This recipe for the BEST Cheeseburger ever is so freaking delicious. It is a perfect copycat of the acclaimed best burger in the nation (Au Cheval). I’ll even tell you the secret ingredient.

BEST CHEESEBURGER VIDEO

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Twice a week.

Twice a week and there was no curing it.

It’s how often I drove to Small Cheval in Chicago and ate their life-changing cheeseburger.

Hey, cheeseburgers can be life-changing.

And this one definitely is! Small Cheval (and it’s larger sister restaurant, Au Cheval) is notorious for serving up the best burger in the entire country. And it’s no joke.

It’s pretty unassuming and quite unpretentious but guaranteed, you will never in your life have a better burger. It’s just impossible.

Unless…

the best hamburger with melty cheese next to crispy fries, front-view

Well hot damn I replicated the damn thing at home! What was I supposed to do after moving from Chicago to California? Fly back twice a week for burgers?

This recipe. It is so. freaking. delicious.

horizontal full image of juicy burger with fries

So yeah, there are a million delicious burger recipes floating out there, but I’m telling you, this one, it’s just something out of this world.

It’s incredibly juicy, greasy (as any real burger should be!), flavorful, and… fabulous.

I mean, what else can I say? It’s just the most simple combo of really natural and quality ingredients that make the biggest difference ever.

top view of small cheval copycat cheeseburger cut in half with fries

You can find the exact quality ingredients I use. Just take a peek at the ingredients in the recipe below and you’ll find everything you need to make it just like I do to ensure you get the best burger ever.

And yes, the secret ingredient is beef tallow, which is just another way of saying beef fat. But please don’t fret about that. It’s actually wonderfully healthy!

Problem is we’ve just been misinformed for a few decades now. Did you know it is probably one of the most (if not the most) powerful antioxidant-dense products you could consume?

And unlike certain biochemically reactive unsaturated oils (I’m looking right at you canola), saturated fats like tallow or butter doesn’t damage your cells. In fact, your cells live off this stuff and will thank you by giving you better health as a result.

large vertical image of juicy, melty and greasy, perfect cheeseburger

So throw out the old and awful myth about saturated fats being bad for you (and by the way they do NOT raise “bad” cholesterol, which also by the way is not “bad” as it turns out), and throw out the canola and vegetable oil, and eat an honestly healthy cheeseburger already. With plenty of fat to boot.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO MAKE THE BEST CHEESEBURGER

Ground Beef – The fattier the better. And if you can get your hands on some grassfed/organic beef, definitely do! It’s so much better for you without all the toxic herbicides/pesticides from the cow’s feed. And it’s more nutrient dense than conventional beef too!
Dijon Mustard – This’ll be for the dijonnaise burger spread. Get some good dijon mustard because that punch of flavor makes a big difference!
Mayonnaise – Again, for the dijonnaise. And again, make sure it’s some good quality mayo. I prefer avocado oil mayo to avoid harmful, rancid vegetable/canola oil/soybean oil.
Beef Tallow/Ghee – I like combining the two for cooking the burger patties but you can choose one or the other as well. I would avoid any other cooking oil because you don’t want to burn the oil at a high heat and you also don’t want to use toxic vegetable/canola oils that are terrible for our health.
Cheese – American is the way to go here for the best tasting cheeseburger just like Au Cheval’s and Small Cheval’s. However, feel free to use cheddar or jack if you must. Just know it won’t be the same. But that’s OK too!
Brioche Hamburger Buns – This is what Au Cheval and Small Cheval use and it’s definitely the way to go for these awesome hamburgers.
Sliced Pickles – If you can find some without artificial dye, please do!
Red Onion – Just a little chopped red onion makes all the difference here for topping off the burger.
Salt – Some good unrefined sea salt for the meat is healthy and necessary!

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST CHEESEBURGERS

Make Dijonnaise – All you do is mix a 2:1 ratio of mayo to dijon. Set it aside for when you are ready to assemble burgers.
Prep Burger Patties – Form into balls between the size of golf balls and tennis balls. Then press them out into thin patties and salt them.
Cook the Patties – Add beef tallow and ghee to a hot skillet to melt and then add the patties. Once a nice sear forms on one side, flip and cook the other side until done (approximately 1 – 2 minutes total, depending on your desired level of doneness) and add cheese to patties. Once crust forms on both sides of patties, remove to clean plate.
Heat the Buns – Place each bun half in the skillet to crisp up in the cooking fat just a little bit.
Assemble the Cheeseburger – Smear a generous amount of dijonnaise on each bun (top and bottom), add sliced pickle and chopped red onion to bottom bun, then 2 cooked beef patties per cheeseburger, and place top bun. Enjoy!

TIPS TO MAKE THE BEST CHEESEBURGER:

Use Grassfed or Organic Beef – Conventional beef is filled with hormones, antibiotics, and cancer-causing herbicides/pesticides. So stick to grassfed/organic beef. It’ll be richer in nutrients as well which is so much more nourishing to our bodies.

The Fattier the Better – Minimum 15% fat, but the higher the fat content, the better to make a juicy burger. Regardless, the tallow and ghee cooking fats will help make a great burger.

Avoid Vegetable/Canola Oil and Use Tallow/Ghee – Heavily processed and unsaturated vegetable/canola-type oils add no flavor and they are already rancid/toxic by the time you open the seal. Butter and olive oil will burn at the high cooking temperature required to sear the burgers. Tallow/ghee are optimal for cooking burger patties in a skillet and are filled with necessary fat-soluble vitamins.

Prepare Toppings First, Cook Burger Patties Last – You want a hot hamburger right off the skillet when you sit to eat. So definitely make sure to get all the toppings and sauce ready to quickly assemble the burgers once the patties are done.

Make the Patties Thin for More Flavor – Patties shrink and become thicker when cooking, so keep that in mind when forming them in the first place. A lot of the flavor is in the crust that forms on the beef, so you want to make the patties thin to increase the surface area of that tasty sear.

WHAT SHOULD I SERVE WITH CHEESEBURGERS?

BEST EVER Fries plus Garlic Aioli Dip (just like Au Cheval’s)

Flavor-Bursting Umami Fries with Homemade Dips

BEST Fried Pickles with Homemade Ranch

Easy Lemony Roasted Wedge Turnips

Spicy Caesar Salad with Green Chile Cornbread Croutons

Tangy and Fresh Dijon Green Bean Salad

LOOKING FOR MORE?

Try my Best Wisconsin Butter Burger! Or this Mushroom Swiss Burger!

And what about dessert? How about a big ol’ BEST EVER Chocolate Lava Pudding Cake! It is so easy and baked in one big baking dish, enough for the entire family.

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As always, love, health, and happiness to all of you!