Smashburger Patty Melt and Fry Sauce

Here in ‘Our Country Kitchen’ we will be bringing you amazingly tasty recipes using our very own Missouri pasture-raised beef.  Each week we will feature a dish and give you the scoop on how to make these delicious recipes in your very own kitchen.

The very first recipe we want to share with you is a simple, yet ridiculously mouthwatering ground beef recipe – a timeless classic smashburger! Our smashburger & fry sauce is a home-made copycat version from Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers. 

If you’ve never had a smashburger, it is simply a hamburger patty that is pressed thin to create an exceptional burger with crispy edges that is a reminder of old-school malt shops from years past. You can cook these on the stove top or on a griddle and they are ready within minutes! The most labor-intensive part of these burgers is making the fry sauce about one hour in advance and assembling all your favorite toppings.

A couple of things to keep in mind while making this recipe for you and your family:

1. If you are tight on time, or simply don’t want to make your own fry sauce, a great substitute is thousand island dressing or you can use whatever you and your family enjoy the most! I have also seen fry sauce sold in some local grocery stores as well. 
2. As with many different patty melt recipes, we opted to forgo traditional hamburger buns for a heavier bread. Rye bread is usually a favorite of patty melt recipes, but we used a from scratch honey wheat bread loaf that we had on hand. As always, use what works best for your family!
3. The recipe below uses 1 lb. of Goodparla grass-fed beef, which we divide up into four ¼ lb patties. This can be adjusted to suit your family’s preferred patty size and this recipe can be doubled, tripled, or quadrupled very easily depending on your needs!

Keep reading below for the ingredients & instructions for the ‘Our Country Kitchen’ smashburger patty melt weekly recipe.

Smashburger Patty Melt

A mouthwatering ensemble of copycat Freddy’s smashburger topped with Swiss cheese, sauteed onions & mushrooms, and homemade fry sauce all on top of your favorite choice of hamburger buns or bread!

Makes four ¼ pound smashburger patties. 

Ingredient List:

Recipe Instructions:

Fry Sauce Instructions:

• Combine all ingredients in a small bowl (in whatever order, it doesn’t affect the recipe outcome).
• Stir with a whisk to mix until smooth and completely blended.
• Cover & chill for 1 hour before using.

Makes roughly one cup of sauteed toppings

• Slice the onion in half and place the cut side (flat side) down and slice the onion. 
• Slice mushrooms. 
• Add one tablespoon of olive oil to a frying pan and heat over medium-high heat for about 30 seconds before adding the onion.
• Sautee the onion until it just starts to become translucent and then add the mushrooms. Add salt & pepper to your preferred taste and stir.
• Turn heat down and continue to stir occasionally until the onions and mushrooms are cooked through and soft. 

Smashburger  Instructions:

• Heat a griddle (our preferred method but a frying pan works just fine!) over medium-high to high heat.
• Divide beef in four even portions & roll into rough balls. One at a time, place the beef on the griddle. Place a large (non-slotted) spatula on top and use a coffee mug or large measuring cup to push the spatula and smash the patty very flat. Sprinkle patties with salt and pepper to taste.
• Cook them for 1 to 2 minutes, or until they're nice and brown on the first side. Flip them over and wait about one minute (for medium-rare doneness) then place the slice of cheese on the patties. Place directly onto prepared bread/bun for a single patty & for a double burger melt, stack the patties while on the griddle and  then place directly on the prepared bread/bun.
• To prepare the bread/bun, toast to your preference and slather both sides with fry sauce. Once the patty (or patties!) have been placed on the bun, add a generous helping of sauteed toppings & add the other half of the bread/bun and slice in half!

Serve with a side of fry sauce and fries! We served it with oven baked sweet potato fries.