Meet Your New Favourite Burger

Combining the salty zing of bacon, the intensity of blue cheese and a hefty dose of ground chicken, all wrapped in a smoky blanket from perfect grilling, these burgers are a hit. Whether you’re serving them at your next dinner party or on a quiet Sunday night, smoked chicken burgers will catch everyone’s attention the second they hit the grill.

Smoked Chicken Burgers With Bacon and Blue Cheese

Serves: 4
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Grilling Time: 8-10 minutes
Special Equipment: 2 large handfuls hickory wood chips

Patties

4 slices bacon
½ medium onion, finely chopped
½ teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1¼ pounds ground chicken, preferably thigh meat
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Sauce

½ cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
½ teaspoon granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 hamburger buns, split
4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
12 sweet pickle chips

Directions

1. Soak the wood chips in water for at least 30 minutes.

2. In a skillet over medium heat, fry the bacon until crisp, 10 to 12 minutes, turning occasionally. Transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of bacon fat. Return the skillet over medium heat and add the onion and thyme. Cook until the onion starts to soften, 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Crumble the bacon. Mix the bacon, onion mixture, ground chicken, salt, and pepper, and then gently form four patties of equal size, each about ¾ inch thick. With your thumb or the back of a spoon, make a shallow indentation about 1 inch wide in the center of the patties to prevent them from forming a dome as they cook. Refrigerate the patties until ready to grill.

3. Prepare the grill for direct cooking over medium-high heat (400° to 500°F).

4. Whisk the sauce ingredients.

5. Drain and add the wood chips to the charcoal or to the smoker box of a gas grill, following manufacturer’s instructions, and close the lid. When smoke appears, cook the patties over direct medium-high heat, with the lid closed, until fully cooked (165°F), 8 to 10 minutes, turning once. During the last 30 seconds to 1 minute of grilling time, toast the buns, cut side down, over direct heat.

6. Build each burger on a bun with sauce, a patty, blue cheese, and pickle chips. Serve warm.

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