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These easy Cowboy Chicken Patties are packed with flavor and so easy to make! With ingredients like ground chicken, cheddar cheese, fresh jalapenos, and crunchy bacon, these homemade chicken burgers are the perfect easy dinner idea!
A big plate of homemade Cowboy Chicken Patties is one of my favorite things to eat! I eat them plain, without a bun, and with some other grilled veggies. My husband eats them on a bun with pickled jalapenos, barbecue sauce, and sometimes onion rings. However you choose to eat them, they’re delicious!
When I’m making them for a cookout or family dinner, I’ll add these loaded baked potato bacon cups and some greens for the sides. Then to finish it off with a flourish, I’ll make a big pan of peach dumplings for dessert!
Cowboy Chicken Patties
This recipe for easy chicken burgers combines ground chicken, fresh jalapeno, bacon, and cheese to make a simple grilled meal that’s done in just a few minutes. Chicken is pretty cheap to buy ground as well, so this dinner is also affordable!
Plus, these are fully cooked after about ten minutes on the grill and only take about five minutes to make grill-ready!
You can also make these in advance. They store in the fridge for about a week, or you can store them in the freezer for about 6 months. They’re great to pull out and just throw on the grill.
Whenever I have leftover bacon from breakfast, I’ll put it in the freezer to use for these chicken patties later on! Alternatively, you could also use real bacon bits as well… or just fry up a pan of bacon, especially for this recipe!
Ingredients
Packed with flavor, the ingredients needed for this recipe are so simple! You can adjust the cheese and jalapeno levels for your taste preferences, but this is a great recipe to make as is!
- Chicken – I like to use ground chicken, but you can also use well-drained canned chicken instead. It’s not going to have exactly the same texture as ground chicken, but it’s still really delicious!
- Jalapenos – I’m typically a wimp when it comes to heat, but I do still love the flavor. We deseed them since fresh jalapenos without the seeds aren’t very spicy at all. However, if you want more heat in your chicken patties, feel free to increase the jalapeno amount, or trade the jalapenos out for a different pepper of your choice! If you hate jalapenos altogether, you can substitute in red onion instead.
- Shredded Cheese – Cheddar cheese is my go-to here, but pepper Jack or whatever you have on hand will work!
- Bacon – While optional, the bacon in this recipe adds a great depth of flavor and crunch to the finished patties!
- Egg – One whole egg acts as a binder for this recipe. You can use an egg replacement, but the texture will be different. You can also increase the cheese measurement and omit the egg altogether!
Instructions
Now that you have all your ingredients, the process for making these chicken patties is so fast! We like to grill them, but you can also bake or pan-fry them instead.
- Combine – In a large bowl, combine the chicken, egg, bacon, cheese, and diced jalapenos. Use your hands to mix the mixture until they’re blended evenly and the egg is worked through all the ingredients.
- Divide – Make four even patties and place them on a waxpaper-lined baking sheet until the grill is ready.
- Grill – Heat your grill to medium/high heat (about 450 degrees) and cook the patties for 5 minutes on each side, or until they’re cooked thoroughly to an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Enjoy – Serve by themselves or on a bun with all the fixings!
NOTE: You could also bake or pan-fry these if you didn’t want to grill. Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes, or pan fry on medium-high heat for 5 minutes each side. Be sure to test the internal temperature is at least 165°F.
Even More Easy Dinner Ideas
Cowboy Chicken Patties
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1 jalapeno diced
- 1/2 cup shredded cheese
- 1/2 cup cooked bacon in small crumbles (about 5-6 pieces of bacon)
- 1 egg
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the chicken, egg, bacon, cheese, and diced jalapenos.
- Use your hands to mix the mixture until they’re blended evenly and the egg is worked through all the ingredients.
- Make four even patties and place them on a wax paper lined baking sheet until the grill is ready.
- Heat your grill to medium/high heat (about 450 degrees) and cook the patties for 5 minutes on each side, or until they’re cooked thoroughly.
- Serve by themselves, or on a bun with all the fixings.
Notes
- Fresh jalapenos without the seeds aren't very spicy at all. If you hate jalapenos altogether, you can sub them for red onion instead.
- You could also bake or pan fry these if you didn't want to grill. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, or pan fry on medium high heat for 5 minutes each side.
Nutrition
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When I make my chicken burgers, I never thought of adding bacon, but I do add 1 can of well drained Ro-Tel and I slightly toast the buns. Will be adding diced up bacon to mine next time.
I normally make double the recipe and make 8 burgers right away; fast freeze them and once frozen solid I will vacuum seal them and pop in the freezer. When ready to have a chicken burger, I take a couple out the night before and place in the fridge.
Sammie, I plan to make these as soon as I can get to the store to buy the ingredients. Did you use Cheddar Cheese in this recipe? They really look delicious and I want to try them.
Thank you.
I used a Monterey/Cheddar blend to make mine. I think it’s called like “fiesta blend” at Walmart.