Steakhouse Burgers
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
Replicate your favorite steakhouse burgers at home — these are packed with flavor and reliably juicy, even when cooked to well-done.
Who doesn’t love a big, tender, and juicy steakhouse burger? Problem is, they’re difficult to replicate at home because most steakhouses blend different cuts of beef, like sirloin, chuck, and short ribs, to customize the flavor and fat content of their hamburgers. While it’s possible to grind your own meat or ask your butcher for a special blend, there’s an easier way. By combining ordinary supermarket ground beef with a panade — or mixture of bread and milk — and lots of seasoning, you can make steakhouse-style burgers in no time. This recipe has made me a star among my kids’ friends. My daughter’s friend Allie nicknamed them “Segal Burgers” — it stuck, and now we all call them that too.
What You’ll Need To Make Steakhouse Burgers
Step-by-Step instructions
Begin by making the panade. In a large bowl, mash 2 pieces of white sandwich bread (cut into small pieces) and 1/3 cup milk together with a fork until it forms a chunky paste.
Add 2-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 3 minced garlic cloves, 1-1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce and 2 tablespoons of ketchup.
Stir until well combined.
Add 3 pounds of 85% lean ground beef and 3 finely sliced scallions (if using).
Mix everything together until just combined.
Divide the mixture into 8 equal portions and shape into balls. Flatten each ball into a 3/4-inch-thick patty that’s about 4-1/2 inches across. (Keeping the burgers thick ensures a nice char on the outside without overcooking the inside.) To prevent the burgers from forming a domed shape on the grill, create a slight depression in the center of each patty.
Grill the burgers 2 to 4 minutes on the first side until nicely browned. Flip and cook on the second side a few minutes more, until desired doneness is reached. The panade in these burgers keeps the meat tender and juicy, even when overcooked, so these burgers are ideal for kids, the elderly, pregnant women, or anyone who just prefers their burgers well done.
You May Also Like
- Southwestern Cheeseburger Sliders
- Best Grilled Chicken
- Smash Burgers
- Beer-Braised Bratwurst & Onions (“Beer Brats”)
Steakhouse Burgers
Replicate your favorite steakhouse burgers at home — these are packed with flavor and reliably juicy, even when cooked to well-done.
Ingredients
- 2 pieces white sandwich bread, crusts removed and cut into ¼-inch pieces
- ⅓ cup milk
- 2½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1½ tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 3 pounds 80 to 85% lean ground beef
- 3 scallions, white and green parts, very finely sliced (optional)
- 8 hamburger buns
Instructions
- Preheat the grill to high heat.
- In a large bowl, mash the bread and milk together with a fork until it forms a chunky paste. Add the salt, pepper, garlic, Worcestershire sauce and ketchup and mix well.
- Add the ground beef and scallions and break the meat up with your hands. Mix everything together until evenly combined. Divide the mixture into 8 equal portions and form compact balls. Flatten the balls into ¾-inch patties about 4½ inches across. Form a slight depression in the center of each patty to prevent the burgers from puffing up on the grill.
- Oil the grilling grates. Grill the burgers, covered, until nicely browned on the first side, 2 to 4 minutes. Flip burgers and continue cooking for a few minutes more until desired doneness is reached. Before serving, toast the buns on the cooler side of the grill if desired.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The uncooked burgers can be frozen for up to three months. (Freeze the burgers on a baking sheet or plate so their shape sets, then transfer them to a sealable plastic bag for easy storage.) Defrost the burgers overnight in the refrigerator prior to serving and then cook as directed.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Serving size: 1 burger
- Calories: 517
- Fat: 27 g
- Saturated fat: 10 g
- Carbohydrates: 28 g
- Sugar: 5 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 37 g
- Sodium: 567 mg
- Cholesterol: 116 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
I’ve made these a few times and I really like the recipe. I’ve never had a problem with them falling apart til this weekend though and it’s because my patties were quite large- I had huge burger buns so I had to make enormous patties. I was able to still use them (sliced cheese to the rescue!) and they were delicious. I actually used grass fed 85/15 beef and they weren’t dry at all due to the panade. I’m going to add a couple eggs to my next batch just to hold them together better but other than that I really love this recipe. I burned some of the burgers and the people who ate them still liked them so I’d say it’s a keeper.
This is a fantastic recipe. I have made these hamburgers countless times. I am to the point where I keep a stash of these frozen in my freezer. I just take out what I need. I follow the recipe exactly using the green onions. It is easy and you cannot go wrong.
great recipe. with and without the panade. used webber grill burger seasoning for spices (kept garlic and worsh. sauce)
Too salty!
Actual best recipe & so juicy.. Thank you 😋
I love it. Thanks a lot and good luck🙏👍✌
Crumbling disaster
I made these according to the recipe but scaled back the salt by a third. Everyone still thought they were way too salty. I also had the same problem someone else posted where some of the burgers disintegrated on the grill.
I would try these again but with some tweaks.
Soooo good and flavorful. I’m really picky about burgers but these hit the spot. We made with Gouda, some crisped onions, and bacon. Better than a lot of burger joints IMO!
OH MY YUM!!!!!!! I’m not big on ketchup so I added Heinz 57. Thank you!! I didn’t have buns so did a poor man burger on white bread. Amazing!!!
Meatloaf sandwich
These we wonderful and very similar to the burgers my Mom and Dad made when I was a kid. I changed the milk for heavy cream and used Chili Sauce instead of ketchup. I just fried them in a little butter in a cast iron frying pan on the stovetop. Hard to justify firing up charcoal grill just for one person..
Froze the leftover, uncooked burgers and then vacuum sealed.
Thanks for the recipe! Followed your recipe exactly and the burgers were delicious. Husband and kids approved too!
How much ground meat for this recipe?
Hi Mike, you’ll need 3 pounds. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
This is going to sound ridiculous but do you think this will work with plant based milk? My family eats everything, but we do avoid dairy as much as possible and rarely have any cow’s milk in the house. Thx!
I do think plant-based milk would work well here, Lisa. Enjoy!
Amazingly delicious! Simple and so tasty, brought a huge smile to my husbands face.
Thank you for this recipe. I am making this for the second time now. My family loves them.
Hi Jen, I have 93% lean ground beef, will it be too dry or should I add some oil?
Hi Christine, I think it couldn’t hurt to add a tablespoon of oil. Hope you enjoy!
Best burger recipe I’ve ever tried. I’m definitely going to make these again!
It really is amazing, thank you very much for sharing easy preparation and happy family
New official patty recipe for this family
Thank you so much
These were delicious. Multiple people said these were the best burgers they’ve ever had!
Awful. Completely fell apart on the grill and was unusable
must have done something wrong
Cooked these burgers tonight and were great. You either screwed up or your one of those people that has to complain for attention
Amazing burger, best burgers ever!!!
Best burgers and comment ever. I’m glad you said this for everybody else, that actually made these burgers correctly. 🙂
Mine were great! Possibly you did something different? Maybe altitude or humidity made a difference.
Wow! I mean, WOW! These are by far the best burgers that I’ve made. Super juicy, full of flavor superb consistency… these are a winner!
This was a great recipe to satisfy my brother who prefers a medium-rare burger, my mom who enjoys a well done burger, and myself– I like my burgers prepared medium. Lots of flavor and really juicy! I prepared 1 lb of beef using the measurements provided in a previous post. Thanks again for the step-by-step pictures to assist with the process!
This recipe was AMAZING!!! I made it to my whole family and they really loved it. Instead of mashing the bread and milk, I used breadcrumbs.
I would recommend this recipe!
The burgers are delicious. I made them today. Thank you for sharing the recipe!!!
Wow these burgers are amazing…lots of flavor and super juicy even when cooked to “well done”! Super simple recipe and perfect for people with egg allergies (so many recipes seem to use egg as the “glue”)!
I found this recipe and added it to my grilling repertoire! My family absolutely LOVES their burgers made this way. I have some on the grill now but I subbed barbecue sauce for the ketchup. We shall see…
I was so happy to find your answer on how to adapt to one pound of ground beef. These were the best burgers I ever ate in my ENTIRE life. Absolutely perfectly juicy even when cooked well, which is what I prefer. Fantastic! Thank you for sharing. I will never make another burger 🙂
I don’t have white bread. Would you substitute sourdough or whole wheat bread for the panade?
Wow! Another Segal hit! I’ve been looking for years for the best burger and I believe I’ve found it. Thank you for ALL of your amazing recipes.
Holy sh*t!! Just quoting myself after taking a first bite into one of these. I’m so excited I made this. I get really intimidated by recipes sometimes but for this one I dove in and the result was absolutely amazing! I will definitely repeat this one and store it for future use with an actual grill and worchestershire sauce. Also, I was so thrilled that the ingredients I did have, like almond milk and gluten free bread were great substitutions! YUMMM
Hi, I would love to try these burgers but am looking for a recipe I can cook in a normal fab oven? How long would I need to put these in and what temperature? Have seen some comments about broilers but we do not have broilers here.
Hi SM, I wouldn’t recommend baking these, but you could cook them on the stove in a grill pan. Hope you enjoy if you make them!
Way too salty. Maybe i am used to making my burgers like meatballs. Using egg as a binder. Fresh mint. Lemon. Breadcrumbs and milk instead of Worcestershire sauce and ketchup. I might try using one tablespoon Worcestershire next time. No ketchup. Egg. Mint. Lemon. Breadcrumbs. Milk. Some olive oil. And way less salt!
Hey there! I have been cooking these burgers on a wire rack (wire above a drip pan) on the top shelf of my oven (regular oven, not fan forced, temp runs a tad high though) at 200c for 10ish mins on each side as I do not currently own an bbq and my pans need replacing.
You might need to toy around with the time as to your preference of ‘doneness’ but they’ve been turning out well as long as you’ve got the binding process right.
I think they’d likely be even tastier cooked with the recipes method, just working with what I have 🙂
Since I discovered this recipe I get compliments each time I serve them. They have become my “go to” recipe for burgers. In fact we have been eating burgers far more often than before!
Can i use almond /cashew milk rather than dairy to make the bread ‘paste’?
Yep – hope you enjoy!
Yummy every time!
My family loved these burgers. Had the ingredients in my pantry already. They made a simple BBQ something special.
I used this recipe as a base which i’ve made b4 and is delish so i decided to experiment a little. Instead of using ketchup, i replaced it with heinz 57 sauce, I didnt have scallions so i used lipton onion soup mix, a tad of old bay and a shot of liquid smoke to enhance the taste. This was also a very delish way to make this recipe.
Will definitely be making again………Thank you for posting your recipe
Thank you for sharing❤️. The patties were very tasty 🍔. We love it!!!
This recipe is on point! I didn’t have fresh garlic or scallions on hand, and substituted with garlic powder and dried chopped onion…it came pit very juicy and flavorful! This one is a keeper for sure!
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe based the reviews. If it is not great I will not provide feedback, based on my reading of the reviews. Majority is positive, but negative feedback is not welcome, clearly. This is a hamburger recipe not war. Posters defensive of the author are a little too invested for my liking, some verging on bullying. I truly worry for and about people that get so worked up over ground beef.
Can you make these on the stove as well? If so does the cooking time change?
Hi Sage, If you don’t want to grill, you can make these on a grill pan on the stove or broil them in the oven. (If you broil them, just place them on a broiler pan or rack so the juices can drip down.) Cook time should be about the same. Hope you enjoy!
I made these for a backyard bbq, I followed the recipe exactly and they turned out amazing!!! Everyone loved them! I was super impressed, very easy recipe but the flavor was outstanding. I will definitely make them again!
Hi! The burgers tasted AMAZING but unfortunately they fell apart once I pan fried them 🙁 I also ended up using 4lbs of ground beef but kept the bread to 2 slices. Should I have used more? As for the seasoning, I adjusted by just adding a bit more to the 3lbs recipe. Since I had lots of ground beef I ended up freezing the leftover patties. What can I do to avoid them from breaking apart?
Thanks for sharing the recipe! My family is looking forward to having them again! 🙂
Hi TSV, sorry you had a problem with these falling apart! No, I don’t think the bread to meat ratio was the problem. I suspect that you probably just need to apply more pressure as you’re making the patties to make the burgers a little bit more compact. Hope that helps!
Y’all. I found this recipe a little over a month ago and my fiancé has requested them once a week ever since. He swears they are better than any restaurant burger! 🤣 I add some more of my own seasonings, but other than that do it all as it’s written. Highly suggest making these!
Do you think these would hold together on a flat top grill, like a blackstone? I would love to try these, but am concerned they might fall apart on a griddle. Any suggestions on what I could do to make sure they stick together? Thanks!!
Sure, I think it will work. Just make sure when you shape the burgers, that you apply a bit of pressure to make the patties a little more compact. Hope you enjoy!
Another keeper recipe from Once Upon a Chef. These burgers really are packed with flavor (adding Worcestershire is brilliant!) and they stay moist too. I cooked mine on an electric grill indoors this time but look forward to sharing this recipe with others on a proper outdoor grill soon. Thank you, Jenn!
These are my favorite burgers! The family loves them. They come out juicy and delicious every time.
I add avocados, bacon, lettuce and tomato along with killamahook cheddar. Ultimate burger!
I was hoping this recipe wasn’t going to be too good to be true…and it wasn’t! My husband, who has not liked one burger that I have made in the last 34 years LOVED IT! Thank you for this recipe. I will not cook another burger any other way.
I made these with pork mince & they were delicious, they kept their shape well & were super moist.
Although tasty, this is not a steakhouse burger, it’s a slab of meatloaf on a bun….tasty, yes, but the flavour of the beef is hidden by the additional ingredients..
I always make homemade burgers for our family crowd – these were by far the BEST burgers I’ve ever made. Everyone (including the kids) raves about them! I used organic beef. They were TO DIE FOR!
Have you ever made these with pork mince?
I haven’t but I think it should work. I’d love to hear how they turn out if you try it!
Hi Jenn, looking forward to making these. Can i use panko crumbs instead of the bread?
TIA
Toni
If so how much? Thank you
I’d estimate you’d need about 3/4 cup.
Sure – hope you enjoy!
Burgers were very good.
Recipe was fantastic , have made over 25 kgs. of these burgers they are great . My wife came up with a really good idea we use cookie cutter to shape burgers works very well All burgers are uniform and a bit under 1/3 of a lb.
Amazing recipe- this is THE burger recipe. I add a little cumin to the mix just to make them a little extra special. Extremely juicy and flavorful even well done.