Gordon Ramsay's Burger Recipe

If you're thinking that all homemade burgers are created equal, think again. Long gone are the days of the simple beef patty topped with mustard, ketchup, and maybe a piece of iceberg lettuce. Burgers are being taken to a whole new level by restaurateurs, professional cooks, and home cooks alike. And Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe is definitely one that's at the top of that list.

"Ramsay's recipe focuses on flavor, flavor, and more flavor," says recipe developer and food photographer Petar Marshall. "By seasoning and layering flavor all throughout, his recipe truly results in a delicious burger." He even utilizes a technique to baste the burger in butter — a method utilized at his Las Vegas Burger restaurant.

And while we wouldn't want to mess with too good of a thing, Marshall pulled out a few stops to both elevate Ramsay's recipe and to make it more approachable for anybody like you cooking at home. Read on for details on Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist.

To get started on making Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist, you'll want to first gather all of your ingredients. The process goes quickly, so having everything prepped and ready is best.

For this burger recipe, you'll need two pounds of ground beef, two eggs, four brioche hamburger buns, six ounces of Monterey jack cheese, one large tomato, one large onion, four large leaves of lettuce, half of a cup of mayonnaise, two tablespoons of Dijon mustard, and four tablespoons of unsalted butter. You'll also need olive oil, salt, and pepper for seasoning.

According to Marshall, he chose to make the swap and utilize ground beef with an 80/20 fat ratio instead of Ramsay's recommended short rib, brisket, and chunk mixture. "While the mixture of the three cuts would be delicious, they can be hard to find at the average grocery store," he says. "Utilizing ground beef will still produce a delicious burger."

To make the patties for Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist, add all of the ground beef into a large bowl. Use a large wooden spoon to break up all of the ground beef, and then add in the eggs. You'll want to mix in the eggs until they're fully incorporated to bring the ground beef mixture together. "The eggs help to bind the beef and will keep your burgers held together while cooking," says Marshall. "There's no need to add seasoning to the mixture at this step. That will come just before grilling."

Once your burger mixture is prepped and ready, it's time to form the patties and add the cheese! "For Ramsay's recipe, he utilizes Monterey jack cheese as a topping," says Marshall. "But stuffing the meat with the cheese adds a great layer of texture and flavor to the burger."

Set up a work station to make your patties. First, divide up the ground beef mixture into four even portions, and then roll each section into a ball. Flatten the mixture into a patty, and then dig a well into the middle of the meat for the cheese. Add chunks of the cheese into the middle of the patty, and then work the meat to cover the cheese. Once prepped, place the patties in the fridge to cool and rest.

As your burgers are resting, utilize the time to cut up the vegetable toppings for Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist. That way, they'll be prepped and ready, as the cooking and stacking process for your burgers moves quickly. 

You'll want to remove the skin from the onion and slice it into thick slices. Slice the tomato into thick slices to use as a topping for your burger. Break up the leaf lettuce if needed. Use this time to mix together the mayonnaise and Dijon mustard in a small bowl.

Before you're ready to grill for Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist, turn your grill on high to allow it to fully heat up. While you do this, take the patties out of the fridge so they can come to room temperature before putting them on the grill. Drizzle each of the patties with olive oil, and sprinkle them generously with salt and pepper. Season the tops and bottoms of the patties, and roll the sides of the patty. That way, you'll have every part of the meat seasoned.

Once the patties are seasoned and the grill is hot, place them on the grill. Close the lid to allow them to cook. "One of my favorite tips from Ramsay is not to move the patties once they're on the grill," says Marshall. "Keeping them in place with the lid closed will prevent the patties from falling apart while cooking."

As you're allowing the burgers to cook for Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist, you can add the thickly sliced onions to the grill. It's a great time to toast the buns for your burgers as well.

Start by seasoning the thick onion slices. Drizzle them with oil, and season them with salt and pepper. Put the thick onion slices on the grill to cook. Repeat the same seasoning steps with the buns for additional great flavor. "Toasting the buns on each side adds texture to the finished burger," says Marshall. "The buns will toast quickly, so be sure to only keep them on for a minute or two." Once toasted, remove them from the grill and place them on a platter or cutting board to get your burger setup prepped and ready.

To ensure your burgers are ready to serve right when they're removed from the grill, setting up the buns with all the toppings ahead of time is important. Place all of the buns, both tops and bottoms, face-up. Spoon the mayo-mustard mixture onto each piece of bun, and then add a piece of lettuce to the bottom buns. Top the lettuce with a tomato slice, and sprinkle it with salt and pepper. Lastly, add another small dollop of the mayo-mustard mixture.

"While it may seem like a lot, all of the layers of sauce and seasoning come together to create a burger experience," says Marshall. "It adds so much flavor to the final product."

The burgers for Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist should be cooked for three to four minutes on each side. You can reduce or increase the time depending on your preference of burger doneness, from rare to well-done. Then, right before removing the burger patties from the grill, baste them with the softened, unsalted butter. Brush the butter over top of each burger to add an additional layer of flavor. Generously baste each side to fully coat them.

Once the burgers are cooked and have been basted with the butter for added flavor, remove them from the grill. Since you already created your burger setup, you can move the cooked patties straight from the grill onto the toasted buns prepared with the mayo-mustard mixture, lettuce, and tomato. Add the burger patties on top of the thick tomato slices, and then top each burger with a few slices of the grilled onion. Finish the setup for Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist with the top bun.

As a well-known chef, Gordon Ramsay certainly knows how to make a burger, and he knows how to make a burger well. But given the difficultly of finding the mixture of short rib, brisket, and chunk ground beef at one store, Marshall opted to make it a bit simpler. "This is a flavorful burger that's approachable for any cook," he says.

The other change to Gordon Ramsay's burger recipe with a twist was adding the Monterey jack to the middle of the burger. While Ramsay utilizes the sliced cheese as a topping, Marshall decided this would be a fun, unique twist. "Who doesn't want their burger stuffed full of gooey cheese?" he says. "Plus, if you're really a cheese lover, you could still add the sliced cheese on top as well."