A weeknight smash burger
Smash Burgers with Caramelized Purple Onions and Sharp Cheddar
Per serving 768 kcal · 33g protein · 56g carbs · 52g fat
Ingredients
- 240g ground beef
- 2 purple onions, thinly sliced
- 15ml butter (1 tbsp)
- 60g sharp cheddar
- 2 hamburger buns
- 20ml mayonnaise
- 2g salt
- 1g black pepper
Steps
- Slice the 2 purple onions into thin rings. Heat 15ml butter in a large skillet over medium, add the onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 to 25 minutes until deeply golden and caramelized. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper, then move to a plate.
- While the onions cook, divide the 240g ground beef into 4 loose balls (about 60g each). Do not pack them tight.
- Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium-high until very hot, about 2 minutes. Add 2 beef balls and press each down hard with a sturdy spatula into a thin patty (about ¼ inch) for 15 to 20 seconds. Stop pressing and cook undisturbed 2 to 3 minutes, until the underside is deeply browned and crispy.
- Flip each patty and top with 30g sharp cheddar. Cook 1 to 2 minutes until the cheese melts and the second side crusts. Move to a plate and repeat with the last 2 balls and 30g cheddar.
- Toast the 2 buns cut-side down in the same hot skillet, 1 to 2 minutes, until golden.
- Spread 10ml mayonnaise on each bottom bun, stack 2 cheesy patties on each, divide the caramelized onions between them, add the top bun, and serve right away.
That is the whole thing.
No technique, no special equipment. This is what every Eatsë dinner looks like — the app picks it, scales it to your house, and writes the recipe. Two weeks free.
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On the plate
This was a real weeknight dinner, not a photo shoot. Two patties per burger, the cheddar half-melted into the crust, the onions doing the heavy lifting. The cross-section is the whole argument for smashing thin instead of grilling thick — more crust, more edges, more of the part everyone actually wants.
The two things that matter
Everything good here comes down to two moves, and neither is fussy.
Caramelize the onions for real. Twenty-plus minutes, low and slow, until they collapse and go sweet. Purple onions hold their color and turn almost jammy. Start them first; they take longer than the rest of the dinner combined.
Smash thin, then leave it alone. Hot pan, loose ball, press hard once for fifteen seconds, then do not touch it. That undisturbed minute is where the crust comes from. Two thin patties per burger beat one thick one every time.
Leftovers
- The caramelized onions keep up to 5 days and go on everything — make extra.
- Reheat patties in a hot skillet, not the microwave, to keep some crust.
- Toast and build fresh; a pre-assembled burger goes soggy.
Why a smash burger beats a thick one on a weeknight
A thick pub burger needs a thermometer and a rest. A smash burger needs a hot pan and ninety seconds. You trade the medium-rare middle for crust on both sides, and on a Tuesday this caramelized onion burger is the better trade — faster, more forgiving, and honestly more crave-able.
It is also the kind of thing you would never have decided on at 6pm staring into the fridge. That is the part Eatsë handles: it puts a dinner like this on the calendar before the question even comes up, writes the recipe, and adds the beef, the buns, and the onions to the grocery list. If you keep landing on the same five meals, a smash burger night is exactly the kind of break it builds in. It is the same one-decision approach behind ending the nightly weeknight scramble.
What people are saying
5★ average · 19 ratings on the App Store
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Makes planning meals a lot easier!
Life-changing app
Where has this been my whole life?! Saved hours and hours of planning and finding recipes. Love the download feature of the grocery list to make task-sharing between my husband and I easy. A must-download!
Useful meal planning
I’ve really enjoyed this app so far! I like how it gives suggestions based on our preferences. Also like how it builds the shopping list for you. Lots of good looking recipes to choose from too. Will like seeing how overtime this helps us to make good meal planning choices.
A game-changer for solo, gluten-free living with ADHD
This app is amazing. I’m gluten-free, live alone, and have ADHD — and this app feels like it was made specifically for me. Meal planning used to feel overwhelming, but now it’s actually manageable. The gluten-free filters save me so much time/stress, and the structure it provides is exactly what my brain needs. No more decision fatigue, no more wasted groceries.
UI awesome!
Have loved the UI on this app. Very easy to navigate and PERFECT for helping me plan dinners for the week ahead.
Thinking for Me!
I love this app! I do enjoy cooking, but sometimes the mental load around it is too much. This app makes it easy to plan out my week — ingredients, prep, and even ways to rate it for later. It’s all in one app and makes it all at my fingertips.
Food sensitivies
We have food allergies and sensitivities in our family. I feel like I get in a food rut. This app suggests a healthy and interesting variety that meet all of our dietary restrictions. We are loving using it!
Makes meal planning a BREEZE!
This app takes the stress out of weekly meal planning! There are so many amazing recipes that fit any lifestyle/cooking skill level. Bot sure how I’ve lived without it!
Makes Meal Planning Easy!
This app is great for weekly meal inspiration and grocery planning. The grocery list where you can plan out everything for the week is incredibly helpful.
Excited!
I’m so excited for a way to take the thinking out of meal planning.
Ease and options!
Within minutes we had a weekly menu planned, and a grocery list curated. I quickly marked off what we already had in house and sent the text off to have shared insight. Can’t wait to see how the app continues to adapt our tastes based off recipe reviews and selections. Baby steps to enjoying cooking-in more!!
Like this one, every night.
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