Jalapeno Popper Beef Burgers

A jalapeno popper inspired beef burger.

jalapeno popper burger

Awhile back, I made a delicious bean version of this burger using red kidney beans and stuffing the burger with diced jalapeno and cream cheese. This time around, we went full beef – using ground chuck instead of beans, and doubling up the jalapeno popper flavor by including both diced jalapeno and cream cheese in the patties, and then topping the burgers with a slab of jalapeno-infused cream cheese.

At this point, I’m pretty sure I can open a whole restaurant with recipes dedicated to cream cheese and jalapeno dishes.

Explore the ever-expanding list of jalapeno-popper inspired dishes.

Time You Need

  • ~15 minute prep
  • ~15-20 minutes cooking
  • Yields: ~4 burgers

What You Need

  • 1 pound of ground chuck or ground sirloin
  • ~6 ounces of cream cheese (low fat or regular), room temp (or American Neufchâtel Cheese)
  • 1 ½ cups of finely diced jalapeno
  • 2 tbsp. garlic powder
  • 2 tbsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 /2 cup of unseasoned bread crumbs
  • 1 beaten egg
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire
  • ½ onion, finely grated or diced
  • Garlic salt, to taste
  • Desired burger toppings and buns (lettuce, onions, tomato, etc.)
  • Pretzel buns (or preferred bun)
  • Butter or oil for cooking

What You Do

  • Take a well-oiled cast-iron skillet and heat over medium heat, add about a tbsp of butter or oil and spread around the pan.
  • In a large bowl, add the egg, garlic powder, garlic salt, onion powder, black pepper, red pepper flakes, cayenne, mustard, diced onion, olive oil, bread crumbs, and Worcestershire.
  • Toss in 2 tbsp of room temp cream cheese, ½ cup of the diced jalapeno, and mix.
  • Then add ground chuck.
  • Using your hands and a fork – and very gently – mix the ingredients thoroughly.
  • Divide the meat into 4 equal portions.
  • Gently flatten each portion into a patty, making it slightly thinner at the center (this helps keep the patty thinner though the cooking process)
  • Cook patties (2 at a time) for about 5-7 minutes on each side, or till cooked to desired doneness.
  • While burgers cook, add the remaining cream cheese (4 ounces) and the cup of diced jalapeno to a food processor and blend thoroughly. Set to the side.
  • Once all burgers are done, remove from heat and set on a clean plate. Use a wooden or silicone mixing spoon to spread a dollop of the cream cheese/jalapeno blend to the top of each patty. Do this asap while patties are still hot so they melt the cream cheese mixture just a bit.
  • Place patties on buns, top with desired burger toppings, and serve immediately!