Our patty melt recipe is classic comfort food. Half melty grilled cheese, half juicy burger with the comfort of butter.
What do you think of when I say Patty Melt? My first thought is Waffle House. When I asked my kids and friends what patty melt recipe they favored, I heard Whataburger, Steak and Shake and a local favorite The Majestic Diner.
The Majestic is your classic American diner and has been cooking hearty fare here since 1929. It’s got the neon sign, vinyl booths and waitresses in white doily aprons. The entire menu is just what you’d expect from a Diner. Tuna melt, chicken salad, club sandwiches and omelets with grits and toast……but no biscuits. Kind of weird considering they are southern.
Whatever patty melt recipe is your favorite, this version is about as classic as it comes. A juicy burger topped with melty gooey cheese, piled high with caramelized onions, sandwiched between two pieces of rye bread and griddled like a grilled cheese. Pure heaven.
How To Shape A Patty Melt
Divide 1-pound ground beef, preferably grass fed, in fourths.
Shape the burger patty a little different than normal, after all, rye bread isn’t round like a hamburger bun. I like to make an oval patty that’s a little larger than the bread itself since the meat will shrink when you cook it.
It’s easier if you put the burger patty between parchment or wax paper and press down to ¼” thickness.
Transfer to a baking tray, sprinkle one side with salt and pepper and pop in the freezer for a few minutes. When you make a thin burger patty like this it’s hard to get the spatula under the patty without losing its shape.
By freezing the burgers for a few minutes, it will solidify the burger patty and make it easier to work with.
Patty melts aren’t big thick burgers, they are thinner. I guess because the patty itself is bigger in surface area because rye bread is larger than a burger bun. Otherwise you’d have one heck-of-a huge piece of hamburger meat!
How To Make A Patty Melt
Griddle the patty melts on the stove over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes per side for medium-rare. Flip when you see the juice rising to the top. Remove when cooked. They cook fast!
Place the cheddar cheese on a slice of bread, then the cooked burger, pile on some caramelized onions and finally the swiss cheese and another piece of rye bread. Spread one rye piece with softened butter or mayonnaise. The butter adds a rich taste and crispier bread, but the mayonnaise browns nicer and won’t burn as easily.
If using mayo don’t put too much on or the bread will get soggy. A very thin layer is all you are looking for.
Turn heat down to medium. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel. Put the sandwich back in the pan with mayo side down and griddle like you would a grilled cheese. Spread the top piece of bread with softened butter or with mayonnaise and flip when bottom bread is golden, just enough to toast the bread and melt the cheese, about 3 minutes per side.
If you don’t wipe out the pan then the bread will have some dark speckles from residue, see picture above. More an aesthetic thing.
You will have an ooey gooey luscious patty melt just waiting for you to take the first juicy bite!
Do You Have Caramelized Onions Frozen?
Caramelized onions add so much flavor to just about anything, thus, you should always have them in the freezer as a time saver. See our post on How To Cook Caramelized Onions in The Slow Cooker, we also have freezing instructions too.
If you don’t have the onions handy then you’ll need to cook them now. If you are in a hurry you can cook over medium-high heat for about 12-15 minutes. If you have the time, you’ll get a beautiful caramel flavor and eye appeal if you cook the onions over medium heat for about 20-25 minutes.
The same pan can be used for the onions, cooking the burgers and finally the patty melt recipe. If you want to save time use a separate pan for the onions so that they can be cooking while you do all the other steps for the recipe.
Make Ahead Tips For Our Patty Melt Recipe
The burger patties can be made a day ahead of time, covered and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before making the patty melt recipe. The caramelized onions can be made up to 3-4 days ahead and refrigerated or frozen up to 3 months.
This is a great meal for the freezer. I keep formed burger patties and caramelized onions in the freezer all the time. Both can be used for all kinds of recipes.
Use the caramelized onions for our Butternut Squash Flatbread, The General Muir Burger or Ham and Cheese Puff Pastry.
And the burger patties can be used for our Patty Melt Recipe here, or any variation of burgers. Keeping the hamburgers frozen makes burgers an easy, quick weeknight meal.
What To Serve With Patty Melts
Obvious choices are fries, chips or Chick-fil-A creamy coleslaw.
Healthier choices and ones that complement the heaviness of the patty melt recipe are fresh fruit, vinegar based coleslaw or oven roasted potatoes. I’ll make a post for the potatoes because it’s a mainstay in our household. Better than French fries, healthier and sooooooooo easy!
Ingredient Substitutions
Ground Beef – use a chicken thigh or breast
Swiss and cheddar cheese – American melts well, use any of your favorite cheeses, the ones I use are traditional for a patty melt recipe.
Caramelized onions – oh, you have to have caramelized onions or it just wouldn’t be a patty melt.
Rye Bread – again, rye is traditional but use any sandwich bread that you like. If you put it on a bun then you have a hamburger. Slices of bread and a thin burger make it a patty melt.
Butter or mayonnaise – you need to use one or the other for the bread when griddling. Actually, you could skip this if you are watching calories BUT, if you are looking at this recipe I don’t think you’re on a diet.
Butter is more traditional, adds great flavor and gives crispier toast. Mayonnaise is easier to spread, doesn’t burn as easily as butter but sometimes leaves the bread a little soggy if you put too much on.
Patty Melt Variations
Some people put a special sauce like our Comeback Sauce, Russian or Thousand Island dressing or Yum Yum sauce on the inside of the patty melt recipe.
How To Freeze Patty Melts
Why not just freeze your patties once they are formed? That way you can throw them on the griddle for a quick, last minute weeknight meal. I keep burgers and patty melts frozen all the time. That way even my kids can throw it in a pan and have a delicious burger in just a few minutes time.
Form the patties and flash freeze them, meaning freeze on a baking tray for about an hour or two. Then place in a labeled freezer baggie and use within three months. They will be fine to eat past three months but will begin to degrade in both texture and taste.
No need to defrost. Throw the patty melts on a hot griddle, when you see the juice rising to the top of the burger, flip and cook a couple more minutes.
I wouldn’t freeze a completely cooked patty melt as it will end up a soggy mess. BUT, you can cook the burger and assemble the patty melt, making sure that you have a piece of cheese against both pieces of bread (to keep the onions and burger from making the bread soggy). Just skip the butter or mayo part.
Then freeze. When ready to cook spread with softened butter or mayonnaise and finish griddling. It’s best to bring the patty melts to room temperature before frying.
Ideally you want to freeze the patty, bread and caramelized onions separately and heat separately. But let’s face it, we live in a world where you just grab from the freezer and microwave. So if that’s you, then assemble completely and go forward, the patty melt recipe is still good this way, it’s just better if you freeze the ingredients separate.
How To Take A Patty Melt On-The-Go
The patty melt recipe can be a little messy, especially with the caramelized onions that slide off easily.
One way to make it easy to eat-on-the-go is to put the caramelized onions on the inside of the patty melt. Yep, I said inside.
Your burger patty will end up thicker than normal. You really can’t get thinner than the ¼” burger patty already called for in this recipe. So this will be more like the thickness of a regular burger.
Place caramelized onions on top of one of the raw patty melt patties, top with another raw patty and pinch the edges together. Follow instructions from our regular patty melt recipe.
No more caramelized onions falling down your shirt or all over your hands.
Whether you encase the onions inside the burger or not, you’ll want to wrap the patty melt well. See our post and video on how to wrap a sandwich without plastic. Or use a parchment paper bag if you are eating the patty melt recipe right away.
How Long Can Cooked Hamburger Be Left At Room Temperature
According to the USDA the cooked burgers need to be refrigerated within 2 hours of cooking, or 1 hour if it’s really hot and over 90 degrees, uh, can you say Atlanta in the summer? So if you are taking the patty melts for lunch or a picnic you’ll want to put them in a cooler and reheat at the office or school or server room temperature for the picnic or tailgate.
You can refrigerate our cooked patty melt recipe for up to 3-4 days or frozen for up to 4 months for quality (do not put butter the bread if freezing, do that step when ready to griddle).
Patty Melt Recipe
Ultimate comfort food, our patty melt recipe is easy, quick and satisfies. Grass fed beef, caramelized onions, cheese and rye bread grilled. Yum!
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef preferably grass fed
- 3/4 cup caramelized onions
- 4 to 8 slices swiss cheese enough to cover a piece of bread
- 4 to 8 slices cheddar cheese enough to cover a piece of bread
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened or mayonnaise
- 8 whole slices rye bread or your favorite sandwich bread
- A sprinkle kosher salt and pepper for the raw burger patties
Instructions
If you don't have frozen caramelized onions, make them this way
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If you don’t already have caramelized onions then slice two large onions in half, peel and then in cut half moons.
Heat a Tablespoon canola oil in skillet over medium high heat and cook onions for 20-25 minutes until they are a nice golden brown. Stirring often.If the onions are browning too quickly turn heat down to medium. If liquid evaporates add a little more oil or some water. You want some kind of liquid so that the onions don’t burn.
If using frozen caramelized onions, heat over medium heat. Once warm remove to a platter and cover with foil.
Form the burger patties
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Use the same pan to cook the burgers and eventually the patty melts.
Divide 1-pound ground beef, preferably grass fed, in fourths.
Make an oval patty that’s a little larger than the bread itself since the meat will shrink when you cook it.
Transfer to a parchment lined baking tray, sprinkle one side with salt and pepper and pop in the freezer for a few minutes, about 10-15.
Cook the burgers
-
While freezing the patties, assemble the remaining ingredients and prepare any side dishes that you plan to serve.
Griddle the patty melts on the stove over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes per side for medium-rare. Flip when you see the juice rising to the top. Remove when cooked.
Assemble and cook the patty melts
-
Place the cheddar cheese on a slice of bread, pile on some caramelized onions, then the cooked burger, and finally the Swiss cheese and another piece of rye bread. Spread one
rye piece with softened butter or mayonnaise. -
Turn heat down to medium. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel. Put the sandwich back in the pan with mayo side down and griddle like you would a grilled cheese. Spread the
top with mayo and flip when bottom bread is golden, just enough to toast the bread and melt the cheese, about 3 minutes per side.
Recipe Notes
Flash Freeze Burgers: When you make a thin burger patty like this it’s hard to get the spatula under the patty without losing its shape. By freezing the burgers for a few minutes, it will solidify the burger patty and make it easier to work with.
When forming the patty melt it’s easier if you put the burger patty between parchment or wax paper and press down to ¼” thickness. Reshape a little if needed. Easy clean up too.
Patty melts aren’t big thick burgers, they are thinner. I guess because the patty itself is bigger in surface area because rye bread is larger than a burger bun. Otherwise you’d have one heck-of-a huge piece of hamburger meat!
Butter or mayonnaise? Butter will give a richer taste and crispier bread. Mayonnaise gives a nice golden color and doesn’t burn as easily as butter. If using mayo only put a thin layer, otherwise the bread will get soggy.
Use the same pan to cook the burgers and eventually the patty melts. Make sure to wipe the pan out with a paper towel or you’ll get some black speckles or burned pieces on the bread. No need to clean the pan with water, a quick swipe with a paper towel will do it.
Don’t have frozen caramelized onions? To save time, make sure that you start the caramelized onions first, even before you assemble all of your ingredients. Using two pans will save even more time. Get the onions cooking and then follow directions in order. This way you can complete the meal in 35 minutes or even less.
Use our Make-Ahead tips in the post and you’ll have dinner on plates in 15 minutes.
See post for ingredient substitutions, variations and freezing instructions
Followed and turned out scrmptious. Patty melts and Frisco melts have become one of our weekend meals.
I try to keep carmelized onions on hand all the time. I buy large bags of onions or use onions that are starting to go and slice them all down into a crockpot with half a stick of butter and a dash of olive oil. Turn crockpot on high and in a few hours perfect carmeelized onions. I then portion out, put into lunch bags and flatten. Then put the bags in a freezer bag and freeze. I also make onion patties and freeze. That way pull out lightly heat in microwave or in a sklillet and toss on a burger or anything else. However, these particular patty melts are just perfect! Thank you!