Are you craving a burger or a grilled cheese? With a patty melt, you don’t have to choose between the two comfort foods; you can enjoy both in one delicious and decadent sandwich. With a tender beef patty, layers of tangy special sauce, melty cheese, and caramelized onions all squished together between two slices of buttery toasted sourdough bread, we’ve created a diner classic that you can enjoy anytime at home.
It’s no secret we love recreating our favorite restaurant sammies (have you tried our Arby’s roast beef sandwich or Popeye’s chicken sandwich yet?), but this mashup stands out as one of our favorites. The combination of a saucy, beefy burger and a decadent grilled cheese, piled high with sweet caramelized onions, is mouthwateringly delicious.
What is a Patty Melt?
A patty melt is an American sandwich mashup of a hamburger and a grilled cheese sandwich. Traditionally, a patty melt is a burger patty with Swiss cheese and grilled onions served on grilled rye bread. But, like our version, you can find tons of variations of patty melts, all including a burger patty with cheese and onions on sandwich bread.
Patty Melt vs Burger
The biggest difference between a burger and a patty melt comes down to the bread. While a burger is served on a soft hamburger bun, patty melts are served on sandwich bread (typically rye or another hearty bread like Texas toast or sourdough) that’s been grilled in a skillet with melted butter and oil.
How to Make Our Patty Melt Recipe
Sauce Ingredients
Sauce Process
- Place all sauce ingredients into a a bowl.
- Whisk together. Set aside.
Caramelized Onion Ingredients
Caramelized Onion Process
- Place a large pan over medium heat and melt butter.
- Add onions and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and continue to cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add 2 to 3 tablespoons water to the pan and slightly steam onions. Lower heat to medium-low and continue to cook and caramelize for 20 to 25 minutes, until onions are cooked down and caramelized (add and additional 1 to 2 tablespoons water as needed if pan gets too dry). Set onions aside for cooling.
Beef Patties and Assembly Ingredients
Beef Patty and Assembly Process
- Place ground beef, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper together and mix.
- Divide mixture in half and press each half int a flat patty (about 1/4” thick), making it the shape of the bread as much as possible.
- Place a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once skillet is hot add oil and swirl to coat. Add the beef patties and cook in skillet for 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Flip each patty and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and slightly cool.
- Spread all slices of sourdough with special sauce.
- Place a beef patty over two of the spread topped slices of bread.
- Top each patty with a slice of cheese followed by an even layer of half the caramelized onions.
- Top each layer of onions with another slice of cheese and finally the last slice of sourdough.
- Place a clean cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot add 1 tablespoon oil and 2 tablespoons butter. Swirl to coat skillet and melt butter. Place each patty melt onto the skillet, about 1 inch apart and toast for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove each melt, add remaining butter and oil and swirl to coat. Flip each melt back into the skillet and toast for an additional 3 to 4 minutes or until cheese has melted and bread is golden brown.
- Remove from skillet, cut each melt in half and serve.
Prepping Ahead and Storing
You can shave 25 to 30 minutes off of your cook time by preparing the burger, sauce, and caramelized onions up to three days before preparing and serving your patty melts.
To prep the burgers, you can season and shape them, then store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days before cooking and assembling the sandwich. You can store leftover cooked burgers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days as well.
Caramelized Onion
Caramelizing onions takes this patty melt from good to mouthwatering. But the process of cooking them low and slow does take some time, and it can easily be done ahead of time.
Let the caramelized onions cool, then store them in an airtight container for up to 3 days. To reheat, place the onions in a skillet over low heat with a splash of water to keep them from drying out. Stir occasionally until they’re warmed through.
Sauce
The tangy, smoky special sauce can be prepared a few days ahead of time and kept in a closed container in the refrigerator until ready to drizzle on your patty melt. Just give the sauce a good stir before using it.
Tips and Tricks for the BEST Patty Melt
- While typical burger patties are round, you’ll want to shape these to fit the bread, making them large and square. Remember, burgers shrink when cooked, so don’t be scared to make the patties a little bigger than your slice of bread!
- Don’t rush the onions. When caramelizing onions, you really need to take it slow and keep the heat down low so that the sugars release without burning and drying out.
- Layering the cheese on either side of the onions keeps them locked inside this sandwich, so every bite has maximum flavor.
- We love making this patty melt in a cast-iron skillet for a golden browned, crispy crust on the bread.
What to Serve with a Patty Melt
You can go full-on diner dinner with your patty melt, or keep your sides on the lighter side. Here are some of our favorites:
More Delicious Handheld Recipes You Will Love
Patty Melt Recipe
INGREDIENTS
special sauce
- 2/3 cup mayo
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 1/2 tablespoons yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
- 1 minced garlic clove
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
caramelized onions
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 thinly sliced large sweet onion
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
beef patties
- 1/2 pound lean ground beef
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 3 tablespoons avocado oil (or another high heat oil)
assembly
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- 4 slices sourdough bread
- 4 slices Monterey Jack or Swiss Cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
Sauce
- Place all sauce ingredients into a a bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
Caramelized Onion
- Place a large pan over medium heat and melt butter.
- Add onions and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and continue to cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add 2 to 3 tablespoons water to the pan and slightly steam onions.
- Lower heat to medium-low and continue to cook and caramelize for 20 to 25 minutes, until onions are cooked down and caramelized (add and additional 1 to 2 tablespoons water as needed if pan gets too dry). Set onions aside for cooling.
Beef Patties
- Place ground beef, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper together and mix.
- Divide mixture in half and press each half int a flat patty (about 1/4” thick), making it the shape of the bread as much as possible.
- Place a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once skillet is hot add oil and swirl to coat. Add the beef patties and cook in skillet for 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Flip each patty and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and slightly cool.
To Assemble:
- Spread all slices of sourdough with special sauce. Place a beef patty over two of the spread topped slices of bread.
- Top each patty with a slice of cheese followed by an even layer of half the caramelized onions.
- Top each layer of onions with another slice of cheese and finally the last slice of sourdough.
- Place a clean cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot add 1 tablespoon oil and 2 tablespoons butter. Swirl to coat skillet and melt butter. Place each patty melt onto the skillet, about 1 inch apart and toast for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove each melt, add remaining butter and oil and swirl to coat.
- Flip each melt back into the skillet and toast for an additional 3 to 4 minutes or until cheese has melted and bread is golden brown.
- Remove from skillet, cut each melt in half and serve.
NOTES
- While typical burger patties are round, you’ll want to shape these to fit the bread, making them large and square. Remember, burgers shrink when cooked, so don’t be scared to make the patties a little bigger than your slice of bread!
- Don’t rush the onions. When caramelizing onions, you really need to take it slow and keep the heat down low so that the sugars release without burning and drying out.
- Layering the cheese on either side of the onions keeps them locked inside this sandwich, so every bite has maximum flavor.
- We love making this patty melt in a cast-iron skillet for a golden browned, crispy crust on the bread.
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