Ultimate Ground Chicken Bacon Ranch Burger

Say hello to your new favorite burger! Ground bacon & seasonings are mixed with ground chicken to make this the ultimate grilled burger! Top with melted cheese, arugula, crispy bacon, and parmesan ranch for absolute deliciousness!

Burger Believer

Y’all this burger I made every day for 2 weeks AND make enough for the freezer for future meals.

Mr. Fantabulous is 95% of the time a beef-only burger lover. Once in a blue moon, he’ll entertain my Greek Turkey burger or an even bluer moon, my Chunky Portobello burger, but this burger, I’m honestly surprised he loved it.

You see, as odd as it sounds, he’s not a big bacon fan. What’s wrong with him??? I know, right?! But I love him and it means it’s more bacon for me!

I originally grilled up 2 burgers – one for me to eat and one to photograph. As I brought them in from the grill he came into the kitchen, sniffing the air (they smell AMAZING btw). “Are you making lunch honey?” to which my first thought was ‘yes, but for me because you’re weird and don’t like amazing things’. Alas, I gave him the 2nd burger only telling him it was a chicken burger.

Guys he took one bite (as I side-eyed him while I bite into mine waiting for a reaction) and his eyes lit up. With a mouthful of food he said, “WOW honey, this is incredible!!! So good!“

Grab Your Ingredients

This burger does require a food processor or really, really good knife skills. Heck if you don’t have either when you buy your bacon at the store, ask the butcher if they’ll grind it for you.

• Meats – ground chicken (I used 92%) and ground bacon
• Seasonings – you need both buttermilk ranch seasoning and Chupacabra Cluckalicous seasoning
• Herbs – fresh green onions and garlic chives

Mix It Up

1. To a large bowl add all of the ingredients and gently mix to incorporate.
2. Section these into 6 normal-size burgers or 4 larger burgers. Totally your choice.

Shape & Chill

The trick to shaping these (as the mixture is sticky) is to use damp hands to roll and shape the patties.

1. Press the mixture together gently; overworking it increases contraction and makes the cooked meat dense and dry.
2. Form the mixture into a ball and gently start to press it down into a burger shape. You want the patty to be about a bit larger than the bun itself.
3. Use your thumb to make a nickel-sized indentation, a little more than 1/4-1/2 inch deep, in the center of each patty. This prevents the burger from doming into a ball, keeping it flat and even as it cooks.
4. Place the burger patties on a lightly oiled parchment paper lined pan, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least an hour. This is key!

Grill Artist Burger Press Recommendation

I have this Cuisinart Adjustable Burger Press and love it. It’s non-stick and I love that it compresses the meat into perfect patties and in a tight form.

Grill To Perfection

So I’m pretty much OBSESSED with my MiniMax from Big Green Egg. It’s perfect for the 2 of us to make a full meal. When I’m cooking for a crowd then I’m firing up my Asadera and my large Big Green Egg.

1. Preheat the grill to 400F. Right before adding the chilled burgers, lightly oil the grates with canola or high-heat oil.
2. Place the patties on the grill and cook for ~5 minutes, give them a gentle turn to 90 degrees, grilling for 1 more minute.
3. Flip and grill for 3-5 minutes or until the internal temp is 165F. If adding cheese, add the cheese for 1 minute before removing from the grill. Remove from the grill and assemble.

The Best Burger Topping

So I’m pretty particular with what toppings go on each specific type of burger. I’ve tried a bunch of different toppings (ketchup, honey mustard, beer cheese, caramelized onions, bacon jam, onion jam… you name it.

The toppings below are what I find to make this truly the ULTIMATE Chicken Bacon Ranch Burger!

• Melted Cheese – I’ve used sharp cheddar, smoked gouda, and pepper jack. Ultimately I found sharp cheddar to give the best flavor pairing for this.
• Bacon – if you have it, peppered bacon is honestly the best type. Crispy but not shattering crispy
• Baby Arugula – the peppery taste will help to marry the flavors
• Thick Sliced Avocado – I tried thin slices as well as smashed and I found a single thick slice gave the best mouthfeel for it.
• Parmesan Peppercorn Ranch – no ketchup, no mayo but specifically this type of dressing. I took my Ultimate Five Star Creamy Parmesan Peppercorn Dressing and added some ranch seasoning to it. This was absolutely perfect!

Substitutions and Additions

I’m going to be completely honest, there’s really nothing I’d change with this burger. However here are some substitutions/additions I’ve tried that are still as amazing.

• Meat – sub ground chicken for ground turkey. You can also grind your own chicken (use a combination of white and dark meat)
• Veggies – radishes are great on this. You can add grated shallots to the burger mixture too
• Spice – if you want a spicier burger, add sriracha or buffalo seasoning to the mix.
• Tex Mex – add green chilis to the mix and top with queso asadero

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