Making frozen hamburgers in the air fryer is very easy. You’ll get an even finish every time without even having to fire up the grill.
“Wow, I can't believe how easy this was! I never have to thaw a hamburger again!”
How to Air Fry Frozen Burgers
- Place your hamburger patty into the basket/tray of your air fryer.
- Cook for 8-10 minutes at 350F/176C.
- Flip the patty over at the 5-minute mark to ensure that it will cook evenly.
- When the air fryer is done cooking, you can add a slice of cheese and continue cooking for 1 minute to melt the cheese. (optional)
- Remove the hamburger from the air fryer and serve on a bun. (or not if that’s your thing)
A Note on Cook Time
Cook time will depend on the size of your frozen hamburger patties and how you like your meat cooked. If your patty is the average size of around 4.5″ (like the one below) it should be done in about 10 minutes.
Add about 1 minute for every half inch over this. So, for example, a 5″ burger you’ll want to air fryer for around 11 minutes.
Don’t Forget the Fries!
Our Air Fryer French Fries don’t take long and go perfectly with a burger! No oil required and done in 12 minutes!
FAQs
It depends on the burger.
You need to check the ingredient labels of all burgers you purchase or all ingredients you purchase to make your burgers.
That’s the grease draining off the burger and burning.
Try adding a tablespoon or two of water to the inner basket. Or…but a piece of bread in the basket to catch the grease.
How to make Frozen Hamburgers in Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 2 burger patties frozen
Instructions
- Place your hamburger patty into the basket/tray of your air fryer.
- Cook your air fryer burger for 8-10 minutes at 350F/176C. At the 5 minute mark (halfway through cooking your hamburger), flip the patty over to ensure that it will cook evenly. Burger is done when it reaches an internal temp fo 165F. You may need to adjust the time.
- When the air fryer is done cooking, you can add a slice of cheese and continue cooking for 1 minutes at 350 degrees F to melt the cheese. (optional)
- Remove the hamburger from the air fryer basket and place onto bun.Add desired toppings, and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition Information
A HUGE thank you for my friend Chrystal for shooting the stacked patty picture. She is an amazing friend and does amazing work. She writes at https://www.glutenfreepalate.com/ and https://www.fourscoreliving.com/. You have GOT to check out the wonderfully creative and delicious recipes she shares!
How do you keep the cheese on? Every time I have tried the cheese blows every all over!
Great question, what I usually do if the cheese seems to fly, then I quickly put the cheese on and put back into the air fryer. But I don’t turn it back on, I like the heat that already in there melt it. You can also put a toothpick in it. 🙂
Wow, I can’t believe how easy this was! I never have to thaw a hamburger again!
Hi Tom, it is super easy to make frozen hamburger in the air fryer, isn’t it? We love the ease of doing this! Glad you did too!
Wow, this is super easy, thanks for sharing this directions. It worked out great for me.
You are very welcome Lucy!
This worked great for me. Thanks for reaching me how to use my air fryer!
Hi Pearl, so glad it worked well for you!
Burgers in the air fryer are great. Being able to pop them in when frozen is such a time saver! Thanks so much for the tips.
You are very welcome, glad you liked the frozen hamburgers in the air fryer. It is so easy, isn’t it?
Costco frozen patties are perfect
Good to know! Thanks for the tip.
Does the cooking time change if you are doing just one burger?
Nope, it does not as long as they are side by side and not stacked 🙂
No mention of patty weight? I pack/freeze 8 ounce patties.
Sorry about that Vic 🙂 I added it into the notes section of the recipe card, thanks for bringing that to my attention. This recipe gives a starting point of temp/time for 8 oz patties. With the variety of air fryers out there they all run a touch different so you may need to adjust your time a bit, but that gives you a good idea :).
Used this method with my Costco burgers and they turned out great, thank you.
Just threw in some frozen burgers for lunch. So good.
hey, my air fryer cant fit two in at a time, can i stack them?
Hello, I wouldn’t stack them, they won’t cook evenly 😉
hey do you think i would be able to stack the pattys
I don’t think you should stack them, they probably will not cook evenly 🙂
My air fryer doesn’t have an adjustable temperature – it’s always 392. Should I still cook a frozen patty for 10 minutes or back off on the time a bit?
Hello Chase, I would lessen the cook time. I haven’t tried it at a higher temp. I would do just one and test it to see how long. That way you experiment with just one and not a whole meal 🙂 If you find the right number of minutes for your machine at 392F please come back and let me know! 🙂
I haven’t tried your recipe, yet. (I will). But, every time I cook a frozen Kirkland (Costco) hamburger in my air fryer, it comes out a bit rubbery. Any idea what I might be doing wrong?
Hello Keith! Great question! I haven’t tried Costco burgers yet, but I know that when burgers are rubbery or chewy they are a bit over cooked. That happens when the fat in the burger heats up and the fat in the burger emulsifies. It may be that your air fryer is running a bit hot. So you might try turning your air fryer down 5-10 degrees and test it out. It may help to cook it with a lower temp 🙂
I love hamburgers and so much more in my airfryer, since I’ve been cooking with my air fryer I hardley use my microwave anymore
Hi Debra! We love hamburgers too! They are great in the air fryer! It makes cooking so much easier and quicker!
FYI- using an Instant Pot Vortex Mini Airfryer and one Great Value 85% lean 4 oz frozen burger, it took 18 minutes at 350 degrees to get to medium-well. Not sure why it took so long because this air fryer cooks everything fast. Maybe it has something to do with thermal mass?
Hi Yomi! It’s good to remember that often, machines work differently to each other so maybe you need to play around to find out what works best for you 🙂
What a fun idea! I’ve never made them this way before. Do you think it will work with Impossible burgers?
Thanks Chrystal! I think it would work with Impossible burgers. We’ve made Beyond Burgers in the air fryer before (here’s the recipe if you want to check it out: https://airfryereats.com/air-fryer-beyond-burger/). They’re similar so I imagine it would be about the same cooking time: 350°F or 180°C for 8 minutes. Let me know if you try it!