Cooking With Wine Blog

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Cookbook
  • Contact Us
  • Our Story
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Cookbook
    • Contact Us
    • Our Story
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
  • ×
    Home » Main Courses

    Chili Cheese Burgers with Lemony Garlic Herb Aioli

    Published: Oct 20, 2020 · Modified: Dec 17, 2023 by Angela and Mark · This post may contain affiliate links · 1 Comment

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Not what you think! These Chili Cheese Burgers are made by combing roasted chili peppers with chunks of cheddar cheese and chili powder in the patty itself. These burgers end up being super juicy and cheesy with the perfect level of heat and texture.

    Chili Cheese Burger

    Who doesn’t like a good burger? Please, don’t tell me if it’s you! Burgers range from the basic to some pretty twisted monsters, to vegetarian and even completely unrecognizable as burgers. The one we decided to create turned out to be one of the most amazing burgers we’ve ever eaten. It’s not so tricked up that making it would be daunting at all, but it is so far from boring or “the usual.”

    What type of meat should I use?

    We prefer using good quality ground beef (80:20). You want your burgers to hold together, but not be too lean to retain flavor. Feel free to experiment with whatever meat you want though! We love mixing a little breakfast sausage into our ground beef, but you can use ground turkey or one of those plant-based meat options if you are trying to reduce your carbon footprint, save the animals, or reduce your cholesterol. Please let us know how these options turn out, as we have not actually tried them, so no guarantees these options will be as good as the ground beef version here. But our guess is that if you clicked on this recipe, you prefer that beef life.

    Homemade Chili Powder

    Chili Powder Options

    Any type of chili powder will work in these tasty burgs, but if you are in the mood to make your own, we highly encourage this activity. We typically make our own so we can get the exact heat and taste we want. If you want to make your own, find our recipe HERE. Our chili powder is homemade with guajillo, New Mexico, ancho and arbol chiles. If you can find dried chiles, we highly recommend making your own chili powder, rather than buying a jar from the grocery store. The flavor is amazing. Otherwise just buy your fave brand or blend and it will work just fine.

    What is the best cheese for these Chili Cheese Burgers?

    To make these burgers, we prefer to use sharp cheddar. You want to make sure you have a cheese with good flavor that melts nicely when cooked. BUT, you do not want that cheese to ooze out of the burger before you take your first bite. So to prevent over-oozing, we cut the cheese into small cubes then freeze it for a bit before adding it to the meat mixture. The frozen cheese melts at a slower pace while the burger meat cooks, and you are left with glorious melty cheese without losing it all to the flames.

    What peppers are best for this recipe?

    So, what kind of chili would we put in a burger. Well, we used chili (or chile) peppers, not the amazing stew invented in Texas. We used a combination of roasted and diced jalapeños and poblanos. The jalapeños give a little heat and the poblanos have such an amazing flavor that they really work. But feel free to experiment with your favorite peppers for this recipe to discover the exact flavor you love! You really have a lot of options if you wish to mix it up with this Chili Cheese Burger – like the seasonings, cheese, add bacon (pictured) etc.

    We hope you enjoy this recipe for Chili Cheese Burgers and if you give it a try, leave us a comment below, or tag us on Instagram @cooking_with_wine.

    Chili Cheese Burgers

    If you love this recipe, check our more of our popular recipes below:

    • Spicy Cajun Roasted Cauliflower
    • Brie & Passion Fruit Pepper Jelly Grilled Cheese
    • Farmhouse Ranch Smashed Potatoes
    • Banana Pudding
    • Juicy Lucy Cowgirl Cheeseburger

    📖 Recipe

    Chili Cheese Burger

    Chili Cheese Burgers

    These Chili Cheese Burgers are easy, delicious, and exactly what you need to be cooking this summer! It's roasted chilies and chunks of cheddar in a burger. What could be better?
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 30 minutes mins
    Cook Time 8 minutes mins
    Total Time 38 minutes mins
    Course Main
    Cuisine American
    Servings 8 servings
    Calories 685 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    Chili Cheese Burger Patties

    • 1.5 cups small diced sharp cheddar cheese
    • 3 lbs ground beef (80/20 or so)
    • 3 roasted, peeled and seeded poblano peppers - chopped
    • 3 roasted, peeled and seeded jalapeño peppers - chopped
    • 3 tbs chili powder
    • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
    • 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
    • 1 tablespoon kosher salt

    Lemony Garlic Herb Aioli

    • ¾ cup mayonnaise
    • 1 tablespoon minced garlic (approx 2 cloves)
    • 2 tablespoon lemon juice
    • 1 teaspoon lemon zest (approx 1 small lemon's worth)
    • 1 tablespoon chopped herbs (e.g., rosemary, oregano, thyme, parsley)
    • pinch of salt
    • cracked black pepper to taste
    Get Recipe Ingredients

    Instructions
     

    BURGER PATTIES

    • Small dice (about ¼ inch) cheddar cheese to make about 1.5 cups. Put on a tray and freeze for 15-20 minutes.
    • Mix remaining burger ingredients with your hands until thoroughly combined and let burger mixture rest to come to room temperature.
    • When cheese is frozen, add to mixture and immediately move to step 4.
    • Make ⅓ lb patties (or whatever size you desire)
    • Grill or pan fry to desired doneness (approx 3-4 min per side) and serve on a bun with Aioli (below) or whatever you choose.

    LEMONY GARLIC HERB AIOLI

    • Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 685kcalCarbohydrates: 6gProtein: 35gFat: 57gSaturated Fat: 20gPolyunsaturated Fat: 11gMonounsaturated Fat: 20gTrans Fat: 2gCholesterol: 151mgSodium: 1337mgPotassium: 661mgFiber: 2gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 1350IUVitamin C: 40mgCalcium: 206mgIron: 4mg
    Keyword beef, burgers, chili, grill
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

    More Main Courses

    • Dry-Rubbed Pork Tenderloin
      Dry-Rubbed Roasted Pork Tenderloin Recipe
    • White Wine Garlic Butter Sautéed Oyster Mushrooms
      White Wine Garlic Butter Sautéed Oyster Mushrooms
    • Pan Fried Risotto Cakes
      Pan Fried Risotto Cakes - Easy Leftover Risotto Recipe
    • Grilled Marinated Tri Tip
      Grilled Marinated Tri Tip Steak - Ultimate Marinade Recipe

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Classically trained chef, Mark, and wife and food photographer, Angela, are the cooking duo behind Cooking with Wine! Our goal is to create delicious and approachable recipes that you can make at home. We strive to make every meal special!

    Read More

    Work with Us!

    Popular

    • Crunchy Chicken with White Wine Lemon Butter Sauce
      Crunchy Chicken with White Wine Lemon Butter Sauce
    • White Wine Vinegar Chicken
      Chicken with White Wine Vinegar Tomato Sauce and Spinach Orzo
    • Creamy Cacio e Pepe Pasta
      Creamy Cacio e Pepe Pasta
    • Red Wine Slow Braised Italian Beef Ragù
      Red Wine Slow Braised Italian Beef Ragù

    Never Miss A Recipe!

    Subscribe

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Our Story

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Services
    • FAQ

    Copyright © 2023 Cooking with wine blog