Hawaiian Chicken Burgers

These Hawaiian Chicken Burgers are a great way to switch up your usual chicken burger. The patties are packed with spices and red onion and served on a slice of grilled pineapple with crispy bacon, grilled red onion slices and drizzled with a spicy chipotle sauce. They are so flavourful and Whole30, Paleo, Grain Free and Gluten Free. 

 

In my opinion when it comes to burgers, the toppings are the deciding factor between an average burger and an amazing burger. More specifically, the messier the burger is to eat, the tastier it usually is. Case and point, these Hawaiian Chicken Burgers which is so flavourful and delicious and requires at least 4 napkins to eat.

These Hawaiian Chicken Burgers are a cross between my all time favourite pizza, Hawaiian Pizza, and a chicken burger. It starts with a slice of juicy grilled pineapple, and is then topped with crisp bacon, a flavour packed chicken patty, tomatoes, grilled red onion and finally a spicy chipotle mayonnaise. There is so much flavour!

 

WHY YOU WILL LOVE THESE HAWAIIAN CHICKEN BURGERS

• These Hawaiian Chicken Burgers are exploding with flavour, they are sweet, tangy, spicy and so delicious! A great way to switch up your usual burger. 
• Everything can be made in advance and reheated before serving.
• These tasty burgers are Paleo, Whole30, Grain Free, Gluten Free and Dairy Free, but no one would ever know!
• You can enjoy these burgers in a bun, or keep it low carb and use iceberg lettuce as a bun

 

 

CAN I USE A DIFFERENT TYPE OF MEAT FOR THESE PATTIES?

If you struggle to find ground chicken in the grocery store, you can make your own or use a different type of meat. To make your own simply place 2 large chicken breasts or 6 chicken thighs in a food processor and pulse them into a mince. It’s super easy and often times cheaper then buying the meat already ground. If you would like to use a different type of meat I would recommend using ground turkey or ground pork instead. Ground turkey tends to be slightly drier than chicken whereas pork has a higher fat content and will be more moist. 

 

WHAT IS IN THE CHICKEN PATTIES?

These are more than just a basic chicken patty, they are loaded with so much flavour. The patties are packed with chopped red onion, garlic, cumin, paprika and coconut aminos to give them a rich spiced flavour. After adding all of the spices to the ground meat, mix it well together and cook a small meatball sized tester patty to make sure you are happy with the taste. Add more cumin, paprika or coconut aminos if needed. To make these patties Whole30 and Paleo I use almond flour, but you can use any flour of your choice including oat flour, coconut flour, all purpose flour or gluten free flour. 

 

HOW SHOULD I COOK THE CHICKEN PATTIES ?

Although cooking these on a BBQ is great, if you don’t have access to one, a grill pan works just as well. This is the grill pan I use and I love the charred grill marks it leaves on food, just like a BBQ! If you have a large enough grill, you can cook the pineapple, red onion and chicken patties all at the same time.

 

WHAT’S IN THE CHIPOTLE MAYONNAISE?

The chipotle mayonnaise is so good I don’t think there is a need for any other condiments (put down the ketchup!). It’s spicy and has a slight smokey flavour which goes so well with these burgers. You can use either chipotle peppers in adobo sauce or 1 teaspoon of chipotle powder, and if you would like your sauce to be spicier add a bit more. The chipotle mayonnaise can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. 

 

 

 

WHAT TOPPINGS ARE ON THESE HAWAIIAN CHICKEN BURGERS?

I absolutely love the toppings for these hawaiian chicken burgers. Feel free to add other toppings that you might prefer, but I really think the combination of crispy bacon, juicy pineapple, red onion and tomato compliments the flavourful chicken patties and spicy chipotle sauce wonderfully. The toppings for these burgers are:

1. Bacon: Pork or turkey bacon both work in this recipe and add a nice crunchy texture and saltiness to each bite.
2. Pineapple: I recommend cutting the pineapple slices yourself rather than buying precut slices. Cut the slices approximately 1 inch thick. When grilled the pineapple becomes tender and slightly caramelized on the edges.
3. Red Onion: Grilling the slices of red onion takes away that sharp onion flavours and makes it much more mild. 
4. Tomatoes: I like using beefsteak because they are large in size and have a sweet flavour. 

 

 

WHAT ABOUT THE BUN?

To make these Hawaiian Burgers Paleo and Whole30 I like to serve them in a lettuce bun which I make by cutting a head of iceberg lettuce into quarters. I find that the iceberg “bun” does a great job of holding the burger together while also adding a nice freshness to it. Feel free to swap the iceberg lettuce bun for your favourite hamburger bun (or gluten free bun!).

 

 

CAN I MAKE THESE HAWAIIAN CHICKEN BURGERS IN ADVANCE?

I do not recommend assembling the burgers until right before serving, but all of the components can be made well in advance. The chicken patties can be formed and grilled up to 2 days in advance and the red onion and pineapple can also be grilled. Before serving simply add them back to the grill and heat through for 2-3 minutes or quickly microwave them. The chipotle mayonnaise can also be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. 

WHAT ABOUT LEFTOVERS?

Any leftovers are best stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can enjoy leftovers reheated and assemble burgers whenever you want a quick meal. I also like chopping up the patties and pineapple and tossing everything into a salad and using the chipotle mayo as a dressing, it’s so tasty! You can also freeze any cooked patties for up to 4 months. 

 

Here are a few more burger recipes that you might enjoy: 

• Mexican Chicken Burgers
• Shrimp Burgers
• Tandoori Chicken Burgers
• Loaded Hamburgers with Special Sauce 
• Lemon & Herb Salmon Burgers
• Greek Lamb Burgers
• Cajun Salmon Burgers with Mango Salsa

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If you make this recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!