Quick Look at these Grilled Buffalo Chicken Burgers
- Ready In: 45 minutes
- Serves: 4
- Main Ingredients: ground chicken, celery, onion, butter, seasonings, and the best homemade buffalo sauce (or pick-up a store-bought version).
- Flavor Profile: a tangy heat that is slightly spicy but not super hot. Just like classic buffalo wings!
- Dietary Info: dairy-free and gluten-free, paleo, and Whole30-friendly
- Cooking Method: outdoor grill (plus stovetop option)
Share and summarize this recipe:
Why You’ll Devour These Buffalo Chicken Burgers
- Maximum flavor from that creamy & tangy buffalo sauce.
- Pro tips to achieving the most juicy chicken burgers EVER!
- Make it your own with any type of bun and ALL the BEST toppings!
- Best for entertaining at a cookout or quick weeknight dinner.
Key Ingredients + Substitutions
Be sure to see the recipe card below for a full listing of ingredients, instructions, and estimated nutritional information.
- Ground Chicken – option to use ground turkey, if you prefer.
- Buffalo Sauce – highly recommend our homemade buffalo sauce, but you can also pick-up a store-bought sauce at your local grocery store.
- Shredded Butter – our secret ingredient to make sure the chicken burger is always juicy and never dry!
- Hamburger Bun – whether that is a lettuce bun, gluten-free bun or regular burger bun – do what works best for you!
How To Make Buffalo Chicken Burgers
Step 1 – Put all of the burger ingredients in a bowl.
Step 2 – Mix to fully combine.
Pro Tips: Handling Ground Chicken
- Oil on Hands: Put some olive oil on your hands when forming the patties.
- Patties in Freezer: Once the patties are made, place them on a parchment lined plate or sheet pan. Place in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Move them directly from the freezer to the hot grill. This helps keep them together and easier to handle.
Step 3 – Form 4 patties with an indent in the middle. Freeze for 20 minutes.
Step 4 – Cook on a hot grill until they have an internal temperature of 165°F.
Best Toppings For Buffalo Chicken Burgers
- Blue cheese crumbles
- Homemade ranch dressing (or store-bought)
- Creamy blue cheese dressing
- Sliced green onions
- Butter lettuce
- Extra buffalo sauce!
Best Ways To Serve Buffalo Chicken Burgers
There are a variety of excellent side dishes to serve with ground chicken buffalo burgers:
- Quick Weeknight: grilled sweet corn and/or grilled potato wedges.
- Backyard Cookout: 10-minute creamy coleslaw, watermelon mint salad, and lemon pasta salad.
Erin’s Testing Tips: What We Learned
- Don’t skip the shredded butter and onion: the butter keeps the inside of the patties nice and juicy! And shredding the onion distributes the flavor more evenly.
- Freezing the patties for 20 minutes makes grilling so much easier! This has been tested several times.
Buffalo Chicken Burgers FAQs
Yes, option to form the patties ahead of time and refrigerate for up to 24 hours before grilling or place in a freezer-safe container with parchment between the patties.
Yes, this buffalo chicken burgers recipe can easily be cooked in a cast iron skillet or grill pan on your stovetop. Depending on the size of the pan, they may need to be cooked in batches.
Yes, place parchment paper squares between the patties and freeze for up to 3 months.
Other Easy Burger Recipes You Might Like
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Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- ¼ cup celery, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup white onion, grated with water squeezed out
- 2 tablespoons butter, cold and cut into little chunks or shredded
- 1 tablespoon buffalo sauce, homemade buffalo sauce or store-bought
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
Serving Suggestions (build your own burger):
- butter lettuce
- hamburger buns of choice, lettuce bun, gluten-free, regular
- green onions, sliced (optional)
- buffalo sauce, optional
- ranch dressing, optional
- blue cheese dressing, optional
- blue cheese crumbles, optional
Instructions
- Make Burgers: In a mixing bowl, add 1 pound ground chicken, sliced celery, grated onion, shredded butter, 1 tablespoon buffalo sauce, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon garlic, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper; mix to combine.
- Freeze: Divide meat mixture into 4 equal patties, about ½ – ¾ inches thick. Place them on a parchment lined baking sheet or plate and create an indent in the middle of each patty. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes to help patties keep their shape (don't skip this step).
- Prep: Preheat grill to 400-450℉ and make sure the grill grates are clean.
- Cook: Remove the patties from the freezer. Carefully grease the hot grill grates. Place burgers on the grill over direct heat and close the lid. Cook for 5-7 minutes per side with cover closed or until the internal temp reaches 160-165℉ (use a meat thermometer).
- Rest + Serve (build your own burger): Remove from grill and let rest 5-10 minutes. Build your burger and serve any way you want – I love serving mine on a bun with lettuce, more buffalo sauce, a little ranch dressing, some blue cheese crumbled and a few sliced green onions!
Notes
- Dairy-Free: use a plant-based butter.
- Storage: These make amazing leftovers! Simply store in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
- Paleo/Whole30: Use ghee instead of butter. Serve with butter lettuce, sliced green onions, compliant buffalo sauce and compliant ranch dressing. Omit blue cheese crumbles.
- Nutrition info is for burgers on a bun. It does not include the optional toppings because amounts will vary.
Nutrition
Originally published July 27, 2020. Retested and updated with new process shots on 7/6/26.
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Ally says
I am very confused – while reading the beginning of this recipe blog it says it has almond flour and an egg? But once I get down to the actual recipe those aren’t listed. What is the actual recipe?
Erin Jensen says
Ah so sorry, Ally! The recipe card reflects the accurate recipe – we just retested and updated the recipe card and somehow the other section was missed in the update. My apologies!
Megan says
The carbs aren’t adding up per patty for in Crononometer. I’m only getting 1.4g…are you using a bun?
Sara says
Do you have nutrition info for this recipe?
Erin says
We just added it for you! Thanks!
Emily says
What is nutrition information for this recipe?
Court says
Any recommendations to substitute ghee?
Erin says
You can use butter instead of ghee!
SL says
Can you use gf all purpose flour or gf breadcrumbs instead of almond flour?
Erin says
GF breadcrumbs would be a good substitute!
The.Food.Hills says
The chicken was very flavorful and juicy, paired with the sauces and the blue cheese, it was a fantastic meal!
Erin says
So happy to hear that!
Jeanine says
Made these tonight. Everyone loved them. Omitted the celery. This is a keeper. Will make again. Definitely recommend.
Erin says
So glad you enjoyed them, Jeanine!
Mary says
Really good! I was a little nervous that the Buffalo flavor would be too strong for my picky kids- but it was just the right amount of flavor! And my husband and I drizzled TWS’s homemade ranch and a buffalo sauce on top!
Make sure to GENEROUSLY oil the foil, like the instructions indicate. I was too light and the patty was pretty stuck to the foil.
Jennifer Flannery says
So good! I have a family of picky eaters and this was a hit for everyone!
Erin says
So happy to hear that, Jennifer! And thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review + feedback!
Nikki says
It looks delicious. Keep sharing the recipe.