Southwest Chicken Burgers | A Healthy Burger Alternative

Oh barbecue season, how I have longed for you. Barbecuing with the fam is one of my favorite warm weather activities. Whether it’s getting out of the kitchen that gets me, or the fact that the guys actually help make dinner, I’m not sure, but the love runs deep. Barbecue season was on my mind so much that the idea for these southwest chicken burgers just showed up in my thoughts one day in early spring.

Everyone needs a great cheeseburger alternative! These southwest chicken burgers are super flavorful, family friendly and healthy to boot.

To make these extra kid friendly, I like to get out my chopper and give the peppers, onions and garlic a good chop. Chunks and my kids don’t get along well. Healthy bits in a less recognizable state don’t seem to trigger my kiddos gag reflex as easily. So I chop away on these things until they are tiny but not beaten to a pulp. The color of the peppers also give the southwest chicken burgers that extra festive flare.

After I’ve got the peppers, onions and garlic chopped, I throw them all in the skillet for a quick saute. I saute for only a couple minutes to develop a little more flavor and tenderness in the veggies.

Southwest chicken burgers are the best if you mix two different type of pepper. Green pepper would also look and taste good in this recipe.

Fingers Are for Mixing | Sorry

The only gross thing about southwest chicken burgers is that you have to mix them up with your hands. A spoon could be used but I tried and gave up after a couple minutes. Good old phalanges are the best mixers when it comes to burger making.

So toss your sauted veggies and all of the other ingredients into a big bowl and mix thoroughly.

Now you will be tempted to make your patties while your hands are already nasty from mixing raw chicken. However, if you are not going to grill the southwest chicken patties right away, don’t do it. My recommendation from experience is that you wait until you can slap those patties right on the grill, or stick the patties into the freezer.

I freeze my extra southwest chicken patties, and they grill up just as good as fresh ones. So if you must make them ahead of time, I suggest freezing them. Big blobs that I had to reform is what I’ve ended up with when I try to refrigerate the patties before cooking. Ground raw chicken doesn’t hold its shape as well as raw beef.

On the grill, the patties hold up great.

I like to make my patties about 1/2 inch thick. 2lbs of ground chicken will usually render me about 8 or 9 southwest chicken burgers that are normal burger patty size.

Now that the patties are on the grill, it’s hand wash time! That is unless you’ve shut yourself on the patio with raw chicken hands. Hopefully your family is nicer than mine and will open the door. No Christmas presents for kids who smile and wave!!!

Southwest Chicken Burgers | On the Grill

A meat thermometer is a necessity for any cook. Without one, I don’t think we would ever get perfectly cooked meat. These southwest chicken burgers are cooked to 165 degrees. Keeping an eye on the temperature will keep you from ever having to eat tough, overcooked meat again. Or getting E coli, whatever your style is.

6 minutes per side is about all my burgers typically need when grilling at medium heat. Again, check the temperature because the thickness of the burger will vary the cook time.

Time to Eat Southwest Chicken Burgers

Southwest chicken burgers have so much yummy flavor they can easily stand alone with no bun. Make them extra healthy and wrap them up in a lettuce burger.

On this night, we went for melted pepper jack cheese, lettuce, tomato and a little mayo. Plain patties from the leftover stash make a great lunch because they are just that tasty.

No matter what your style, get out the grill, gather the fam, and enjoy yourself some southwest chicken burgers! If you need a good barbecue dessert, be sure to check out my fruit pizza recipe.