Ground Beef
$2.11per plate
Prep
10 min
Dinner · Ground Beef
How to Cook a Burger in the Oven
The oven is the easiest way to cook a batch of burgers with no standing at the stove and no grease splatter to clean up. You slide a whole tray in at once, and they bake hands-off while you get the buns and toppings ready. A pound of ground beef makes four baked cheeseburgers for about $2.02 a plate. Here is the temperature, exactly how long to cook burgers in the oven, and the cost of everything on the tray.
$2.02per plate
Estimated recipe total
$8.09 · serves 4
Cook
15 min
Total
25 min
Serves
4
1 How to make it
1
Heat the oven hot
Set the oven to 425 F and line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment or foil. A hot oven is what browns the outside of the patty instead of steaming it gray. If you have an oven-safe rack, set it on the pan so the fat drips away and the bottoms do not sit in grease.
2
Form and season the patties
Divide the beef into four loose patties a little wider than the bun, with a shallow dimple pressed into the center of each so they bake flat. Season both sides with salt and pepper right before they go in.
3
Bake, then check the time
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes for a patty cooked through. Thicker patties need the full time or a couple minutes more. Ground beef is safe at 160 F, so a thermometer in the center is the surest way to know they are done rather than guessing.
4
Broil for a browned top
For a seared look, switch to broil for the last 1 to 2 minutes and watch closely. This is the step that gives an oven burger the browned crust it otherwise misses, since the patty is not touching a hot pan.
5
Melt the cheese and toast the buns
Lay a slice of cheese on each patty and return the pan to the oven for 1 minute until it melts. Put the buns cut side up on the rack alongside for the last couple of minutes to toast.
6
Rest and build
Let the patties rest a minute so the juices settle, then build each burger with onion, pickles, and your sauce. The tray also makes it easy to add cheese to some and not others for picky eaters.
2 Cheaper ingredient swaps
- Ground turkey or chicken for beef. Bakes the same way and can be cheaper some weeks. Poultry is lean, so brush the patties with a little oil and pull them right at 165 F so they do not dry out.
- Stretch the beef with breadcrumbs. Mix a third of a cup of breadcrumbs and a splash of milk into the pound of beef to get five or six patties from the same meat and lower the cost per plate.
- Any melting cheese for American. Cheddar, provolone, or the last of a block all melt fine under the broiler. Use what is already in the fridge instead of buying slices.
- Skip the rack. No rack is fine. Bake right on the lined pan and just flip the patties once halfway so both sides brown and they do not sit in the rendered fat.
3 Budget tips
- The oven cooks a big batch for the same energy as a small one. Bake eight patties at once and freeze the extras for a fast dinner later in the week.
- 80/20 beef bakes up juicier than lean blends, and it is cheaper too. A rack lets the extra fat drip off so the burger is not greasy.
- Line the pan with parchment or foil. A few cents of liner saves scrubbing a greasy sheet pan, which is the kind of small win that keeps cooking at home easy.
4 Storage, freezing & reheating
Fridge
Refrigerate baked patties and toppings separately in airtight containers for up to 3 days. Keep the buns out at room temperature so they stay soft.
Freezer
Freeze baked patties in a single layer, then bag them for up to 2 months. Reheat from frozen in a covered skillet or a low oven so they warm through evenly.
Reheating
Reheat a baked burger gently so it stays juicy: a covered skillet over medium-low with a few drops of water for about 3 minutes, or a 325 F oven for 8 minutes. See our full guide on how to reheat a burger.
5 Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
460
Protein
27g
Fat
27g
Carbs
26g
Estimates per assembled cheeseburger, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not a substitute for medical advice.
6 Frequently asked questions
How long do you cook burgers in the oven?
At 425 F, about 12 to 15 minutes for quarter-pound patties cooked through, plus 1 to 2 minutes under the broiler for a browned top. Thicker patties need a little longer, so check for 160 F in the center rather than going by time alone.
What temperature should oven burgers be cooked at?
425 F is the sweet spot. It is hot enough to brown the outside of the patty while it bakes through, without drying it out. A quick broil at the end adds the seared crust an oven otherwise misses.
What are common mistakes with baked burgers?
Baking at too low a temperature, which steams the patty gray, and skipping the broil step, which leaves it pale. Set the oven to 425 F, use a rack so the fat drains, and broil for the last minute or two for color.
How is the price per plate figured?
About $8.09 for four baked cheeseburgers with toppings, which is $2.02 a plate. The pound of beef is the bulk of the cost, so a sale on ground beef is what moves the number most.
Helpful Tools for This Recipe
As an Amazon Associate, Budget Plates may earn from qualifying purchases.
- Rimmed baking sheet. A rimmed half sheet pan is the workhorse for sheet-pan dinners and roasting vegetables, with a lip that keeps juices from spilling. Best for sheet-pan sausage and potatoes, baked chicken pieces, and roasted vegetables.
- Instant-read meat thermometer. An instant-read thermometer takes the guesswork out of doneness, so lean or cheap cuts stay juicy instead of overcooking. Best for chicken, pork, and meatloaf, where a few degrees decides juicy or dry.
- Chef's knife. One sharp chef's knife handles almost all the chopping, from onions to chicken, and replaces a drawer of gadgets. Best for all-purpose prep in essentially every recipe on the site.
- Cutting board. A large, stable cutting board makes prep faster and safer, which matters when you cook most nights. Best for everyday chopping of onion, garlic, and vegetables across nearly every recipe.
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