The Ultimate Mac and Cheese Burger Recipe

This Mac and Cheese Burger is the perfect combination of our 2 favorite comfort foods. Hamburgers and macaroni & cheese have been attending the same parties and cookouts for ages. It's about time they got together.

This post was developed in paid partnership with Ohio Beef. All opinions are our own.

Here at Ground Beef Recipes, burgers aren't just another recipe category. To us, a Classic American Cheeseburger is a blank canvas upon which to paint different flavors and ingredients in our never ending pursuit of the perfect burger recipe.

Toward that end, it seemed like destiny that in the same week Courtney was working on a variation of our Creamy Mac and Cheese, I was drawing up plans for a featured recipe for "National Cheeseburger Day." 

Inspiration struck and the results are delicious!

Why You'll Love a Mac and Cheese Burger

Macaroni and cheese has long been a favorite potluck and cookout side dish that pairs well with a burger. It's likely that your next patio party menu will include both anyways, so we figured let's combine the two so there's more space on that paper plate for some other great cookout side dishes!

Having some creamy mac around at a party is always handy for any kids, vegetarians, or picky eaters who don't eat meat. But once you pile a scoop of the stuff on top of your burger, you'll understand why this combination is such a big deal.

Maximum Cheese!

Aside from stuffing cheese into the beef patty similar to how we make our Giant Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs or a "Juicy Lucy," topping a burger with our 4 Cheese Mac and Cheese is the best way to pack the most cheesiness into a burger.

*We also top these burgers with Gruyére cheese as they finish cooking just before we layer them with the mac, so that's 5 unique cheeses (just in case 4 wasn't enough).

More Flavor, Less Toppings

The 4 cheese mac and cheese that we're using on this Mac and Cheese Burger has such a beautiful blend of melty creaminess and tangy blue cheese that you can skip most of the usual sauces and toppings! 

It might may feel wrong, but I promise, you won't even miss the tomatoes, lettuce, mayo, ketchup, and mustard. 

The chewiness of the pasta noodles has plenty of texture, and the cheese sauce of the mac brings the flavor without completely saturating and soggifying the bun like the normal trio of condiments.

As a result, this Mac and Cheese Burger ends up being less messy than most other hamburgers with layers of toppings. Especially once that melted cheese mixture has had a chance to cool down just a bit.

Key Ingredients for Mac and Cheese Burgers

• The mac. We start with our 4 cheese mac and cheese. Sure you could use whatever pot of mac you have around, but our homemade version is purpose built for a cookout. Everything about this recipe from the selection of the 4 cheeses, to the spices in the cheese sauce, all the way down to the pasta noodles that we picked, make this macaroni and cheese perfect for layering on top of a juicy grilled hamburger. This recipe includes:
  • Cheeses: White American cheese, sharp yellow cheddar, Fontina cheese, and melted blue cheese crumbles make up the cheesy alchemy in this recipe.
  • Heavy cream and butter give the cheese sauce its signature smoothness.
  • Spices: Salt, pepper, ground mustard, garlic powder, paprika, and cayenne.
  • Pasta: Cavatappi is our pasta of choice here. These sturdy noodles lock together nicely atop a burger, and grab onto plenty of that cheesy sauce. Plus they bake well and hold up to a good stir.
• The bun. We like a brioche bun for this burger because that golden crust holds up nicely to cheese sauce (like the kind we'll be slathering our burger with in this recipe). Onion rolls are also a favorite. Mostly any hamburger bun should do fine.
• Ground Beef. Standard 80/20 beef for these burgers is seasoned with salt and black pepper.
• Bacon. We love thick cut applewood smoked bacon on just about any burger, and this one is no different.
• Something Pickled. The only extra topping these burgers need is a little vinegary crunch. Our go to is a combo of pickled red onions and a few pickled jalapenos. But if that's too much heat, substitute banana pepper rings, or dill pickles could also work well.

How to Make Mac and Cheese Burgers

Prepping The Creamy 4 Cheese Mac And Cheese

Follow these detailed step-by-step instructions for How to Make Four Cheese Mac and Cheese.

If you're using another Macaroni and cheese recipe, just make sure that it's the right consistency to live on a burger. The boxed version doesn't have a sauce with enough substance or a noodle with enough chew. 

The cheese sauce should be creamy when it's hot, but thicken as it cools. Adjust yours by thinning with milk, or thickening by adding more cheese and/or flour.

Also we recommend a sharper cheese flavor, which can be achieved by melting blue cheese crumbles into your sauce over medium heat until desired taste.

Instructions For Cooking The Bacon

​Our favorite bacon is cooked on a baking sheet in the oven. Follow these instructions for Oven Cooked Bacon.

Though you can also cook your bacon in a large skillet on the stove top, or follow these instructions for Bacon from the Air Fryer.

Step By Step Tutorial On Making The Beef Patty

We assembled all our best burger tips and advice in this one Ultimate Guide on How to Grill Burgers. But to summarize:

• Use 80/20 ground beef.
• Make 3-4 patties per lb (so each burger gets enough meat).
• Don't over work the meat.
• Make a ball, gently press out into a patty that's slightly larger than your bun, then use your thumb to press an indent in the center of each patty to prevent shrinkage.
• Season your patties just before you cook them.
• Cook your burgers on clean, oiled grill grates or an hot cast iron skillet with a pad of butter.
• Only flip once. Don’t smash your burgers with a spatula.
• 4-5 min per side. Cook until internal temp is ~160°F (*use a meat thermometer)

Assembling The Burger

There's no wrong way to stack these burgers. We did lettuce, burger, bacon, mac, onions and peppers from bottom to top. But as long as the macaroni and cheese isn't too runny, you can layer it right on top of the bottom bun.

Optional Toppings And Customization Ideas

We love variety in flavors and textures, so if you choose to add something spicy , we recommend balancing that with a sweet topping. That's why we paired the pickled onions with the jalapenos.

Dill pickles would work well on this burger, as would those crispy french fried onions (or even onion rings).

Also, if barbecue is your comfort zone, pulled pork and BBQ sauce can work here too.

Tomato doesn't work in our opinion, and anything too garlic-y or sharp (like raw onions) which over powers the flavors in the cheese sauce.

FAQs and Tips for Mac and Cheese Burgers

The best way to make a Hamburger

We love a classic grilled burger, but we also reach for our cast iron skillet quite a bit as well. The skillet is handy when the weather or your grilling equipment isn't cooperating, so you can always bring things inside to the stove top. Just use butter instead of oil when using your skillet.

And while the skillet is great for camping, so is this Foil Packet Hamburgers method (*which can be made on the grill, in the oven, or even on an open campfire). Foil can be used to cook burgers in your Instant Pot as well.

We've also found that you can cook oven baked hamburgers on a baking rack (great for large quantities at once), or Air Fryer Hamburgers (if you only need to make a few).

Tips For Adding Extra Flavor and Variations

Hot sauce goes very well with the cheese sauce here, so if you've got Sriracha or Franks, bring it on.

If you plan to skip the onions, onion powder and/or Worcestershire sauce can be used to season the burger. Or you can just use some of our Homemade Burger Seasoning.

For even more great flavor, you can always toast your buns, or even sear this mac in a skillet with a little of the meat drippings to add some of that char grilled flavor to the sauce.

What's the secret ingredient in Mac and Cheese Burgers?

It’s the blue cheese. Blue cheese and beef just go so well together, with a sharpness and earthy savoriness that really stands out in this ground beef recipe because it’s melted into the cheese sauce so you get that delicious flavor combo in every bite.

If you love beef and blue cheese as much as we do, be sure to check out this Black and Blue Steak Salad, this recipe for Cobb Salad Burgers, or the time we made blue cheese compound butter and put it on a Seared Filet Mignon.

The best way to make Mac and Cheese Burgers for a party?

For the best results, your cheeseburgers need to be made fresh. But even if the beef patties are best hot off the grill, you can still save lots of time and stress by making the Four Cheese Macaroni a day or two ahead.

Especially if you plan to serve the Mac as a standalone side dish, it pays to make more than you need for the burgers, store it in the fridge, and just warm up the casserole dish in the oven on the day of the party.

How to save leftover Mac and Cheese Burgers

Fully assembled cheeseburgers are not something we recommend trying to save as leftovers. But if you have separated hamburger and macaroni leftovers, store each separately in sealed containers in the fridge. Then warm up, assemble, and serve. Enjoy any leftovers within 4-5 days.

📖 Recipe

Can’t Get Enough Burgers?

Same. Be sure to check out our other 30 Best Burger Recipes.