Juicy and flavorful, smoked burgers bring so much to the table. Perfect for cookouts or weeknight dinners, this easy-to-make smoked burgers recipe is one you won’t soon forget.
Pit Boss Burgers Recipe
A delicious smoked hamburger, grilled & smoked to perfection, reigns supreme in the summertime.
When it’s topped with all your favorite toppings and you’re surrounded by friends and family? There’s really nothing better.
Smoked cheeseburgers will not only help you utilize your Pit Boss or Traeger smoker sitting on your porch, but you’ll end up with a much more flavorful experience than grilling them alone.
Why you’ll love Smoking Hamburgers
This recipe is easy to love, and here’s why:
- Smoked burgers are so very juicy and tender!
- They are absolutely packed with flavor, even more than a standard grilled burger.
- These pit boss hamburgers are incredibly easy to make. They take a little longer to cook, but the wait is worth it.
- You can top them with all your favorite burger toppings.
Smoked Burger Recipe ingredients
Here’s what you will need to grab at the grocery store
- ground sirloin – This recipe calls for 1 pound, which makes about 5 burgers. This recipe is easy to multiply. I recommend using a higher ground beef to fat ratio for smoked burgers, such as 90/10 or 85/15. Lean meat won’t hold together as well.
- panko breadcrumbs – I love the texture that panko breadcrumbs bring to these burgers. You can also use standard breadcrumbs if you prefer.
- burger seasoning – I like to use this burger seasoning (affiliate link) but you can use your favorite beef seasoning if you prefer.
- roasted green chiles – These come in a can and add so much flavor to lots of recipes — they’re not very spicy at all. I always keep a few cans on hand. However, you can totally skip this ingredient. They also help you have a juicy, tender smoked burger.
- shredded cheese – I love using cheese as a binder in burgers. It adds a ton of flavor. If you like it, then try these cheesy ranch burgers.
Best toppings for Smoked Burgers
You can top your burgers with your favorite toppings and condiments. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Condiments
Sauces and condiments help to add moisture and flavor to your sandwich and burger. You can go classic or creative.
- Mayonnaise
- Ketchup
- Mustard
- Ranch dressing
- Barbecue sauce
- Fry sauce
- Smoked White Queso Dip
Cheese
For a classic cheeseburger, try a yellow cheese such as Cheddar or American cheese.
White cheeses like Swiss or Gouda add a smoky flavor to your smoky burger.
Monterey Jack or Pepper Jack are great choices for a spicy style burger.
Tart goat cheese and tangy blue cheese pair really well with beef.
Burger Toppings
Serve up a few topping choices to a crowd so they can build their perfect smoked hamburger.
- Lettuce
- Tomato slices
- Onion slices
- Pickles
- Bacon
- Fried egg
- Coleslaw
- Avocado slices
- Guacamole
- Kimchi
- Onion strings
How to smoke burgers
Here’s how to make these smoked beef burgers.
- Preheat the smoker to 190°F.
- Combine the ground beef, breadcrumbs, burger seasoning, green chiles, and cheese in a mixing bowl.
- Using your hand, mix until combined without overmixing.
- Form into 5 equal-sized patties. I like to use this patty maker (affiliate link).
- Place burgers on the smoker and smoke for 25 minutes. Flip only once.
- Continue smoking for an additional 25 minutes or until the internal temperature is to your preference of burger. See the section called “internal temperature guide” below.
- Remove from the smoker and stack with your favorite bun and toppings.
What pellets to use when smoking burgers?
Because these burgers aren’t smoked for very long, you will want to use a stronger flavor of wood pellets.
I recommend using hickory, oak, or mesquite, which have a strong flavor when they are smoked.
For Pit Boss smoked burgers, I like using a good Pit Boss brand smoking pellet (affiliate link).
Smoked Hamburgers FAQ
Overall you’ll want to smoke hamburgers on the pellet grill for about 50 minutes total for medium well, or until your personal preference.
See the section called “internal temperature guide” below for a detailed explanation of the different internal temperatures you’ll want to aim for.
Yes, you can! No smoker, no problem.
You will need a smoker box (affiliate link) filled with wood chips to grill your burgers with a similar smoky flavor. Place it in the center of the grill and place your burgers around it to infuse the most flavor. Check out this article on how to use a smoker box.
When using a smoker box, you won’t be using pellets, you’ll be using wood chips so be sure to keep that in mind when buying your supplies.
Ideally, you should only flip smoked burgers once. It’s tempting to flip and flip and flip, but resist that urge. Here’s why:
Leaving the burgers on the grill helps them to cook more evenly. Also, each time you open the smoker, you release smoke that could be infusing into your burger, so try to keep the burgers in the smoker as long as possible.
When the burgers are ready to flip, they should release easily from the grates. Before that, they may stick to the grates. Flipping them too soon may cause them to break.
Hamburgers should be cooked at 190ºF on a pellet grill.
It takes approximately 50 minutes to smoke hamburgers at 190ºF.
Smoked Burgers tips and tricks
Here are a few tips and tricks for making this smoked burger recipe:
The type of ground beef you use matters. The best ground beef to fat ratio is 90/10 or 85/15. You may wish to use organic and/or grass-fed beef or support a farmer at your local farmer’s market.
When forming the patties, you should divide the meat into 5 equal parts, then form them into balls and flatten them with your hands. You can also use a patty maker (affiliate link).
Make sure to grease the grates before adding the burgers. You can use grill spray or rub half an onion or potato on the grates to grease them.
When you are making burgers on a smoker, it is very important to use a meat thermometer (affiliate link) because the color of the outside of the burger does not provide not enough information to tell when they’re done.
The burgers may appear underdone even if they are not because smoking causes the meat to turn pink. See the section called “internal temperature guide” below.
Though it is tempting to flip over and over again, make sure you only flip the burgers once. This keeps the cooking even inside the burger and the grill marks pretty.
Internal temperature guide for burgers on pellet grill
Follow the temperature guides listed below when using your meat thermometer. You may want to use a wireless meat thermometer (affiliate link) so you can keep an eye on your burgers without opening the smoker too much.
Remember that meat will continue to cook when it is removed from heat. After you take them off the grill, you will want the burgers to rest for 5 minutes before serving, which helps your burger patties stay super juicy.
- Rare: 125°F-130°F
- Medium Rare: 130°-140°F
- Medium: 140°-150°F
- Medium Well: 150°F-160°F
- Well Done: 160°F
Sides for Smoked Hamburgers
Burgers are delicious on their own, but it always helps to have a few sides on deck!
Try a Grilled Peach Salad with beautiful summer produce on top. So sweet and flavorful.
Pasta Salad is always a hit with burgers — I recently updated this recipe with lots of tips and tricks.
For a bit of green for your spread, try Cucumber Salad or Broccoli Salad. These healthy sides would be delicious.
And don’t forget the potato chips!
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Pit Boss Smoked Burgers
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground sirloin
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon burger seasoning
- ¼ cup roasted green chile
- ¼ cup shredded cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the smoker to 190°F.
- Combine the ground beef, breadcrumbs, burger seasoning, green chiles, and cheese in a mixing bowl.
- Using your hand, mix until combined without overmixing.
- Form into 5 equal sized patties. I like using a patty maker.
- Place burgers on the smoker and smoke for 25 minutes. Flip only once.
- Continue smoking an additional 25 minutes or until the internal temperature is to your preference of burger. Refer to the "internal temperature guide" in the post as color will not indicate doneness with smoking burgers. A chemical reaction will cause the meat to look pink.
- Remove from the smoker and stack with your favorite bun and toppings.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
