Wake up your taste buds the next time you grill with these smokey chile and queso stuffed burgers. The ooey gooey cheesy center is sure to make your mouth water!
Whether you are lounging at home for a family barbecue or grilling by the lake on your mini getaway, there is something amazing about the the classic burger. My kids love burgers, and they love them even more when we make them at home.
My family is getting used to trying new things as I frequently feed them my food experiments. It was harder to get them to eat new foods when they were little, but as young adults they have evolved into food snobs!
Why you must try recipe
Last year they loved my twist making the Persian kabab burger, so I decided to fuse another culture to make another great tasting burger. When I was developing this recipe for my chile queso burger, my loving family provided me with more input than I needed: too much cheese, not enough cheese, too spicy, just enough spice…
Taking the cheese from the top of the burger and stuffing it inside isn’t new to the culinary scene. An American classic, the Juicy Lucy, was a genius idea sprouted in Minneapolis, Minnesota. My queso stuffed burger takes this idea to a whole new level.
Well, the beauty of this burger, is that you can customize it to fit your taste buds. This south of the border burger is far from boring, with just enough heat to wake up your senses!
Since I live in San Diego, we really are lucky to have some of the best Mexican food available to us. I have fallen in love with the bold flavors you get from the variety of peppers and chiles I find at the store. You can roast them at home or get them already roasted.
Chiles come in different sizes, flavors and heat intensity. So if you don’t like spicy food, but you do like chile peppers feel free to substitute with milder chiles.
Ingredients you need
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- Ground beef: When grilling burgers, you want the fat. It keeps the meat juicy and full of flavor. So use 80/20 ground beef for these burgers.
- Spices: Paprika, chile powder (mild or spicy), garlic powder, onion powder and sea salt
- Monterey Jack cheese: This is great melty cheese and is very common in Mexican food. You could swap it with mozzarella. Both are mild white cheese that melt well.
- Cream cheese: By adding a soft cheese like cream cheese to the mix, you end up with a soft melty cheesy goodness inside your burgers.
- Hatch chiles: Depending on personal preference you can use mild or spicy green chiles. You can roast your own or use canned.
- Shallots: Shallots off a bit of garlicky onion flavor. You can substitute with red onions.
- Chipotle in adobo: Besides heat, this adds some terrific smokiness to the queso filling.
- Serve with burger buns, fresh cilantro, avocados and fresh tomatoes.
Step-by-step directions
1. Mix beef with spices and let it sit for 30 minutes for flavors to meld together.
2. In a small bowl combine cheeses, chiles and shallots until creamy and smooth.
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3. Divide meat mixture into 6 even portions. A food scale is perfect for this! For each burger portion, divide in half and press into thin patties of meat on parchment paper squares.
4. On one thin patty add some cheese stuffing onto center of the patty. Lay second thin patty over the stuffing, pressing the edges together to seal. Flatten the centers so that the burgers are even. Do this with the 5 other portions of beef so you have a total of 6 burgers.
5. If grilling, lightly oil grate and grill the burgers over a hot fire, turning once, about 7 minutes. Brush burger buns with olive oil and toast on the grill.
6. You can prepare the burgers indoors using a cast iron over high heat, turning once, about 3-4 minutes per side for medium rare. Serve on toasted buns and top with cilantro, avocado, tomato and red onions slices.
Recipe tips and FAQs
It’s not rocket science, but you do need to take the time to seal your burger or else all that cheesy goodness will come spilling out while you cook it, making an awful mess. Some burgers will bust open a seam, and that’s okay. As you can see in my picture on top, the burger still holds its shape even when this happens.
You can serve up your burgers with a number of great sides, besides the obvious french fries! Try my grilled potato salad, mango coleslaw, or my orzo pasta salad.
If you want more delicious sandwich recipes, you should also try my Baked Brats in the Oven or Chicken Caesar Club Sandwich.
But because ground beef is minced and mixed together, the harmful bacteria is all over the mixture, including the center. So the only way to completely kill off any harmful bacteria is to cook it completely. This is the case whether you are using any ground meat, whether it is ground beef or ground lamb.
This is why burgers should never ever be pink in the center. This doesn’t mean that you have to overcook your burger. No one wants to eat a hockey puck. Because we are using ground beef with 20% fat, the fat melts into the burger. This means we have a juicy and delicious meal even if it is cooked completely.
Plus, when you have a stuffed burger, you are really just cooking two thin patties of meat. The burgers won’t take as long to cook and the center of the burger will be left ooey, gooey and cheesy. This is true whether you grill your stuffed burgers or cook them indoors.
Chile and Queso Stuffed Burgers
Ingredients
- 2 lbs 80/20 ground beef
- 1 ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoon chile powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- 6 tablespoon shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 3 tablespoon cream cheese
- 2 tablespoon diced roasted Hatch chiles mild or spicy
- 2 tablespoon diced shallots
- 1 tablespoon chipotle in adobo
- 6 burger buns
- 1 bunch of cilantro stems removed
- 2 avocados sliced
- 2 tomatoes sliced
Instructions
- Mix beef with spices and let it sit for 30 minutes for flavors to meld together.
- In a small bowl combine cheeses, chiles and shallots until creamy and smooth.
- Divide meat mixture into 6 even portions. A food scale is perfect for this!
- For each burger portion, divide in half and press into thin patties of meat on parchment paper squares.
- On one thin patty add about 2 ½ tablespoon of cheese stuffing onto center of the patty.
- Lay second thin patty over the stuffing, pressing the edges together to seal.
- Flatten the centers so that the burgers are even.
- Do this with the 5 other portions of beef so you have a total of 6 burgers.
- If grilling, lightly oil grate and grill the burgers over a hot fire, turning once, about 7 minutes.
- Brush burger buns with olive oil and toast on the grill.
- You can prepare the burgers indoors using a cast iron over high heat, turning once, about 3-4 minutes per side for medium rare.
- Serve on toasted buns and top with cilantro, avocado, tomato and red onions slices.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
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Written by Laura Bashar
Hi, I’m Laura, a certified professional cook and cookbook author living in San Diego. I have been sharing my family’s favorite recipes inspired from all over the world since 2008. Let’s cook up something fun!
I’ve done those frozen burgers. No more — making your own burger patties is more satisfying, and the burgers certainly taste better. I love what you’ve done here — such terrific flavor. Thanks!
It’s smokey, spicy and cheesy! Perfect for burgers!