You don’t need to have fresh ground beef for perfect burgers. You can make a juicy, flavorful burgers from a frozen patty if cooked correctly! In this post we'll let you know all about how long to cook frozen burgers on the grill in order to get a perfect juicy burger!
How Long to cook frozen burgers on grill:
Step One:
If using a gas grill, turn the grill on medium heat. If using a charcoal grill, light the coals and allow coals to burn until white or glowing red hot.
If you didn’t clean your grill grates after you last used it, it’ll probably have old food pieces on it. Therefore, I always like to let the grill heat up and clean the cooking grates before putting the burger patties on. You can use a grill scraper of your choice, such as this one.
Step Two:
Once your grill is heated (usually 3-4 minutes) and the grill grate is clean, throw the frozen beef hamburger patties on! You can put the frozen burgers right on the grill from the freezer, no need to let the patties thaw. They can also be placed on direct heat right away.
Step Three:
Close the grill lid and let cook on the first side for 6 minutes. Open the lid and flip patties. If you're looking for a great grill set with all the tools you need, here's one we love! It's at this point that I like to add seasoning to both sides of the patties. I just sprinkle whatever seasoning I'm into on both sides of each patty. Close the lid again once the patties are flipped.
Step Four:
Grill with the lid closed for 6 more minutes.
After 6 minutes of grilling on the second side, it's time to add cheese. This would also be the time to check the internal temperature. The FDA recommends cooking raw meat ground beef to a safe internal temperature of 160 degrees fahrenheit (source). At this point I measured the internal temperature in the middle of the patty with a meat thermometer at 163. If the temperature is below 160 degrees, flip patties and continue to cook until 160 degrees before adding cheese.
Step Five:
Next, flip the patty again and add cheese to your burger patty. Close the lid, and cook for an additional 3 minutes until the cheese is melted (note, if you're not adding cheese, just flip and cook for an additional 3 minutes). After this additional 3 minutes of cooking the burgers should be considered "medium". If you prefer your burgers well done, cook for 6 additional minutes instead of only 3 additional minutes. Add cheese when you have about 3 minutes of cooking time left.
Step 6:
Remove from grill and enjoy!
Quick Facts and Common Questions:
How long does this take?
5 minutes to heat the grill, and then approximately 15 minutes to cook to "medium", 16-17 minutes to "medium-well", and 18-20 minutes to cook to "well done".
How long do cooked beef patties keep in the fridge?
If saving the burgers for later, place patties in an airtight container, plastic bag, or wrap in aluminum foil. The FDA recommends consuming cooked meat that is left in the fridge within 3-4 days (source) For best taste, reheat your burger patty in the microwave, oven, or even pan fry, and heat it separately from the burger buns or any fresh toppings.
How long do beef patties keep in the freezer?
The FDA recommends consuming within 2-3 months if kept in the freezer (source).
Does the Patty Thickness make a difference for cook time?
The thickness of the burgers will impact the cooking time. Most frozen patties are ⅓ lb., which is what this guide is written to cook for. If you're using a different size patty, adjust the cook time to reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees. Thicker patties need a longer cooking time, while thinner patties require less time to cook.
What are the Best Frozen Burgers?
In our opinion: We do a lot of our shopping at Costco, and we love their frozen angus beef burger patties. Some other delicious burgers include Bubba Burgers and Johnsonville. We also cook the frozen beyond meat veggie burger patties using this same cooking time and method! Let us know your favorite frozen burger brand in the comments below. You can also use ground meat to make your own frozen meat patties. This is a nice way to make your own burger meat exactly how you want it, and save it in the freezer until you're ready to grill it. For some unique burger ideas check out our recipes below:
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Recipe
How Long to Cook Frozen Burgers on Grill
Equipment
- 1 Spatula (we love this grill set!)
Ingredients
- 1 burger patty frozen
Instructions
- Turn grill to medium heat, close lid and allow to get hot. (4-5 minutes)
- Place frozen burger patties on direct heat on grill, no need to thaw! Close lid and cook for 6 minutes.
- Open lid, add seasoning or sauce to burger patties (if desired). Flip burgers and add additional seasoning to other side (if desired). Close lid and cook an additional 6 minutes.
- If you're topping patties with cheese, now is the time. Flip patties, add your cheese, close lid and cook for 3 additional minutes. If not adding cheese, flip and cook an additional 3 minutes.
- The burgers should be done and considered "medium" at this point and ready to eat! If you like you burgers "well done" then cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. FDA guidelines state that ground meat should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees.
Andrea says
So helpful! I always forget to prep so it’s great to have a way to transform frozen patties to grilled and delicious! This method is perfection.
Mika says
Thank you, I'm glad it was helpful!
Kw says
Very helpful! Makes last minute dinners a snap!
Mika says
Thank you!
Mk says
Nice!
Sheila says
Thank you for this! So nice to have this information because I have often wondered about about how to do this well. Seems most people learn this by trial and error. So now I can now use this recipe to cook my burgers perfectly and it helps to know that this is for the average 1/3 pound burger.