This caramelised onion burger is set to get your mouth watering! With juicy homemade caramelised onion and flavor packed beef patties we bring together the burger of your dreams. These caramelised onion burgers are the perfect weekend lunch that you don't need a side of fries with!
Recipes like the Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Bites, Caramelised Onion Sausage Rolls, Caramelized Onion Brie and the Caramelised Onion Tarts all delight in jam like sweet onions.
The Quick Caramelised Onions recipe shows us how to whip up a big batch of these onions in less than 30 minutes!
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🤍 Recipe Highlights
I have summarised everything that you will come to know and love (LOVE ❤) about the caramelized onion burgers recipe in the points below:
- Simple ingredients: you will be able to get everything you need to make these burgers from your local grocery store. They are each year round ingredients that will be easy to get your hand on!
- Homemade: whilst the takeout store down the street often offers a hamburger on the menu the patties are usually frozen and store bought with greasy extras that don't necessarily compliment each other. When making your own burgers at home you delight in every single bite, knowing exactly what you are eating and the process taken to make your burgers!
- Taste and texture: these burgers and juicy with flavor to the max. The onions are sweet and contrast delightfully with the moist beef patties.
🥗 Ingredients
The photo below is to show you everything you need to make the caramelised onion burgers. Please refer to the printable recipe card for specific ingredient measurements as well as detailed instructions.
To make the caramelised onions we need:
- Olive oil: we use a little bit of olive oil to start cooking the onions.
- Butter: I recommend using unsalted butter.
- Balsamic vinegar: one of the key ingredients used to caramelise the onions. This is different to balsamic glaze. We do also use that ingredient (see below image) to make the sauce. It is thicker and much stronger in flavor.
- Brown sugar: key ingredient number 2 to caramelised our onions.
- Brown onions: we use 2 large onions and peel and then slice them for the burgers.
To make the beef patties we need:
- Salt and pepper: used to season the beef mince.
- Thyme: a flavorful dried herb that is an excellent compliment to the caramelised onions.
- Egg: one large free range egg to help the burgers stick together.
- Breadcrumbs: panko breadcrumbs to ensure that the burger patties stay moist and juicy.
- Caramelised onions: the star of the show! Once you have cooked them using the ingredients above they will look like this. Also known as burger worthy 😂😂.
- Balsamic glaze: thick and rich, we use this to make our burger sauce.
- Swiss cheese: this is a melt worthy cheese! It is perfect for burgers.
- Beef mince: beef mince or ground beef is what we are using for our burger patties! It is a budget friendly cut of beef that won't set you back or force you to blow the budget!
- Burger buns: I like to use brioche buns like you see above. You can do the same or use your favorite burger buns!
For the burgers, these are 2 ingredients I forgot in the photo above 😂:
Olive oil: to cook the burger patties.
Lettuce: for the burger fillings.
🍳 Instructions
Here are the step by step instructions to make the recipe. We start by making the caramelised onions.
- Slice the onions (Photo 1)
- Seperate into rings (Photo 2)
- Add oil to sauce pan (Photo 3)
- Add the onions (Photo 4)
👩🍳 How to Make A Caramelised Onion Burger
To make the caramelised onion burgers, we start by caramelising the onions. Initially use a knife and cutting board to peel the skin then thinly slice them into rounds. Once done use your fingers to separate the onions into rings.
Then place a large sauce pan onto the stove top, add the olive oil and turn the heat to high. Next add the onion rings and let them start to cook. Keep the heat high for about 8-10 minutes then turn it to low and add the butter like you see in the photos below.
- Add the butter (Photo 5)
- Then add the balsamic vinegar (Photo 6)
- Add the brown sugar (Photo 7)
- Make the sauce (Photo 8)
Next add the balsamic vinegar, followed by the brown sugar, stir to combine and then let the onions cook stirring occasionally to deglaze the pan for a further 15 to 20 minutes.
During this time you can make the burger sauce. To do so simply add the balsamic glaze to the Greek yogurt and stir until it is consistently mixed in.
Set the sauce aside and then add the burger ingredients to a large mixing bowl.
- Add the patty ingredients to a bowl (Photo 9)
- Combine using your hands (Photo 10)
- Portion and shape into 4 patties (Photo 11)
- Toast the burger buns (Photo 12)
Use clean hands to combine the burger mixture then tip this onto a chopping board, portion into 4 and shape each portion into a flat burger patty.
Next toast the burger buns in the air fryer (quickest method) or oven (moderate) until they are warm and crispy.
Once done, we start cook the burgers. To do so place a large non stick frying pan or skillet onto the stove top, add the olive oil and turn the heat to high. Use a silicon turner to transfer the raw patties into the pan and let the burgers cook for 2-3 minutes. Then flip the burgers to the other side using the flexible turner and let this side also cook for 2-3 minutes.
Next, turn the heat down to low and place a piece of Swiss cheese onto each cooked beef patty. Then let the cheese melt like you see starting to happen in the photos below.
- Cook the beef patties (Photo 13)
- Add the cheese (Photo 14)
- Assemble the burgers (Photo 15)
- Close to finish (Photo 16)
Once the patties are cooked and the cheese has melted we can assemble the burgers.
Start with a layer of sauce on the base of the buns then add the lettuce, followed by the cheese topped beef patties.
Next scoop the caramelised onions on top of the cheese and then close the burgers with the other half of the buns.
Now you can brush your hands clean of the hard work and sit down to enjoy!
🍽 Serving Suggestions
When it comes to serving your burger the best thing is that it is so good that you won't need fries, chips or wedges with it!
But if you insist (I do get it) then try the Air Fryer Chips, Chips and gravy or the Mexican Fries on the side.
They are juicy, moist and melt in your mouth worthy. Pretty simple when it comes down to it with just a handful of steps to pull them together!
👍 How to Guide
How to Store and Freeze
You can make the caramelised onions in advance and store them in a sealed, airtight container in the fridge for 6-7 days. Or you can make them, let them cool, portion into a zip lock bag and freeze.
You can do the same with the burger patties also. ie make them, then wrap in cling wrap and place in the fridge for 3-4 days or into the freezer. The burger patties can be frozen for up to 3 months.
How to Reheat
Refrigerated leftover caramelised onions can be added to a bowl and microwaved for 1-2 minutes until warmed through.
The burger patties can be kept in the fridge and then cooked straight from there.
For the both the onions and the burger patties you can let them thaw in the fridge and then reheat the onions in the microwave or simply fry the burger patty to cook.
For frozen burger patties, you can cook them from frozen, be sure if doing so to test that the centre is cooked through before serving.
😉 Substitutions and Variations
Here are my sub ins and outs that you might be thinking about as you read the post and I will tell you if I think they will work or why they won't:
- You can use your favorite burger cheese slices be they 'burger cheese', goat cheese slices, cheddar or whichever one works for you.
- You can use rocket (arugula) in place of the lettuce if you want to.
- In place of the Greek yogurt sauce, you can use bbq sauce, tomato sauce, a different homemade sauce from the blog, a condiment like the Tomato Chilli Jam or whichever is your favorite spread to use when having burgers.
- Add some cooked streaky bacon if you want a more loaded burger.
- Use blue cheese in place of the Swiss cheese for all out decadence.
💡 Tasty Tips
Here are my top tips and tricks that I want to share with you so that you master the recipe from the get go:
- You can make the caramelised onions and or patties in advance to cut down time when making the burgers if you wish too.
- Using clean hands will to combine the burger patty mix will be a lot easier than trying to use a spoon.
- Do you love a good homemade burger? Then you might also like the Wagyu Burger, Air Fryer Chicken Burger, BLT Burger or the Fried Egg Burger 😉👌.
- Or if you love using beef mince in your recipes try the Beef Udon Noodles, Fettuccine Bolognese, Linguine Bolognese or the Mongolian Beef Noodles 😍👍.
🤓 Frequently Asked Questions
Why do my onions burn instead of caramelize?
Onions will burn instead of caramelizing if the heat is too hot for too long. Whilst we use high heat initially to start cooking the onions, we then use low heat over a longer period of time as the onions caramelize. This helps to soften them as well as prevent them burning.
Olive oil is recommend to use when caramelizing onions. This is because it has a neutral flavor and won't overpower the flavor of the onions.
Use a combination of low and high heat when making caramelized onions. Start with high heat and then reduce this down so that the onions can caramelize without burning and absorb the liquids in the pan as they do.
No, caramelized onions should not be crispy. They should be moist with a jam like appearance and texture.
Deglazing the pan when making caramelized onions is simply the process of stirring the combined liquids back into the onions. This will happen naturally as you stir the onions and fold this back into the pan.
😍 More Easy Lunch Recipes
If you look forward to lunch and like plating up new and inspired recipes each week (that takes a bit of effort! 😉👌). Then here are some more ideas for you to try:
- Tuna Fritters
- Chorizo Fried Rice
- Prawn Fritters
- Mini Croissant Sandwiches
- Brie Grilled Cheese
- Prawn And Chorizo Skewers
- Ham And Cheese Toastie
- Goat Cheese Grilled Cheese
- Sausages With Caramelised Onions
It is time to get our caramelised onion burgers on my friend! You can also find all of my lunch recipes or family favorites in the one spot.
Adrianne
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📖 Recipe
Caramelised Onion Burgers
Ingredients
Caramelised Onions
- 2 large brown onions skin peeled and sliced into thin rings then separated, Note 1
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 20 grams/1 tablespoon butter unsalted
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
Beef Patties
- 500 grams/ 16 oz beef mince (ground beef)
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 large egg free range
Burgers
- 4 slices swiss cheese
- 4 burger buns
- 4 slices lettuce
Sauce
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt
- 1-2 teaspoons balsamic glaze
Instructions
Caramelised Onions
- Onions: use a sharp knife and chopping board to peel then chop the onions into thin rings. Next use your fingers to separate the onions into rings. Once done place a large sauce pan onto the stove top, add the olive oil and turn the heat to high. Then add the onions and cook for 8-10 minutes, using a wooden spoon to stir them so that they don't start to burn. Once the 10 minutes is up reduce the heat to low then add the butter, balsamic vinegar and brown sugar. Continue to stir and cook for a further 15-20 minutes. During this time the liquids will be absorbed and the onions caramelise and take on a jam like texture and appearance.
Beef Patties
- Burger patties: next add the beef mince, panko breadcrumbs, Worcestershire sauce, dried thyme, salt, pepper and egg to a medium sized mixing bowl. Then use clean, dry hands to combine this mixture. Once combined, tip the raw burger mix onto a clean dry chopping board. Separate into 4 portions then form each individual portion into a flat patty shape.
Sauce
- Combine: add the balsamic glaze to the Greek yogurt and stir until it is consistently mixed in and then set aside or refrigerate until needed.
Burger Buns
- Toast: place the burger buns onto a wire rack and use either the air fryer or oven to toast till slightly warm and crisp.
Cook
- Beef burgers: place a large sauce pan onto the stove top, add the olive oil and turn the heat to high. Place the raw patties into the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes per side. Ensure that the patties are cooked through and once they are place a slice of Swiss cheese over the top of each. Let the cheese melt before turning off the heat.
- Assemble: place the toasted burger buns onto a clean dry chopping board and spread the base of each bun with the burger sauce. Next add 1-2 pieces of torn lettuce. Top the lettuce with the beef patty and cheese. Then spoon the caramelised onions over the top. Place the tops onto the buns to close them.
- Serve: serve immediately whilst fresh and hot!
Notes
- Note 1 - Onions: you can use 2 brown onions or 2 red onions or 1 red and 1 brown onion to make the caramelised onions.
- Note 2 - Burger buns: you can use your favorite type of burger bun. Toasting them is optional, however, I find that you do get the best results if you toast them. The air fryer is the quickest method (and saves you heating up the oven for only 5 minutes). No oil spray needed, simply add them in and warm to crisp up. Don't worry if using the air fryer that the buns will fly around a little. Once the time is up they will drop down into the basket or onto the rack again.
Belinda says
Yes please! Adding to our list.
Adrianne says
I hope you enjoy it thanks Belinda 😄.