Editorial: Kockums JernverkPublished: 2026-11-06

Smash burgers with cheddar and pickles

Name: Smash burgers with cheddar and pickles
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 650 g beef mince, 15–20% fat; Salt and freshly ground black pepper; 8 slices cheddar; 4 sesame burger buns; 1 tbsp butter; Baking paper; 100 ml mayonnaise; 2 tbsp ketchup; 1 tbsp yellow mustard; 2 tbsp finely chopped pickles; 1 pinch smoked paprika; Sliced pickles; 1 small red onion, thinly sliced; 1 tomato, sliced

Serves 4 · 30 minutes · Smash press

A smash burger gets its crisp crust from pressing the ball of mince thin against a very hot surface in the first few seconds. A heavy, flat smash press gives even pressure and a patty that is thin all over.

A smash burger is a thin burger pressed flat the moment the mince hits a very hot griddle or carbon steel pan. Smashing gives maximum contact with the surface, so the patty forms a dark, crisp crust in a couple of minutes and stays juicy inside.

Two smash burgers with thin crisp patties, melted cheese, pickles, red onion and tomato in sesame buns on a wooden board, with a smash press and spatula alongside

Ingredients

Serves 4

Burgers

650 g beef mince, 15–20% fat
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 slices cheddar
4 sesame burger buns
1 tbsp butter
Baking paper

Burger sauce

100 ml mayonnaise
2 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp yellow mustard
2 tbsp finely chopped pickles
1 pinch smoked paprika

To serve

Sliced pickles
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 tomato, sliced

Method

Mix the burger sauce ingredients. Slice the pickles, red onion and tomato.
Shape the mince into 8 loose balls of about 80 g without kneading it. Keep them in the fridge until you are ready to cook.
Heat a griddle or carbon steel frying pan over a high heat until almost smoking, about 5 minutes. Butter the cut sides of the buns, toast them golden on the hot surface and set aside.
Put 2–4 balls on the griddle, well spaced. Lay a square of baking paper over one ball at a time and immediately press it into a 5–6 mm thin patty with the smash press. Hold for a couple of seconds, peel off the paper and season with salt and pepper.
Leave the patties untouched for about 2 minutes until the edges are dark brown and a crust has formed. Scrape them up with a sharp spatula so the crust comes with them, flip and top each with a slice of cheddar. Cook for 30–60 seconds more and don't press again.
Spread sauce on the buns and build each burger with two patties, pickles, red onion and tomato. Serve straight away.

Why it works

A crust only forms where the meat is in full contact with the hot surface. The stainless steel smash press flattens the whole ball in one go while the mince is still cold and pliable, so the patty browns evenly instead of turning grey in the middle.