How To Make Juicy Lucy Burgers

Name: How To Make Juicy Lucy Burgers
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 pounds ground beef (80% fat, 20% lean); 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon onion powder; 2 teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon pepper; 12 slices bacon; 6 burger buns; 1 tomato; 6 slices American cheese; 1 large onion; mayonnaise; dijon mustard; ketchup

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The best hamburger recipe you will ever eat is a Juicy Lucy…and get prepared because this is the ultimate cheeseburger recipe! This seasoned hamburger patty is stuffed with cheese and when grilled, the cheese melts. This results in the most juicy and delicious gourmet burger that you can make in your own kitchen. And it's quick and easy to make!

A Juicy Lucy burger cross section, sitting on a wood cutting board, cheese spilling out the middle with bacon, onion, tomato, lettuce, with sweet potato fries in background

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✔️ Quick Recipe Overview
❔ What Is It?
ℹ️ Why This Recipe Works
🛒 Ingredients You'll Need
📋 Step-by-Step Recipe Instructions
🍳 Cooking Methods
🍔 Building Your Burger
🙋🏼 Frequently Asked Questions
💭 Expert Tips
🥘 Side Dishes You'll Enjoy
🍽️ What Else Is Cooking?!
How To Make Juicy Lucy Burgers

✔️ Quick Recipe Overview

Why This Is The Best Juicy Lucy Burger Recipe: Instead of melting the cheese on top of a hamburger patty, it’s stuffed inside of the burger creating a delicious juicy burger that's unforgettable!

How Long It Takes: 30 minutes

Equipment You'll Need: a grill or a frying pan

This Juicy Lucy is the most delicious hamburger recipe you'll ever eat! This hamburger recipe is stuffed with bubbly, mouthwatering, smooth cheese. And the best part is that the cheese spills out from the middle when bitten into. This is my favorite way to cook a burger and it's really easy to make. It's truly the best homemade burger recipe!

❔ What Is It?

This burger got its name from a customer who walked into Matt's Bar and asked for two hamburger patties with a slice of cheese in the middle. When he bit into this beef burger recipe, he said, “that's one juicy Lucy”! A Juicy Lucy burger is a cheeseburger with a twist. Instead of topping the burger with cheese after it's grilled, you stuff it with cheese before it's cooked. The effort is minimal and it doesn’t take any more time to prepare than it does to make a regular cheeseburger. You'll simply form two patties out of the seasoned ground beef and then place cheese on top of one patty. Then, you'll place the other patty on top of the cheese and seal the patties together using your fingers. You'll round out the edges and then grill until it is done. This homemade burger recipe is about to become a favorite!

ℹ️ Why This Recipe Works

1. American cheese is the best cheese for Juicy Lucy burgers because it provides a smooth melt. The thing that makes this burger so delicious is the smooth, creamy texture of American cheese.

2. I'm a firm believer that all burgers need to have bacon. I enjoy the extra crisp from the bacon when biting into this particular burger, followed by the gooey, creamy cheese.

3. Using 80/20 ground chuck provides a lot of extra flavor. It has a richer taste and the moderate fat content helps create the most delicious and juicy burger!

A Juicy Lucy burger cross section, sitting on a wood cutting board, cheese spilling out the middle with bacon, onion, tomato, lettuce, sweet potato fries and ketchup

🛒 Ingredients You'll Need

The best burgers are made with ground chuck beef which has a fat content of at least 20%. The extra fat in the beef makes all the difference flavor wise. When making any burger recipe, it's important to add extra flavor to the ground chuck. Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper is all you need to make the best burger seasoning. Using simple ingredients is key to great flavor.

Ingredients for a juicy lucy on a counter including ground beef, bacon, buns, lettuce, onion powder, garlic powder, american cheese.

📋 Step-by-Step Recipe Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the spices and Worcestershire sauce to the ground beef. Gently mix the components together by hand.

Expert Tip: Overmixing the ground beef can make the burger tough, so just lightly combine the ingredients.

Juicy Lucy process photo mixing ground beef with spices

Next, place a sheet of plastic wrap on a counter so you can form the patties without them sticking to your work surface. Make a meatball of ground beef, about half of the size of a baseball. Form a burger patty from the meatball on the plastic wrap by flattening it out on the work surface. Work your way around the pattie to make sure it's in the shape of a circle. Set aside.

Form another meatball. It should be slightly smaller than the first one so it can be easily folded at the edges of the first pattie to form a seal. Repeat these steps until you have made 12 burger patties, enough to make 6 burgers in total.

From there, place a slice of American cheese on each of the larger patties. Place each of the smaller patties on top of the larger patties. Fold the edge of the larger pattie upward to create a seal with the smaller pattie and encompass the cheese. I usually run my fingers over the seam to make sure it is completely sealed and there are no gaps.

Expert Tip! Break the slice of cheese into pieces to ensure there isn't too much cheese hanging off the edge. Then place and overlap the cheese in the center of the patty. This helps ensure the cheese is evenly distributed but won’t leak out the sides. Leave ½-inch border around the edges. The goal is to keep as much cheese in the center of the beef while it cooks.

Person forming Juicy Lucy burgers with their hands.

🍳 Cooking Methods

Juicy Lucy burgers can either be grilled or cooked in a heavy-duty skillet on the stove top. If grilling the burger, preheat the grill to 350°F - 400°F. Brush 1 Tablespoon of olive oil on the grill grates to keep the burgers from sticking. When hot, place the burgers on the grill and cook on each side for about 10 minutes. Once the burgers begin to brown and develop a bit of char, they are ready to come off of the grill. You can also make sure they are done by inserting a meat thermometer to see if they have reached an internal temperature of about 160°F.

If you do not have a grill, you can also use the stove top and a cast iron skillet. Turn the stove top burner to medium-high heat and allow it to get very hot. The goal is to pan sear so a nice char is developed on the burger. Cook for about 10 minutes on each side, or until done.

🍔 Building Your Burger

When it comes to serving a Juicy Lucy, use a heavy dose of mayonnaise and mustard. Since the grill is going, put the buns on the grill grates and toast them until they are lightly brown. Spread the sauces on both sides of the bun and then put the stuffed burger on the bottom layer of the bun. From there, layer on a slice of onion, a slice of tomato, ketchup, and lettuce. And don't forget about adding the two slices of delicious, crunchy bacon! Throw on the top layer of the sauced bun and get ready to indulge!

Juicy Lucy process photos showing how to build the burger.

When it comes to a Juicy Lucy burger, the cross-section is key. Slice the burger in half and take a look at the creation watching the cheese slowly drip down the burger! It really doesn't get much better than that! This cheese stuffed burger is the absolute best! And, they pair incredibly well with these air fryer french fries!

A burger cut cross section, cheese spilling out the middle with bacon, onion, tomato, lettuce with sweet potato fries and ketchup.

🙋🏼 Frequently Asked Questions

Where did the original Juicy Lucy originate?

This is a Minnesota born burger and two different bars claim to have invented this cheese filled burger recipe. The main difference is that Matt's Bar makes it using American cheese while 5-8 Club serves it with a variety of different types of cheese. Matt's Bar spells it "Jucy Lucy" while 5-8 spells it "Juicy Lucy".

How do you stuff a Juicy Lucy?

It's all about the technique. The key is to encase the cheese with the meat so the center doesn’t leak. Press the edges together firmly and that will keep the cheese stuffing in while it cooks.

What's the secret to a juicy burger?

Use a good quality of ground chuck and ensure it has a higher percentage of fat. 80/20 works best. Ensure the meat is really cold before you season it. The goal is to ensure the fat does not start to melt while forming the patties. And when it's cold, the beef is easier to shape. Also, cooking a burger to medium temperature will also help with with the amount of juice it produces.

💭 Expert Tips

Choose a coarse grind when selecting your ground meat. This will give the burgers more texture and prevent it from becoming mushy.
Always season the ground beef before forming the patties.
Don't overmix the ingredients into the ground beef. This can result in a tough, dry texture.
Grill at 350°F using your favorite wood or charcoal. I use competition blend pellets by Pit Boss on my pellet smoker to get a bit of extra flavor.
For the ultimate cheese spill effect, use American cheese. You can also use cheddar cheese or Pepper Jack. Cheddar cheese has more fat content and will ooze out of the burger more. You can also combine the different types of cheese. When cheddar is combined with American cheese, it will hold its shape a bit better inside of the burger.

A burger cross section, sitting on a wood cutting board, cheese spilling out the middle with bacon, onion, tomato, lettuce.

🥘 Side Dishes You'll Enjoy

This burger pairs perfectly with my Grilled Corn with Cotija Cheese that is full of flavor! It's topped with fresh lime juice and crumbled Cotija cheese and so delicious! And you have to try my easy to make potato salad made with Idaho potatoes. Smooth and velvety, this dill based potato salad has simple ingredients, can be made ahead, and is full of flavor. You can't go wrong with these marinated potatoes that are full of flavor, have a crispy texture, and super easy to make! They are the perfect side dish to this burger!

🍽️ What Else Is Cooking?!

This smoked stuffed pork tenderloin is so delicious! Just like the Juicy Lucy bacon burger, the cheese stuffing spills out of the pork tenderloin when it is sliced into. If you are going to spend the time to BBQ up some pork on a nice summer day, you may as well try this unique spin on a classic. It is sure to impress your friends!

Maybe you want a simple, yet delicious steak for your BBQ. This easy grilled marinated flank steak has tons of flavor from the overnight marinade and grills up in just a few minutes. I used a charcoal grill so I could get a nice sear on each side, but you can also use a propane grill or a pellet smoker turned up to its maximum temp.

Time for dessert! Who doesn't love donuts?! These air fryer apple fritters are a super easy and quick sweet tooth fix. I would consider the air fryer to be my best friend when it comes to whipping together a dessert. I love how these turned out!

If you want more recipes made with ground beef then make sure to check out healthy meatloaf recipe that is made with chopped fresh vegetables and whole grain rice. And this smoked stuffed meatloaf is packed with flavor and so easy to make!

Follow Recipes Worth Repeating for more amazing recipes!

Update Notes: This post was originally published in April of 2020, but was re-published with updated step-by-step instructions, pictures, and tips in May 2022.