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Smashed Cheeseburger Tacos

Smashed cheeseburger tacos with a griddle-crisp tortilla and caramelized beef edges, finished with melted American cheese pooling over the filling. Smash burger taco style—fast, crispy beef taco texture with classic burger sauce, lettuce, tomato, pickles, and red onion.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Dinner, Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Smashed cheeseburger taco filling
  • 1 lb ground beef 80/20
  • 8 flour tortillas small
  • 8 American cheese slices
  • 1 cup shredded iceberg lettuce
  • 1 tomato diced
  • 0.5 cup dill pickle chips
  • 0.25 red onion finely diced
  • 0.25 cup mayonnaise burger sauce base
  • 2 tbsp ketchup burger sauce
  • 1 tbsp mustard burger sauce
  • 1 tbsp pickle juice burger sauce
  • 1 tsp garlic powder burger sauce
  • salt and pepper to taste

Equipment

  • 1 cast iron skillet
  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Prep the beef
  1. Divide the 80/20 ground beef into 8 equal balls (about 2 oz each) and season with salt and pepper so each ball is evenly coated.
Smash-cook the tacos on the griddle
  1. Heat a Blackstone griddle or skillet to high heat and lightly oil the surface until hot and ready to sear.
  2. Place a tortilla flat on the hot griddle, then immediately set a beef ball in the center and smash flat with a spatula so the meat adheres to the tortilla.
  3. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the beef edges are crispy and caramelized.
  4. Flip the taco so the tortilla side is up, then place a slice of American cheese on the beef and cook for 1 minute until melted.
  5. Fold the tortilla over the beef like a taco, pressing lightly so it holds together.
Make the burger sauce and assemble
  1. Whisk the mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, pickle juice, and garlic powder until smooth and pourable.
  2. Top the tacos with shredded iceberg lettuce, diced tomato, dill pickle chips, finely diced red onion, and burger sauce, then serve immediately while the tortilla is crisp.

Notes

Pro tip: keep the heat at high so the tortilla crisps fast and the beef edges caramelize instead of steaming; work in batches if the griddle is crowded. Store leftovers in the fridge up to 3 days, reheating in a hot skillet to re-crisp the taco. Freezing isn’t recommended because the tortilla loses its crunch. For a lighter option, use reduced-fat mayo or a lower-fat cheese slice to cut calories while keeping the flavor.