Our In-House Recipes

A common denominator in Hesburger products is the delicious mayonnaise made in-house. The white cucumber mayonnaise was created by Heikki Salmela in 1972, when Puutorin Grilli, a hamburger stand that was situated in Turku, began selling the Double Burger. Demand grew quickly, and soon Heikki knew his mayonnaise recipe was a winner. Then he created the red pepper mayonnaise for shashlik meat skewers that also turned out to be a big hit.

In the beginning, the two kinds of mayonnaise were produced in quantities of one litre. As the business grew, more and more mayonnaise was needed. Today, as much as 4,000 litres can be produced during a single work shift. 

The recipes for our cucumber or red pepper mayonnaise have remained virtually unchanged over the years. Alongside, we have added our in-house ketchup and mustard, as well as numerous types of mayonnaise, salad dressings and dessert sauces. Indeed, in-house sauce production has given the company a great competitive edge. Domestic production and high-quality raw ingredients guarantee an outstanding end result.

Production in Kaarina, Estonia and Lithuania

At the Kaarina central warehouse and production facility, raw materials and products used by restaurants in Finland and other operating countries are manufactured – for example, portion-sized mayonnaise packets, ketchup and lettuce. Kaarina is also home to Hesburger’s plant-based protein factory, which produces flavorful soy sticks and our own plant protein patty. In 2025, Hes-Pro Kaarina employed over 60 people.

In Estonia, our Saue facility manages in-house lettuce production, preparing lettuce for restaurant use. In 2025, the central warehouse employed more than 25 people.

In Lithuania, our Kaunas mayonnaise factory produces mayonnaise and ketchup for restaurant use, as well as Sweet & Sour and BBQ dips. In 2025, the Lithuanian central warehouse also employed more than 25 people.

Iceberg Lettuce to the Restaurants

In addition to producing sauces, the production facilities process iceberg lettuce which is used by Hesburger restaurants. This involves several stages, including chopping, washing, drying, and packing. Lettuce processing also includes machine vision-based detection and sorting technology that removes unwanted bits like the lettuce core and any discoloured leaves.

Tomato Chaser

Along with mustard and other dressings, ketchup is one of the most important condiments for hamburgers. This is the reason that Hesburger has long wanted to give extra special attention to its flavour. Hesburger ketchup is the result of Finnish product development, and its production began in the mid-1990s. It is made following a secret recipe and simply packed with flavour, as every kilo of finished ketchup contains nearly two kilos of tomatoes. These make the ketchup rich and tasty, which is why Hesburger ketchup goes so well with a variety of foods.

Measuring out the raw ingredients and ensuring proper heating are very important processes in production. The raw ingredients and production are closely monitored to ensure that the ketchup is consistently high-quality and guaranteed delicious. Each year, Hesburger makes close to one million kilos of ketchup, which accounts for approximately 30% of all the sauces produced by the company.