FlameThrower Burger Copycat Recipe (Dairy Queen)

To make a FlameThrower burger copycat at home, stack 2 thin 2.6 oz (75 g) seasoned beef patties with melted pepper jack, jalapeño bacon, tomato, lettuce and a smoky, spicy mayo-style FlameThrower sauce on a soft toasted bun. That is Dairy Queen’s official build for the FlameThrower Signature Stackburger, launched in the US on March 30, 2022. This recipe makes 2 double burgers in about 40 minutes, sauce and bacon included. It is my homemade reproduction, not Dairy Queen’s recipe: DQ publishes the toppings, never the proportions.

What is in the Dairy Queen FlameThrower burger?

The Dairy Queen FlameThrower is a double or triple stack of seasoned beef with “fiery FlameThrower sauce, perfectly melted Pepper Jack, jalapeno bacon, tomato and lettuce.” That wording comes from Dairy Queen’s own announcement of March 30, 2022. Like every Signature Stackburger, it uses “100-percent seasoned real beef” on “a soft and toasted bun.”

The Daily Meal (June 30, 2024) adds detail that Dairy Queen does not publish. It describes thin, evenly shaped patties seasoned with salt and pepper only, bacon infused with jalapeño, pepper jack melted between the patties, and a light bun that is lightly toasted and holds up to moisture. Treat those as press observations, not official specs.

Two toppings come and go depending on the source. The Takeout’s 2022 review mentions onion, and the Daily Meal mentions fresh jalapeños. The official 2022 description lists neither, so I give both as options below. The build may vary by country and period; my reference is the US launch description.

What is a Dairy Queen Stackburger?

A Stackburger is Dairy Queen’s name for its line of double and triple burgers built on thin seasoned beef patties. American Dairy Queen called the launch its biggest product rollout in 20 years. In the US it started with 5 burgers: FlameThrower, Loaded A.1., Bacon Two Cheese Deluxe, Two Cheese Deluxe and Original Cheeseburger.

Canada got its own lineup a month earlier, on February 28, 2022, per Daily Hive. It had 6 burgers: Bacon Two Cheese Deluxe, Loaded Steakhouse, Two Cheese Deluxe, Mushroom Cheeseburger, FlameThrower and Original Cheeseburger. I covered the line, the patty math and the simplest member in my Dairy Queen Original Cheeseburger copycat recipe, so I keep it short here.

Cover (LCP, eager, fetchpriority high), 4032×2268. Alt: Dairy Queen Grill & Chill restaurant in Valleyview, Alberta, the kind of DQ in Canada that sells the FlameThrower Stackburger this copycat recipe recreates. Caption: The FlameThrower Stackburger reached Canadian Dairy Queen Grill & Chill restaurants like this one in Valleyview, Alberta, on February 28, 2022, a month before the US launch. Photo taken in August 2021. (Photo: Jason Woodhead, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dairy\_Queen\_Valleyview\_Alberta\_(51377566275).jpg)

What Dairy Queen publishes vs what I chose

Dairy Queen publishes the toppings and the beef weight per burger. The sauce ingredient list comes from press coverage, not from DQ. Nobody outside the company has the sauce ratios, the bacon cure, the seasoning or the cooking method. The table separates the two, based on sources checked on November 2, 2026.

Section ‘What Dairy Queen publishes vs what I chose’: keep the article’s 3-column Markdown table (element, what Dairy Queen publishes or the press reports, what I chose at home), scrollable on mobile with the first column sticky. Caption: FlameThrower Stackburger, official build vs homemade choices: beef, patty weight, pepper jack, jalapeño bacon, chipotle sauce, vegetables, bun and cooking method. Sources checked November 2, 2026. (Table: Burger Breton, original work, CC BY 4.0, data from Dairy Queen (March 30, 2022), The Daily Meal (June 30, 2024) and The Takeout (April 1, 2022), checked 2026-11-02)

“Stackburger” does not mean smash burger. Dairy Queen has never said it smashes its patties. I smash mine anyway: on a home stove, it is the most reliable way to get a thin patty with a real crust.

How much does a FlameThrower Stackburger weigh?

The FlameThrower double carries 1/3 lb of beef (about 5.3 oz, 151 g) and the triple 1/2 lb (8 oz, 227 g), which works out to about 2.6 oz (75 g) per patty. Those are Dairy Queen’s launch figures, confirmed by Daily Hive for Canada. DQ does not say whether the weight is raw or cooked, so I use 75 g raw.

Some copycats online miss this badly. Joytothefood’s FlameThrower recipe calls for 2/3 lb of beef for a single burger, twice the official double. That is a different, much heavier burger, and you lose the thin, crusty patties that define a Stackburger.

Section ‘How much does a FlameThrower Stackburger weigh?’, horizontal bar chart, SVG with aspect-ratio box, labels in oz and g. Alt and caption: Beef per FlameThrower Stackburger: 1 patty 2.6 oz (75 g), official double 1/3 lb (151 g), official triple 1/2 lb (227 g), and the top-ranking online copycat’s 2/3 lb (302 g) for a single burger, twice the official double. (Chart: Burger Breton, original work, CC BY 4.0, data from Daily Hive (Dairy Queen Signature Stackburgers, 1/3-lb doubles and 1/2-lb triples) and Joytothefood, checked 2026-11-02; to generate)

Ingredients for 2 FlameThrower double burgers

You need 10.6 oz (300 g) of ground beef, 4 slices each of pepper jack and bacon, and a batch of homemade FlameThrower sauce for 2 double burgers. Weigh the beef. Equal balls cook in the same time.

For the burgers:

• 10.6 oz (300 g) ground beef, 80/20, divided into 4 balls of 2.6 oz (75 g)
• 1/2 teaspoon (about 3 g) fine salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 slices pepper jack cheese
• 2 soft burger buns, about 3.5 in (9 cm) wide, store-bought or homemade brioche burger buns
• 1 tablespoon (15 g) unsalted butter, softened, for the buns
• 2 slices ripe tomato
• 2 to 4 leaves green leaf lettuce, washed and dried
• 1 teaspoon neutral oil (canola or sunflower)
• Optional, not in the official description: thin slices of white onion or fresh jalapeño

For the jalapeño bacon:

• 4 slices regular-cut smoked bacon
• 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) brine from a jar of pickled jalapeños
• 1 teaspoon (4 g) brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle

For the FlameThrower sauce (about 1/2 cup, enough for 2 burgers plus leftovers):

• 1/2 cup (115 g) mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons (10 ml) vinegar-based hot sauce, Louisiana style
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon (4 g) sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke
• 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground chipotle, to taste
• 1 pinch fine salt

Prep time: 15 minutes. Cook time: 25 minutes. Total time: 40 minutes. Yield: 2 double burgers.

Dairy Queen FlameThrower sauce recipe

Homemade FlameThrower sauce is a mayonnaise base seasoned with vinegar hot sauce, sugar, smoke, paprika, mustard, garlic, onion and ground chipotle. That order follows the ingredient list the Daily Meal published in 2024: soybean oil, water, hot sauce, sugar, egg yolks, white vinegar, natural smoke flavor, paprika, mustard, garlic powder, onion powder and ground chipotle.

Section ‘Dairy Queen FlameThrower sauce recipe’, replaces the writer’s sauce-bowl placeholder, lazy, 1453×1531. Alt: Two dried chipotle peppers, smoke-dried jalapeños, on a wooden board, the chile that gives FlameThrower sauce its smoke and heat. Caption: Chipotle is a smoke-dried jalapeño. Ground, it is the last ingredient on the FlameThrower sauce list and the one that sets the heat in the homemade version. (Photo: Carstor, CC BY-SA 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capsicum\_annuum\_chipotle\_dried.jpg)

Store-bought mayonnaise already covers the oil, egg yolks and vinegar, so the real job is the seasoning. The proportions are mine; Dairy Queen has never published them. Whisk everything, taste, and add chipotle a pinch at a time. The Takeout described the real sauce as orange, and the paprika and chipotle get you that color.

Popular copycats go another way. Joytothefood blends 7 oz (about 200 g) of chipotles in adobo with 2 cups of Greek yogurt or mayonnaise and 6 tablespoons of ranch seasoning, and keeps it 2 weeks in the fridge. Its author says mayonnaise gets closer to the original than yogurt. I agree on the mayo. I skip the ranch, though: it is nowhere on DQ’s ingredient list.

How to make jalapeño bacon at home

Jalapeño bacon at home is smoked bacon baked with coarse black pepper, then glazed with pickled jalapeño brine, brown sugar and chipotle for the last few minutes. Dairy Queen does not publish how its jalapeño bacon is made. My goal was a peppery, smoky slice with the chile baked in.

Most copycats just scatter diced jalapeño over plain bacon. That gives you bacon with a topping, not infused bacon, and the pieces slide off at the first bite. A brushed brine glaze puts the chile in the bacon itself. For more bacon technique, see my colleague Clara’s Bacon King copycat recipe and Alice’s Carl’s Jr. Western Bacon Cheeseburger copycat.

Step by step: how to make the FlameThrower burger

Make the sauce, bake and glaze the bacon, then smash 4 patties of 75 g on a smoking-hot skillet and melt the pepper jack before stacking. Have everything ready before the beef hits the pan. Each batch of patties takes about 2 minutes.

1. Mix the FlameThrower sauce

Whisk the mayonnaise, hot sauce, vinegar, sugar, liquid smoke, paprika, mustard, garlic powder, onion powder, chipotle and salt until smooth and orange. Cover and chill at least 15 minutes so the spices hydrate.

2. Pepper and bake the bacon

Heat the oven to 400 °F (205 °C). Lay the bacon on a rack over a lined sheet pan, sprinkle with the coarse pepper and bake 10 minutes.

3. Glaze the jalapeño bacon

Stir together the jalapeño brine, brown sugar and chipotle. Brush it over the bacon and bake 3 to 5 minutes more, until crisp at the edges and glossy, then drain on paper towels.

4. Portion the beef and prep the toppings

Divide 300 g of cold ground beef into 4 loose balls of 75 g each and keep them in the fridge. Slice the tomato, dry the lettuce and unwrap the pepper jack.

5. Toast the buns

Spread the cut sides of the buns with the softened butter. Toast them cut side down in a skillet over medium heat for 60 to 90 seconds, until golden, then set aside.

6. Heat the skillet

Wipe the skillet, add the oil and heat cast iron or a griddle over high heat for about 4 minutes, until it reaches around 450 °F (230 °C) and the oil just starts to smoke.

7. Smash, season and sear the patties

Place 2 beef balls in the skillet with room between them. Within 10 seconds, press each one firmly into a thin patty about 4 in (10 cm) wide, season the top with salt and pepper, and sear 90 seconds without moving them, until the edges are deep brown.

8. Flip and melt the pepper jack

Scrape the patties up, flip them and lay a slice of pepper jack on each. Cook 30 to 45 seconds, until the cheese melts, move to a warm plate and repeat with the last 2 balls.

9. Assemble the FlameThrower

Spread about 1 1/2 tablespoons of sauce on the bottom bun, add lettuce and tomato, then stack 2 cheese-covered patties so one slice of pepper jack sits between them. Top with 2 slices of jalapeño bacon, a little more sauce on the top bun, close and serve right away. According to the Daily Meal, Dairy Queen puts the lettuce and tomato on top of the beef. I put them underneath so they shield the bottom bun from the juices.

Step 9 ‘Assemble the FlameThrower’, exploded layer diagram, SVG with fixed aspect ratio, stacked vertically on mobile. Alt and caption: FlameThrower copycat layers from bottom to top: toasted bun, sauce, lettuce, tomato, patty, pepper jack, patty, pepper jack, jalapeño bacon, sauce, bun. The Daily Meal reports that Dairy Queen puts the patties first and the bacon, lettuce and tomato on top. (Diagram: Burger Breton, original work, CC BY 4.0, based on The Daily Meal (June 30, 2024) and the article’s step 9; to generate, no sourced file exists)

Why this recipe tastes like the original

This copycat matches the FlameThrower because it keeps Dairy Queen’s exact topping lineup, the official 75 g patty and a sauce built in the order of the published ingredient list. The flavor is smoke and heat, cut by cool mayo, creamy pepper jack and fresh tomato. Only what DQ keeps to itself is my own call.

I also fix the original’s weak spot on purpose. In its April 1, 2022 review of the whole Stackburger line, The Takeout credited the FlameThrower with “an admirable kick” but noted “a slightly acrid manufactured aftertaste.” It also found the beef across the line “pale” and “slightly springy.” A hard smash on a smoking skillet gives you a browned, crunchy edge. The homemade sauce has no processed aftertaste. Both make this a better burger than the drive-thru version, in my opinion.

When I tested the sauce, it tasted sharp right after mixing and much rounder after a short rest in the fridge. Hence the 15 minutes in step 1. Make it first and it is ready by the time the bacon comes out.

What to use instead of pepper jack

Monterey Jack is the closest swap for pepper jack. Pepper jack is Monterey Jack studded with chile, so you only lose the heat. Add a few chopped pickled jalapeños on top of the melting cheese to bring it back. Next best is any young, mild cheese that melts smoothly; skip aged cheeses, which turn oily on a thin patty.

FlameThrower GrillBurger vs FlameThrower Stackburger

The FlameThrower GrillBurger came first; the FlameThrower Stackburger is the version in the Signature Stackburger line launched in 2022 on thin stacked patties. A 2017 photo on Wikimedia Commons shows a FlameThrower GrillBurger at a Dairy Queen in Edmonton. I could not find a primary source dating the GrillBurger’s launch, so I am not giving a year.

More spicy burger recipes

If this one is your speed, my colleague Alice’s Sonic Jalapeño Double Cheeseburger copycat is another double with jalapeño heat, and my Whataburger Sweet & Spicy Bacon Burger copycat plays sweet against spicy with bacon. The chain’s history and figures are on our Dairy Queen brand page, which goes back to the first DQ in Joliet, Illinois, on June 22, 1940. Every other copycat and technique is in our burger recipes hub.

Frequently asked questions

What is in the Dairy Queen FlameThrower burger?

Seasoned beef patties, FlameThrower sauce, melted pepper jack, jalapeño bacon, tomato and lettuce on a soft toasted bun. That is Dairy Queen’s official US description from the Signature Stackburgers launch of March 30, 2022.

What is in Dairy Queen FlameThrower sauce?

According to the Daily Meal (2024), it contains soybean oil, water, hot sauce, sugar, egg yolks, white vinegar, natural smoke flavor, paprika, mustard, garlic powder, onion powder and ground chipotle. It is a smoky, sweet and spicy mayonnaise-style sauce. At home, season mayonnaise with those same ingredients.

Is FlameThrower sauce very spicy?

It is spicy, but the mayonnaise base tempers it. The Takeout called the burger’s heat “an admirable kick.” In the homemade version, the ground chipotle sets the heat: start at 1/2 teaspoon.

How much does a FlameThrower Stackburger weigh?

The double has 1/3 lb of beef (about 151 g) and the triple 1/2 lb (about 227 g), roughly 2.6 oz (75 g) per patty. Dairy Queen does not say whether those are raw or cooked weights.

How do you make jalapeño bacon at home?

Bake bacon with coarse black pepper at 400 °F (205 °C) for 10 minutes, brush it with pickled jalapeño brine mixed with brown sugar and ground chipotle, and bake 3 to 5 minutes more. The glaze puts the chile flavor in the bacon itself instead of on top.

Is the FlameThrower still on the Dairy Queen menu in 2026?

I could not confirm it. Dairy Queen’s US and Canadian product pages were not accessible when I checked on November 2, 2026, so check the DQ app or website for your location before you go.

How many calories are in a FlameThrower Stackburger?

I could not verify an official figure on Dairy Queen’s nutrition pages, so I do not publish one. Third-party menu sites list numbers, but they are not Dairy Queen data. The calories of this homemade version depend on your beef’s fat ratio, your bacon and how much sauce you use.

Is this the official Dairy Queen recipe?

No. This is a homemade copycat built from Dairy Queen’s published description and the sauce ingredient list reported by the press. The sauce ratios, the bacon glaze, the seasoning and the cooking method are my own choices.

Sources

• Dairy Queen, “American Dairy Queen Unveils New Line of Signature Stackburgers,” March 30, 2022: https://news.dairyqueen.com/announcements/details/2022/American-Dairy-Queen-Unveils-New-Line-of-Signature-Stackburgers/default.aspx
• Business Wire, same announcement: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220330005132/en/American-Dairy-Queen-Unveils-New-Line-of-Signature-Stackburgers
• QSR Magazine, Dairy Queen launches Stackburgers: https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/dairy-queen-launches-stackburgers-biggest-menu-rollout-20-years
• Meat+Poultry, Dairy Queen announces new Signature Stackburgers: https://meatpoultry.com/articles/26410-dairy-queen-announces-new-signature-stackburgers
• Daily Hive, Dairy Queen burger menu in Canada: https://dailyhive.com/calgary/dairy-queen-burger-menu
• The Daily Meal, “This Is What Makes Dairy Queen’s FlameThrower Stackburger So Delicious,” June 30, 2024: https://www.thedailymeal.com/1609072/what-makes-dairy-queen-flamethrower-stackburger-delicious
• The Takeout, Dairy Queen Stackburgers review, April 1, 2022: https://thetakeout.com/review-dairy-queen-stackburgers-all-have-the-same-prob-1848733788
• Joytothefood, FlameThrower burger and sauce copycat recipes: https://joytothefood.com/wprm_print/flamethrower-burger-copycat-recipe and https://joytothefood.com/wprm_print/flamethrower-sauce-copycat-recipe
• Wikimedia Commons, Dairy Queen FlameThrower GrillBurger, Edmonton, 2017 (CC0 1.0): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dairy_Queen_FlameThrower_GrillBurger_2017_Edmonton.jpg

All sources checked on November 2, 2026.