How to reheat your burger so it still tastes incredible

by Joost Nusselder | Last Updated:  August 5, 2022

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So you just hosted a summer party and ended up with a lot of leftover burgers. What are you gonna do, toss them?

NO!

Fortunately, reheating a burger isn’t really that complicated, so let’s heat these babies up!

how-to-reheat-burger

Top 3 ways to reheat a burger

Before you reheat a burger, whether it’s homemade or store-bought, it’s important to bring it to room temperature first. So after you’ve taken it out of the freezer, place it on a tabletop and leave it there for a few minutes.

But don’t leave it for too long, or bacteria and mold might start to develop!

Once the burger reaches room temperature, separate the filling, buns, and patty. Don’t separate them while frozen, or some fillings will end up sticking to the patties or buns.

It’s possible to reheat the entire burger while the fillings are in it, but this could make the bun hard while the patty will become very soft. So the best way to reheat hamburgers is to separate each component!

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The fillings can be reused after reheating. You can season the vegetables to make them even more flavorful.

1. Absolute worst (but easy) way: Reheat a burger in the microwave

How-to-Reheat-Burger-in-Microwave

The most common method that people use for reheating a burger is a microwave. But most of the time, this results in a less than desirable burger.

Why? They just set the microwave on a random button and forget about it!

While using the microwave won’t produce the best results, it can still work if you don’t have the luxury of time to spend in your kitchen. But if you want good results, there are steps to follow when it comes to the proper way of reheating the burger in a microwave.

Things you need:

  • Microwave
  • A microwave-safe dish

Instructions:

  1. Refer to your microwave’s “reheat” setting. This is what you should use when reheating the burger.
  2. Arrange the patties in a dish that’s microwave safe.
  3. Place the dish in the microwave and heat for up to 2 minutes. Depending on the patties’ thickness, it might be necessary to flip them over halfway.
  4. After about 2 minutes, touch the patties with your bare fingers. If it’s already hot enough to your liking, then you’re done. Otherwise, microwave it again for another 60 seconds.
  5. Follow the same steps above when reheating in the microwave using Hamburger Helper.

2. Best way: Reheat burgers in the oven

The best way to reheat burgers is to use the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. If you’ve got the oven set to 400°F for reheating the patty, maintain the same temperature.

To reheat the buns, wrap them with aluminum foil. Make sure you wrap each bun separately.

How-to-Reheat-Burger-in-the-Oven
How to reheat burgers in the oven

How to reheat burgers in the oven

Joost Nusselder
The oven is probably the best way to reheat hamburgers, which is why experts strongly recommend this method.
In fact, burger aficionados have relied on the oven when it comes to reheating any of their leftover patties. It seals in the moisture and flavor, so you’ll end up with an irresistible burger, despite it being reheated.
But in order to succeed, you need to know the proper way to do it.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 4 delicious warm burgers

Equipment

  • Oven
  • Baking pan
  • Oven rack

Ingredients
  

  • 4 burgers

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 400°F.
  • Place the patties directly into the oven’s metal rack. Put a baking pan underneath for the excess fat to drip.
  • Cook the patty for about 3 minutes, depending on the type of oven that you use.
  • After about 3 minutes, arrange the buns on the rack and flip the patties to the other side.
  • Cook for another 2 minutes until the bun turns golden brown. Flip the buns at this point to get a toasty texture.
  • Garnish with veggies and other fillings of your choice.

Video

Keyword Burgers, Hamburgers, How-to
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

3. Best way to do it outside: Reheat burgers on the grill

How-to-Reheat-Burger-on-the-Grill

Using the grill (like one of these great charcoal ones) is another effective way to reheat your burgers.

Things you need:

  • Grill

Instructions:

  1. Set the grill to medium heat and arrange the patties above the grill.
  2. Heat for up to a minute before flipping them over.
  3. Remove the patties after 30 to 60 seconds.
  4. Place the buns on the grills and cook in the same way. This should take around 60 seconds.

How to reheat hamburger patties

If you just need to reheat the patty, follow any of the methods mentioned above.

Since you don’t have to reheat the buns, you might as well go for the microwave method since it’s faster and more convenient. But don’t use the microwave to reheat the buns or they’ll become very hard.

Also read: how to cook burgers on a pellet grill

How to store leftover burgers

It’s important for the leftover patties to be refrigerated properly. You can leave them in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.

But if you need to store it for longer, you might as well place it in the freezer. You can leave the patties frozen for up to 4 months.

When reheating the beef patties, make sure that the internal temperature of the meat is at 165 °F.

Can you reheat cooked beef burgers?

Yes, it’s definitely possible to reheat cooked beef burger patties.

You can use a microwave for this by placing the patties in a microwave dish. Heat the patties in the microwave for up to 2 minutes.

How do you reheat a whole burger?

If you prefer to reheat the entire burger instead of separating each component, use the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F, then wrap half of the bun with aluminum foil making sure everything’s covered up.

Place it in the oven to be reheated. This should take up to 5 minutes.

Related: How long to grill frozen burgers

Joost Nusselder, the founder of Lakeside Smokers is a content marketer, dad and loves trying out new food with BBQ Smoking (& Japanese food!) at the heart of his passion, and together with his team he's been creating in-depth blog articles since 2016 to help loyal readers with recipes and cooking tips.