How To Keep Your Chicken Burgers From Drying Out

It may not be a classic, but never let anybody tell you that you're wrong for wanting a chicken burger. Chicken has lots of flavor, and when you use a ground chicken patty, you get all the best parts of both a burger and a fast food chicken sandwich. But even if you have the freshest ingredients and best buns, you may still quickly run into a problem when cooking the chicken patties: Chicken dries out really fast.

For help, we consulted chefs Steve Chiappetti, who oversees culinary at Hotel EMC2 and theWit, where you can find State and Lake Chicago Tavern, and Kyle Taylor, founder and chef at He Cooks. Both Chiappetti and Taylor quickly pinpointed the biggest reason people accidentally dry out their chicken: They treat it too much like beef. According to Chiappetti, "Chicken is naturally lean, so when it's cooked like a traditional beef burger, the juices tend to escape quickly — leaving the patty dry. Without enough fat, there's nothing to help retain moisture during cooking."

Taylor made similar comments and added, "It doesn't have the natural fat that beef does, so a fat like olive oil needs to be added." Both recommend cooking the chicken on the stovetop in a cast iron skillet or on the grill. Cooking until the patty just reaches 160 degrees Fahrenheit (and checking it again to make sure the ambient heat brings it up to a food-safe 165 degrees Fahrenheit) is key. If you leave the chicken on the heat for too long, you risk cooking away what precious little moisture that meat has.

Just like how certain cuts of steak make for juicier grilling than dryer beef cuts, the same is true for chicken. Chicken breast is the leanest cut of chicken, but legs and thighs contain a hearty amount of fat. Both Chiappetti and Taylor recommended using at least some dark meat chicken in your mix. Taylor's chicken patty blend includes ground thighs exclusively or a mix of thighs and breast, while Chiappetti is fond of a unique trick: "My favorite blend is chicken mixed with bacon — it adds the fat that chicken lacks, giving you a more flavorful, juicy burger."

If you're still worried, there are more tasty ways to keep moisture inside your chicken burger. Taylor's suggestion of olive oil works because the fat can be easily distributed, introducing moisture throughout. Butter, which is about 80% fat, works great too. According to Chiappetti, "One of my go-to tricks is to top the burger with a flavored butter — like garlic herb or chili lime — while it cooks. It acts like a self-baste, locking in moisture and adding richness." Alternately, Taylor suggested repurposing juicy chicken sandwich toppings. "For added moisture, folding in things like grated onion, Greek yogurt, or a bit of mayo can greatly help. These ingredients add fat and water-binding properties without changing the flavor too much," he said.