Briefly, there are three ways to reheat a burger to keep it tasty: using an oven, a microwave, or an air fryer. Each method involves separating the burger ingredients and heating them for a few minutes before rearranging the burger.
We don’t know how it happened to you, but let’s say you prepared a big summer party for your friends and you baked just too many burgers. We couldn’t see how it’s possible to have leftovers of this delicious and superfine dish.
But there is no need to despair, reheating burgers is a normal thing. In fact, many restaurants often do this, and you don’t even notice that burgers are reheated. Here are a few practical ways to warm leftover burgers and keep their exceptional taste.
Reheating Burger In An Oven
An oven is probably the best way you can reheat leftover burgers if you don’t have the air fryer. The most important thing to do in the beginning is to separate the burger ingredients from each other. So set aside the meat, pastries, salad, and sauce as much as you can.
In principle, you can warm a whole burger, but in that case, meat will be kind of gooey, buns soggy and it will not be as excellent as when you heat every ingredient separately.
Step 1: Preheat the Oven to 400 °F
First, set the oven to heat at 400 degrees F. Since this will take a few minutes for sure, you will have plenty of time to prepare the burger.
Step 2: Separate the Burger Ingredients and Prepare them for Heating
Separate the meat and buns, and remove the salad and sauces from them. Prepare to heat the meat first, and then add the pastries. Place the meat directly on the metal rack. Just put baking sheet underneath, so the meat juices don’t spill all over the oven. Or use a baking pan.
Step 3: Bake the Meat for Few Minutes, then Add the Buns
When the oven is preheated, put the burgers in the oven. Leave for 3 minutes to warm up. Flip each burger to the other side and add pastries to the rack. Let it bake for another 3 minutes. The burger buns will turn nicely golden. Do not cook for too long so as not to burn.
Step 4: Rearrange your Burger
When the meat and pastries are heated, take them out of the oven. After you reheat a burger, you can wipe off oily parts with a paper towel if needed. Now you need to put everything together into one recognizable and delicious whole. Add sauces and salad. We definitely recommend adding a fresh salad if you have one as it will be much tastier than the one that stood one day.
How to Reheat a Burger In A Microwave
For reheating a cold burger in the microwave, we also advise that you separate all the ingredients because the result will not be tasty if you put all in at once. Also, be especially careful when reheating pastries as they can become quite hard when heated in the microwave.
Step 1: Separate All the Ingredients
First, separate all the burger components. Put the salad and burger drippings aside as you will need to add them cold. Then, prepare the meat and pastries for reheating. Put the meat on one microwave safe plate and the pastry on the other.
Step 2: Warm up the Meat and Pastries
Choose a warm-up program from the microwave menu if you have it because it will give you the best results or set to medium high heat. Put the meat in the microwave and turn on for one minute. Flip each patty to the other side and return to the microwave for another minute. If your meat is dry, you can cover it with a slightly damp paper towel.
When removed, make sure it is warm enough and return for an additional 30 seconds, if necessary. After you reheat patties, place the pastry in the microwave but no longer than 20 to 30 seconds. Just enough that it is not completely cold as the pastry will get extra heat from the meat later.
Step 3: Arrange your Burger
Now is the time to stack your juicy burger. Add sauce and salad to it, preferably fresh salad, and enjoy the meal.
Heating Burger In An Air Fryer
The air fryer will definitely be the number one choice for heating burgers if you are lucky enough to have this appliance in your kitchen.
It is similar to heating in a classic or toaster oven, only much, much faster. Here’s what you need to do for a delicious reheated burger dish.
Step 1: Preheat the Air Fryer to 400 °F
The temperature can be between 370 and 400 degrees. We recommend that it be definitely high because you want quick heating and a crispy result.
A medium heat could toughen the pastry, and you don’t want that at all.
Step 2: Separate the Burger Ingredients
Although you can put the entire burger in the air fryer basket and heat it that way, we advise you to take a few more minutes and separate the ingredients. The result will be a much better heated and fresher burger.
So, remove the salad and all the gooey ingredients from the leftover burger and put the meat and pastry in the basket. You can put them next to each other. Also, you can put a baking sheet underneath if you don’t want to clean afterward.
However, do not cram several burgers at once because they will not heat up well.
Step 3: Air fry for 3 Minutes
Put the burger in the air fryer and turn it on for 2 to 3 minutes. Everything should be perfectly heated. The pastry will definitely be piping hot.
If the meat needs another minute, remove the buns from the basket and return the beef to additional heating. Reassemble your burger by adding fresh salad and other toppings, and enjoy.
FAQs
How do you store leftover burgers?
Be sure to keep leftover burgers adequately stored in the refrigerator. If you already know that you will not eat all the pieces of meat, it is better to store them separately before adding the sauces and salad. In the refrigerator, baked burgers will last approximately 3 to 4 days. Don’t keep them longer than that unless you freeze them.
Can I heat burgers by grilling?
If, for some reason, you turn on the grill again, of course, you can reheat burgers on it. One minute of roasting on each side is enough to heat the meat finely. You can add the buns towards the end of the reheating process to warm it up a bit.
At what temperature do I need to reheat a burger?
Beef burgers or those made from mixed meat need to be reheated until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees. It is the recommended temperature for heating meat to ensure that potential bacteria that may have formed have been destroyed. It’s wise to reheat burgers thoroughly.
Can you reheat a burger in a bun?
Yes, you can reheat a burger in a bun, but it’s best to separate the components first. Reheat the burger patty separately (e.g., on a skillet or in the oven) to maintain its texture and flavor, and then reassemble the burger with the warmed bun and other toppings for serving.
Conclusion
The best way to reheat a burger is in the air fryer or an oven. The meat will retain its excellent aroma, and the pastry will not become dry and hard. It is undoubtedly vital to separate the ingredients before reheating to get the best results. If you do everything as recommended, your family members won’t even notice that the burgers have been reheated.
Tanja is great lover of healthy eating and lifestyle, she has been editing TV series about nutrition and health for years. She also engaged in food production in the family business, mainly focused on fruit processing without destroying vitamins and minerals. She believes that quality nutrition is one of the key ingredients of a happy and healthy life.
