Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: Buffalo chicken burgers are juicy and tender, with all the spicy, tangy flavor you love from Buffalo wings. Top them with ranch or blue cheese dressing and your favorite burger fixings for a fun alternative to your usual burger recipe!
How long it takes: 27 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: mixing bowl and skillet, air fryer or sheet pan
Servings: 4
Everything You Love About Buffalo Wings in Burger Form
The spicy-tangy hot sauce (plus ranch or blue cheese dressing!), that little bit of celery for crunch — this is my new favorite burger!
These chicken burgers come together in under 30 minutes and you can cook them three different ways: pan, broiler, air fryer (just skip the grill for this one, they’re too soft).
What makes them special:
- Hot sauce IN the patty, not just on top: The hot sauce is mixed right into the chicken patties, giving every bite that irresistible spicy-tangy flavor. I usually drizzle a little hot sauce on my burger, too! (Buffalo fans will also appreciate my buffalo chicken bites and crockpot buffalo chicken sandwiches.)
- Tender and juicy: When we tested these Buffalo burgers, we originally planned to include an egg but realized it wasn’t necessary. The ground chicken mixture yields a tender patty that holds together well without it.
- Quick and easy: Choose your favorite cooking method: fry, broil, or air fry the burgers. Dinner’s done in less than 30 minutes!
Ingredient Notes
You’ll find the full ingredient list in the recipe card, but here are some notes on what you’ll need.
- Ground chicken: Ground chicken has a mild flavor, letting all that Buffalo goodness shine. If you like Buffalo chicken wings, you’ll love these burgers!
- Hot sauce & seasonings: Frank’s RedHot gives classic buffalo wing flavor but you can choose another variety of Buffalo-style hot sauce. Garlic powder, salt and pepper season the burger mixture.
- Celery & onion: You’ll want to mince the veggies finely so they mix evenly into the ground chicken mixture and don’t cause the burger to fall apart.
- Panko breadcrumbs: The panko binds the burgers and also helps keep them tender.
- To serve: Serve the burgers on soft burger buns (toast the buns first for extra flavor). For toppings, choose from lettuce, sliced tomato, ranch or blue cheese dressing, and extra hot sauce or Buffalo sauce.
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Burgers
Mix the burger mixture. In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, hot sauce, celery, onion, panko, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix gently until everything is evenly distributed. Try not to overwork the mixture, which can make the burgers tough.
Form the patties. Divide the mixture into four equal portions. Shape each portion into a round flat patty about ¾-inch thick and use your thumb to make a light indentation in the center. This helps the burgers cook more evenly and prevents them from puffing up too much.
Cook the burgers. You can fry the burgers in a skillet, air fry the burgers, or cook them under the broiler. Instructions for each method are included on the recipe card below. The chicken burgers should be golden brown on both sides and cooked through to 165°F. During the last minute of cooking, brush the tops lightly with additional hot sauce if you’d like even more Buffalo flavor.
Assemble and serve. Place the burgers on toasted buns and top with lettuce, tomato, ranch dressing, blue cheese dressing, Buffalo sauce, or any combination you love.
Recipe Tip
Don’t grill these burgers! The patties are a little softer than traditional beef burgers, so they’re best cooked in a skillet, air fryer, or under the broiler. They don’t work well on an outdoor grill.
Recipe Variations
- Make cheeseburgers. Add a slice of pepper jack or mozzarella cheese during the last minute of cooking.
- Turn up the heat. Buffalo sauce is pretty mild as far as hot sauce goes. If you want a little more kick, add cayenne to the seasoning mixture.
- Add some sweet heat. Another tasty option is to drizzle hot honey over the patties before adding your toppings.
What to Serve With Buffalo Chicken Burgers
Fries. You can’t go wrong with air fryer French fries or air fryer sweet potato fries.
Coleslaw. I like coleslaw with Buffalo chicken burgers because it provides a crisp-and-creamy contrast. Try my healthy coleslaw recipe to keep it light. Vinegar coleslaw is more of a pickled option; it isn’t made with mayonnaise and keeps well in the refrigerator.
Celery and carrot sticks. Crisp veggies are a classic combination with Buffalo chicken, especially if you have blue cheese dressing to dip them into!
Refrigerate: Store leftover Buffalo chicken burger patties in a covered container for up to 3 days.
Freeze: Cooked burger patties can be frozen for up to 2 months. I like to place them in a freezer bag or airtight container with parchment paper between the layers to keep them from sticking. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
Reheat: Warm the patties (without bun or toppings) in a skillet over medium heat, a 350ºF air fryer, or the microwave until heated through.
Buffalo Chicken Burgers
Ingredients
For the burgers:
- 16 ounces ground chicken
- ¼ cup hot sauce, such as Frank’s RedHot (plus more for brushing)
- ¼ cup very finely minced celery (1 stalk)
- 2 tablespoons finely minced onion
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (for frying in skillet)
For serving (optional):
- 4 burger buns
- 4 lettuce leaves
- 4 slices tomato
- ranch dressing, Buffalo sauce, extra hot sauce, or blue cheese dressing (your choice)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, hot sauce, celery, onion, breadcrumbs, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix gently until just combined. Do not overmix.16 ounces ground chicken, ¼ cup hot sauce, such as Frank’s RedHot, ¼ cup very finely minced celery, 2 tablespoons finely minced onion, ½ cup panko breadcrumbs, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- Divide mixture into 4 equal portions and shape into flat round patties about ¾-inch thick. Using your thumb or a spoon, make slight indentation in the center of each patty (this helps them cook evenly).
- Cook the burgers using your preferred method. (They aren't suitable for grilling because the mixture is too soft.) During the last minute of cooking, brush tops lightly with additional hot sauce if desired.
- Serve on toasted buns with ranch or blue cheese dressing, lettuce, tomato, and extra hot sauce.
- Stovetop: Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add a tablespoon of oil. Cook patties for 5 to 6 minutes, flip, and cook for 5 to 6 minutes more, until golden and cooked through (165°F internal temperature).1 tablespoon olive oil
- Air Fryer: Place burgers in air fryer basket and set temperature to 380ºF. Cook for 12 minutes, flip, and cook for an additional 5 to 7 minutes. When fully cooked, internal temperature of burgers should be 165ºF.
- Oven Broiler: Preheat broiler (High) with rack in top third of oven. Line a sheet pan with foil for easy cleanup. Broil on high for 6 to 7 minutes, flip, and continue broiling 3 to 4 minutes or until burgers are done. Watch closely toward the end to make sure they don’t get too brown.
Notes
- Make it a bowl: Instead of serving the burgers on a bun, chop them up and serve as the protein in a meal bowl with your favorite grain, chopped tomato, diced celery, blue cheese crumbles, drizzled with blue cheese dressing or Buffalo sauce.
- Storage: Refrigerate leftover Buffalo chicken burger patties in a covered container for up to 3 days. Cooked burger patties can be frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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