers to rest for 5 minutes, then cut into four squares and serve.
Expert Tip
Although I recommend using an 8-inch square pan for this recipe, I sometimes double the recipe and use two pans.
One of the pans I own is a square 9-inch pan, so I use both pans simultaneously, as shown in the image below. This works just fine, although the burgers baked in the 9-inch pan are slightly flatter.
Recipe FAQs
They are. They are a bit drier compared to frying or grilling since some juices are lost while baking, but they are delicious, and my family requests them often.
It should take about 15 minutes. The best way to ensure they're done is to use an instant-read thermometer. I aim for an internal temperature of 155°F since I return them to the oven to melt the cheese, at which point they should reach 160°F.
No, there's no need to flip them. Simply season the meat, press it into the pan, and bake until it's done. This is one of the advantages of this recipe over pan-frying. It's so easy!
Serving Suggestions
Baked hamburgers pair well with any side dish you would serve with regular burgers. This includes jicama fries, zucchini fries, coleslaw, cucumber salad, and cucumber tomato salad.
You can top the burgers with a fried egg (as shown in the photo below), oven bacon, pickled red onions, or caramelized onions.
Storing Leftovers
You can keep the leftovers in the fridge, in a sealed container, for 3-4 days. I store them in a glass food storage container, as shown in the photo below.
You can reheat the leftovers gently in the microwave at 50% power, but I actually love them best cold, straight out of the fridge! I make myself a lunch plate of these burgers, Dijon mustard or sriracha mayo, fresh-cut veggies, and quick pickles. It's one of my favorite lunches.
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Recipe Card
Easy Baked Hamburgers
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef - 85/15
- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or ½ teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 4 slices sharp cheddar - or any other melty cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, kosher salt, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and chili powder.
- Gently press the beef mixture into an ungreased glass or ceramic square 8-inch pan.
- Bake until cooked through, 12-15 minutes. A meat thermometer should read 160°F. If there's a lot of cooking liquid in the pan, you can drain some. I like to keep it and allow some of it to get absorbed back into the burgers as they rest.
- Top the cooked meat with the cheese slices.
- Return the pan to the oven and bake just until cheese is melted, for 1-2 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven and allow the burgers to rest for 5 minutes. Cut into four squares and serve.
Video
Notes
- A nice variation is adding a generous pinch of cumin, and I also like to add ½ teaspoon of dried oregano or thyme.
- I typically use lean ground beef (85/15). Extra-lean (90/10) ground beef can be tricky in this recipe. It's drier and can also be more crumbly. Having said that, I do use ground bison on occasion. Despite being 90% lean, it's delicious.
- Although I recommend using an 8-inch square pan for this recipe, I sometimes double the recipe and use two pans. One of the pans I own is a square 9-inch pan, so I use both and bake them simultaneously. This works just fine, although the burgers baked in the 9-inch pan are slightly flatter.
- The best way to ensure the burgers are done is to use an instant-read thermometer. It's OK to pull them out of the oven when they reach an internal temperature of 155°F since you will return them to the oven to melt the cheese, at which point they should reach 160°F.
- You can keep the leftovers in the fridge, in a sealed container, for 3-4 days. Reheat them gently in the microwave at 50% power, or enjoy them cold.
Nutrition per Serving
Disclaimers
Cup measurements refer to the standard American cup, which is 240 milliliters. Most of my recipes are low-carb (or keto) and gluten-free, but some are not. Please verify that a recipe fits your needs before using it. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate, and the carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Nutrition info may contain errors, so please verify it independently. Recipes may contain errors, so please use your common sense when following them. Please read these Terms of Use carefully before using any of my recipes.
Vered DeLeeuw, LL.M., CNC, has been following a low-carb real-food diet and blogging about it since 2011. She's a Certified Nutrition Coach (NASM-CNC), has taken courses at the Harvard School of Public Health, and has earned a Nutrition and Healthy Living Certificate from Cornell University. Her work has appeared in several major media outlets, including Healthline, HuffPost, Today, Women's Health, Shape, and Country Living. 
Ronald Mask
These were great!
Vered DeLeeuw
I'm glad you enjoyed this recipe, Ronald! Thanks for the comment.
Paula Harden
Delicious! I used a 9" pan and spread the meat over just 2/3 of it, so I put thin slivered onion in the empty 1/3 pan. I topped the burgers with the onion to serve. The easy clean up was a bonus. I cut back on the paprika and chili powder, just for our personal taste. These will be in our meal rotation from now on! Thanks Vered!!
Vered DeLeeuw
You're very welcome, Paula! Love the onions idea!
Heidi
This is my new go-to hamburger recipe! I had 2 pounds of ground beef and 1 pound of ground turkey, so I tripled the recipe and spices. Sooooo delicious and sooo easy!!! Thank you for this recipe!!
Vered DeLeeuw
You're very welcome, Heidi! Thank you for leaving a comment.
Snail
Hi! Wondering if the recipe can be doubled and still cooked in an 8x8? Or maybe something bigger would be better? Thank you!
Vered DeLeeuw
Hi,
The recipe can be doubled and cooked in a 9 X 13-inch baking dish.
Lija
Thank you so much for this recipe. I suffer from chronic back pain and it is so hard to fry ground beef on the stove, and I don't like the texture of beef when cooked in the Instant Pot.
My husband will be happy that we're going to have cheeseburgers again, because of your quick and easy recipe. Thanks!
Vered DeLeeuw
I hope you like this recipe, Lija! I make it often for my family.
Kady
I’ve made this a few times, changing it a bit each time. My kids said it tasted too much like meatloaf for the first two times. The third time I added in Worcestershire sauce when mixing the meat and two eggs (I have a large family, so I double the recipe). That did it! Before cheese goes on I cut it and throw each piece in a cast iron to crisp up the sides to make it more like a grilled burger and they love it! Thank you!
Vered DeLeeuw
Hi Kady,
Thanks for the review and feedback and for sharing your tweaks! Very interesting!
Andria Richey
What if I like them rare?
Vered DeLeeuw
Hi Andria,
This recipe will definitely not make them rare. You will need to experiment and see how long you need to bake them so that they are done to your liking.
Brenda Mason Parmelee
I may try adding onion first, then the rest of the burger meat...ohhh, mushroom, bacon bits w/onion slices. Would be great if all can be done together. Your thoughts?
Vered DeLeeuw
Hi Brenda,
You would need to cook the onions and mushrooms separately and add them to the beef. Your call if it's worth the trouble!
Brenda Mason Parmelee
Ty! I'll give it a try soon and let you know how it goes...
Cynthia
hi! can this be cooked successfully with similar results in a large foil pan to accomodate larger groups?
how thick should the meat be on the pan, since it may be hard to judge quantity per pan. Cooking about 10 lbs of meat so thinking 3 large foil pans ~11x13" ?
Vered DeLeeuw
Hi Cynthia,
I only tested this recipe in a square 8 or 9-inch pan. But my educated guess is 2-2.5 pounds of ground beef for each 11X13 pan. So, you will need 4-5 pans.
I would go with four pans and test with a thermometer for doneness - you might need to bake them slightly longer.