EASY JALAPEÑO POPPER STUFFED BURGERS

These spicy, cheesy burgers are stuffed full of all the delicious flavors of traditional jalapeño poppers. They’re super quick and easy to make, and are always a crowd pleaser!

Oh, do I have a delicious recipe to share today! If you are a fan of burgers and jalapeño poppers…you will love this recipe. These jalapeño popper burgers have been on rotation in our home for well over a year now, and I can’t believe I’m only now finally sitting down to share them with you! Why, you ask? Well, if I’m being honest, many nights Barry and I have fallen into the trap of cooking our dinner after Chloe goes to bed. Sometimes it’s because she’s having leftovers & I’m making something different for us to eat, sometimes it’s because she needs to eat extra early due to an earlier bedtime. And sometimes, we just want a quiet, adult dinnertime for ourselves!

These burgers are an example of a recipe that I make for the two of us on one of those nights; the filling is spicy – definitely too spicy for her! So, I often cook these burgers somewhere in the 8 o’clock hour, which is an awful time for food photography. Last night was no different, however, I decided to bite the bullet and just photograph them and share them as is because…this recipe is toooooo delicious not to share and make immediately! Please don’t read into the not-so-great photos of the finished product (I’ll definitely plan to make them in the daylight hours soon so I can get some better shots!) but instead…make these easy jalapeño popper burgers ASAP. You will not be sorry! They’re perfectly spicy, stuffed full of delicious jalapeño popper filling, and just bursting with flavor.

JALAPEÑO POPPER BURGER INGREDIENTS

1. Ground beef: We always use 80/20 ground beef, so that’s all we’ve tested this recipe with. If you try this with another ratio, please let us know how it works out!
2. Seasoning for the beef: We always find Montreal Steak seasoning (not sponsored, we are just huge fans!) to be the best and easiest way to give our burgers great flavor. If you don’t have this on hand, you can season the meat with any mix of your other favorite herbs, to taste!
3. Cheeses: Cream cheese is the base of the jalapeño popper filling, and it makes it super creamy and delicious. Shredded cheddar (or another variety of your choice!) also helps the filling get nice and melt-y. 🙂
4. Pickled jalapeños: You could use fresh jalapeños, but I always have pickled on hand (which makes these burgers even easier to whip up quickly!)
5. Seasoning for the filling: Equal parts of cumin, chili powder, and onion powder provide nice kick and flavor.

HOW TO MAKE JALAPEÑO POPPER BURGERS

1. Prepare your filling: Mix the filling ingredients together in a small bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.
2. Prepare the meat: In a medium bowl, mix the ground beef with the Montreal Steak Seasoning.
3. Shape patties: Divide the meat into 4 equal parts, and flatten each into equal sized discs. Please them onto a cutting board or plate.
4. Add filling: Divide the filling into two equal parts, and put each scoop of filling onto a patty. You should end up with two plain patties, and two patties covered with the filling.)
5. Shape the burgers: Place a plain patty on top of a patty with the filling, and gently press the edges together, tucking them in and around each other to create a tight seal. You should not see any “seam” line when you’re finished. Repeat with the remaining two patties. You should end up with two burgers.
6. Cook burgers: Place the burgers onto a pre-heated, hot non-stick pan (preferably cast iron), and cook until to your desired done-ness. I usually cook then for about 7 minutes or so per side, since they’re thick. This yields medium-well to well-done burgers).
7. Top & serve: Add desired toppings (cheese, bacon, etc.) and remove burgers from pan. Let rest on a paper towel lined plate for a couple minutes. Place onto the buns, and serve!

NOTES AND SUGGESTIONS

1. Our favorite topping is a slice/sprinkle of cheese (more cheese = better!) Sometimes we also love a few extra pickled jalapeños on top! We don’t normally top our burgers with bacon (as is written in the recipe) simply because it’s an extra step to have to cook the bacon first, and that adds extra time. We’re usually working against the clock in our house. 🙂 However, we recommend the bacon topping, as bacon is a key ingredient in jalapeño poppers. If you want to kick these burgers up an extra notch, you can make a little extra filling (or save a little bit after stuffing them) and slather it on top of the burgers when they’re still hot – yum!
2. Be sure to start off with room-temperature ground beef; this will allow the meat to cook more evenly and in turn will yield juicier burgers.
3. Any bun will do for these burgers, but we highly recommend brioche buns (Aldi makes the best affordable ones we’ve found!)
4. You can easily shape the patties with your hands, but I recommend using a burger press (I have and love the Pampered Chef burger & slider press, but cannot find it on Amazon. I’ve linked a similar one here) to help you get evenly-sized patties. Just be sure to spray it with non-stick spray first before using it.

Please make these burgers for dinner tonight! They are big, juicy, and stuffed with the best flavors…total comfort food! Let us know how you like them! 🙂

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If you’re looking for the perfect side dish to serve with these burgers, try:

The Best Air Fryer French Fries

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? ♥️

Danielle