How long to smoke hamburgers at 250 degrees?

Delicious Traeger smoked burgers (and smoked cheeseburgers!) are tender, juicy, and loaded up with smoky flavor. Make my easy DIY hamburger patties using ground beef – or use store bought ½ LB beef patties. Let’s smoke ‘em up!

There are a few methods to smoking burgers on the pellet grill. In this recipe, you’ll see my tried and true method for how long to smoke burgers at 225 degrees F (my favorite smoked burgers traeger temperature at the moment) right on the grill grates.

HEY THERE — Are you on instagram? I post quick, easy smoker recipes there @sipbitego.

Table of Contents

Why it’s such a good smoked hamburgers recipe…

• Learn to make easy burger patties with just salt and pepper. 
• Melt cheese in the smoker, too! Learn exactly when to add cheese.
• Massive smoke flavor!! Especially if you use strong pellets like the yummy Traeger Hickory Pellets used in this demo.
• It’s a pretty quick smoker recipe. Even at my lower smoking temperature for burgers on the Traeger, you’ll be ready to enjoy them in about 1.5 hours. 
• New to smoked foods? See my step by step video for beginners (scroll to bottom of page). 

Why do you smoke burgers on low?

This recipe smokes burgers at 225 degrees F. 

The reason: massive FLAVOR!!!!

It’s true that there are faster ways to smoke burgers – at 350, 400, 450, and even 500 degrees F – but I love smoking burgers at 225 degrees (or 250 if I’m “rushing it”) because they slowly pick up a TON of smoke flavor.

And they come out with a beautiful deep, rich color. 

Also see how to smoke bacon wrapped burgers stuffed with cheddar cheese – aka “Juicy Lucy’s… it’s a super tasty burger smoker recipe.

You place burgers on smoker grill grates directly, so they pick up a ton of smoky flavor while they cook.

Ingredients

Here’s what you need to make from-scratch burgers smoked to perfection.

For basic smoked burgers from scratch

• Ground beef (ideally 80/20 blend)
• Salt and pepper
• Burger buns
• Cheddar cheese (or gouda, etc, to make a smoked cheeseburger)

Condiment ideas (optional)

• Tomato
• Pickles / relish
• Lettuce
• Onion
• Ketchup
• BBQ sauce

See how to get more smoke flavor from your favorite recipes…

This smoked burger recipe creates a very juicy burger!

How to smoke burgers

Now I’ll walk you through it…

Quick look at smoked hamburgers on the Traeger…

1. Make beef patties and preheat the smoker. 
2. Smoke burgers.
3. Add bun and cheese when almost done and finish smoking burgers to desired temperature.
4. Assemble smoked cheeseburger and enjoy.

Detailed recipe steps

1. Measure the beef patties. To make the patties, use a scale to measure 8 oz burger patties, or ½ LB burgers, that are about ½ inch thick. (If you don’t have a scale, you can eyeball dividing up each LB of burger meat in half.)
2. (optional) Season ground beef into burger patties for smoking. To a large bowl, add ground beef. You can choose to season the meat now with salt and pepper, or wait to add it on when you add the burgers to the grill. (we have tested and like both methods). 
3. Shape burger patties (smoosh the meat together gently) so each one is about ½ inch thick. The goal is to create burger patties that are a bit wider than the diameter of the hamburger buns. Chill burger patties in the fridge for at least 15 minutes, or up to a few hours before smoking them.
4. Preheat Traeger Grills or Pitt Boss or whatever pellet grill you’re using to 225 degrees F. In the Sip Bite Go recipe video you’ll see we like using Hickory wood pellets for burgers because they provide phenomenal smoky flavor to the beef. 
5. Smoke burgers. Remove burger patties from the fridge and season them with salt and pepper (if you haven’t already seasoned them). Then add them directly to the preheated smoker grill grates. Close the lid and smoke burger patties for 60 minutes. Optionally, you can flip the burgers at the 30 minute mark (but usually, I don’t). 
6. (Optional) Toast buns and turn it into a smoked cheeseburger about 5-10 degrees prior to your ideal doneness temperature. So for medium smoked burgers, you’ll add the buns (inside facing down) directly onto the grill grates and add cheddar cheese on top of the still-smoking burgers when the temperature of the patties measure about 135 degrees F internally. From this point, you’ll smoke them another 15-20 minutes, with cheese on top, until the next step. Check the buns periodically and pull them off when they look toasted.
7. Continue smoking burgers until done. They’re ready when the internal temperature reaches your desired level. Our burgers in the photos measured 145 degrees F for medium burgers. Transfer to a platter.

   How long do burgers take to smoke at 275?

   Smoked Spicy Cheeseburger Recipe Set the temperature to 275 and preheat, lid closed, for 10 to 15 minutes. 6. Place on the Traeger at 275°F for 30-45 minutes for a 1½" patty until 130°F internal temperature.

   How long do burgers take on the smoker at 225?

   Smoke the Burgers Place the burgers directly on the grate or lay the Bradley racks directly on the grate. Let them smoke at 225°F for about 60-90 minutes. It may take a little longer if they are extra thick.

   How long do hamburgers take in the smoker?

   Smoking Burgers FAQs At 500°F, smoking burgers takes 20 minutes, or 10 minutes on each side, for an internal temperature of 135°F (medium). For a medium-rare burger, drop the internal temperature by about 5 degrees, and another 5 for rare. For well-done, aim for 140 degrees. For best results, use a meat thermometer.