The Best Lamb Burgers Recipe

Plated lamb burger showing all its layers

Serious Eats / Qi Ai

Lamb burgers are like the Super Mario Bros. 2 of the burger world. They're kind of strange and funky and it's not entirely clear how they fit into the canon of their brethren, but they're awesome in their own way, and a great change from the norm. I wouldn't eat a lamb burger every day, but when I do, I want it to be the best damned lamb burger it can be. After grinding and grilling my way through nearly 32 pounds of the stuff, there's a thing or two I learned about the process.

Recipe Details

The Best Lamb Burgers Recipe

Active 30 mins
Total 60 mins
Serves 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds lamb shoulder (chuck), trimmed of connective tissue, cut into 1 to 2-inch cubes

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

  • 4 hearty burger buns

  • Condiments as desired

Directions

  1. To Grind With a Meat Grinder: Place feed shaft, blade, and 1/4-inch die of meat grinder in freezer until well-chilled. Meanwhile, place meat chunks on rimmed baking sheet, leaving space between each piece and place in freezer for 10 minutes until meat is firm, but not frozen. Transfer meat to a large bowl and toss to combine. Grind meat and refrigerate immediately until ready for use.

  2. To Grind With a Food Processor: Place bowl and blade of food processor in freezer until well-chilled. Meanwhile, place meat chunks on rimmed baking sheet, leaving space between each piece, and place in freezer for 10 minutes until meat is firm, but not frozen. Transfer meat to a large bowl and toss to combine. Working in two batches, place meat cubes in food processor and pulse until medium-fine grind is achieved, about 8 to 10 one-second pulses, scraping down processor bowl as necessary. Refrigerate until ready to use.

    Meat chunks on rimmed baking sheet, meat chunks tossed inside large bowl and food processor, and meat ground up in a food processor

    Serious Eats / Qi Ai

  3. Transfer meat mixture to a large tray and divide into four piles. Press each pile into a patty about 1/2 an inch wider on all sides than your burger buns, pressing gently until they hold together, but taking care not to overwork them. Form a slight dimple in the center of each patty. Season the top sides will with salt and pepper. Flip patties using a thin flexible spatula and season second side well.

    Meat mixture divided into four piles on a large tray and then pressed into patties

    Serious Eats / Qi Ai

  4. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill, and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to the highest heat setting, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate.

    Grill grates being cleaned and oiled

    Serious Eats / Qi Ai

  5. Transfer burgers to hot side of grill and cook, flipping frequently (if burgers are threatening to break or fall apart, reduce the frequency of flipping, even down to a single flip if necessary) and transferring to cooler side if flare-ups occur, until they register 125°F on an instant read thermometer for medium-rare, or 135°F for medium. Transfer to a large plate. And let rest for 2 to 3 minutes. Meanwhile, toast buns over grill.

    Burgers cooking on the hot side of the grill, and cooked burgers on a large plate

    Serious Eats / Qi Ai

  6. Place burgers on buns, top as desired, and serve.

    Burgers on bottom half of Kaiser rolls, placed on a cutting board

    Serious Eats / Qi Ai

Special equipment

Meat grinder or food processor

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
695 Calories
41g Fat
31g Carbs
48g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 695
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 41g 52%
Saturated Fat 17g 87%
Cholesterol 192mg 64%
Sodium 815mg 35%
Total Carbohydrate 31g 11%
Dietary Fiber 1g 4%
Total Sugars 4g
Protein 48g
Vitamin C 1mg 3%
Calcium 112mg 9%
Iron 5mg 29%
Potassium 605mg 13%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)