Bacon and Cheese Stuffed Burgers

These bacon and cheese stuffed burgers are what you need on your grill this summer. This over the top bacon stuffed burger recipe is a variation on a Juicy Lucy and features a cheesy interior and loads of bacon.

Bacon and cheese stuffed burgers are juicy and full of flavor.

Bacon and cheese stuffed burgers are – hands down – the best thing to happen to burgers since adding a slice of cheese on top.

And let’s face it. The best bacon and cheese burger you’ll get is at home.

A typical restaurant bacon cheeseburger really limits the power of bacon.

Picture it. A paltry burger with one or two measly strips of bacon.

Come on now. Bacon and cheese stuffed burgers need to practically be oozing bacon and cheese.

These juicy Lucy burgers are mixed with bacon and cheese, stuffed with bacon and cheese, topped with bacon and cheese, and are grilled in the leftover bacon grease.

You literally get bacon in every bite of these overly juicy, sinfully bad bacon burgers.

Don’t feel bad. You can eat healthy again tomorrow, but tonight, indulge your inner bacon-loving self.

Ingredients and Kitchen Supplies

To make these juicy bacon and cheese stuffed burgers you need:

• Bacon– Can’t have a bacon burger without actual bacon. You’ll need to dice some of it up to put in the burgers and reserve some for topping the burgers.
• Ground beef– Go with leaner ground beef like 90/10. Anything more fatty will make these burgers very greasy and cause the burgers to shrink.
• Cheddar cheese– Shredded cheddar goes directly into the burgers and the filling. You could also use a Mexican blend or Jack cheese.
• Cream cheese or marscapone cheese– For the base of the molten cheese center, go with cream cheese or marscapone cheese.
• Bread crumbs– Bread crumbs both coat the cheese centers and help bind the burger.
• Egg– Egg helps bind the burger.
• Spices– Chili powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and fresh pressed garlic give this tons of flavor.

 You do not need any fancy kitchen equipment to make bacon and cheese stuffed burgers.

But if you plan to make them inside, a good cast iron skillet is a good option.

How to Make Bacon and Cheese Stuffed Burgers

Making these bacon and cheese stuffed burgers is a bit more involved than making regular bacon cheeseburgers.

Each layer of the burger is filled with bacon and cheesy goodness.

There’s not just a couple of measly strips of bacon on top of the burger.

Instead, there is bacon mixed into the ground beef and mixed into the cheese ball in the center of the burger.

So the extra work provides you with huge bacony payoff.

Here’s how to make these bacon and cheese stuffed burgers:

1. Cook the bacon.

First up, cook up a metric ton of bacon.

Ok, maybe not that much but enough so that you will have bacon for the cheese ball center and the top of the burgers.

In reality, cook 12 total strips of bacon: 4 diced and 8 whole. 

Once you’ve cooked the bacon, you can set aside the strips and the bacon greased skillet.

Do not drain the skillet you cooked the bacon in. This is key. You’re going to save that bacon greased skillet to cook the burger in later.

2. Make the cheese filling.

Take the bacon bits and mix a quarter of it into the cream cheese along with cheddar cheese, garlic, and salt and pepper.

Once all the ingredients are well mixed, set aside in the fridge for about 30 minutes. This gives the cheese the chance to solidify a bit so it won’t spill out everywhere when you cook it.

Next, whisk the egg in a small bowl and whisk it until it looks ready to cook for scrambled eggs. Take the breadcrumbs and put them in a slightly larger bowl.

Now, take the cheese mixture out of the fridge.

Use a tablespoon as a guide to scoop the mixture and form it into balls.

Dip each ball into the egg, giving it a decent coat on top.

Then, put the ball in the breadcrumb bowl and roll it around until coated in breadcrumbs. The breadcrumbs also help keep the cheese in place while it cooks.

Place on a plate or baking sheet for now.

Repeat until all the mixture is used, which should be about 4 to 6 balls.

3. Mix up the meat.

Mix the ground beef, cheddar cheese, spices, and bacon bits together in a large bowl.

You can use raw pieces of bacon cut into tiny pieces, but if you do this, make sure you thoroughly cook the burger to make sure the bacon is fully cooked.

For medium or rare burgers, its important to use already cooked bacon to make sure you don’t get sick.

4. Assemble and cook the burgers.

Final steps before cooking.

Pour or dump the remaining and egg and breadcrumbs into the burger.

This step is not crucial. You can skip if you would like.

Give the meat a final mix and divide into 4 to 6 roughly equal portions.

Flatten each patty and place a ball into each’s center.

Work the meat around, massaging it into place. Try not to leave any gaps or holes for the cheese to escape during cooking.

Cook time can vary based on how well done you want your burgers, but 4 to 6 minutes per side should cook them up nicely.

You can cook them either in the bacon greased pan or take them out back and grill them up nicely for cookout or any time you want a smokey flavor.

Storing bacon and cheese stuffed burgers

Bacon cheese burgers are best served fresh when you make them.

You can make the patties ahead though if you plan to have people over or just want a faster to make dinner.

To make ahead, follow all the steps up until the point of actually cooking the burgers.

Once you form the patties, place them in an air tight container and store in the fridge for up to a day ahead.

When you are ready, you can grill the burgers outback for a cookout, sautee them in a pan, or even bake them in an oven.

If you have left over burgers that you already cooked, place them in an airtight container and then store in the fridge.

They should stay fresh for about 2 to 3 days.

Reheat cooked burgers in the microwave, warmed oven, or gently on the stove top.

FAQs

Tips and Tricks 

Here are some tips and tricks to keep in mind when making bacon and cheese stuffed burgers:

• The bacon added to the burger meat can be either precooked or raw. But if you add raw meat, make sure to fully cook the burger – no rare meat for you – to make sure to thoroughly cook the bacon inside. If you insist on eating a rare burger, cook the bacon first. But I can assure you, these burgers are juicy and tender no matter how long you cook them for.
• Making the cheese balls is not an exact science. Using a tablespoon as a scoop can help keep the amount relatively consistent. Also keep in mind the size of the burger you want to make. Dividing the cheese into 4 balls will mean the recipe will yield 4 massive burgers. Dividing it into 6 means you will have slightly smaller burgers.
• Don’t neglect chilling times for the cheese. This will help make working with the cheese balls easier and also help prevent it from leaking out during cooking.
• Make sure you fully enclose the ball of cheese with the burger meat. Holes or cracks in the meat will cause the cheese to spill out.
• Avoid over-cooking the stuffed burgers – the longer the burgers cook, the more likely the cheesy center will find its way out of the burger.
• Though we certainly encourage cooking the burger in the bacon grease, you certainly don’t have to. Use a nonstick pan or (even better) the grill to cook up these bacon monstrosities.
• Don’t smash the burgers while cooking. This will cause the cheese to escape and the juices to leave, leading to less than desirable bacon cheese burgers.

Variations

• Cheese of choice on burgers – We used cheddar and cream cheese in our bacon and cheese burgers, but you can use just about any variety of cheese you like. American, Cooper sharp, Colby, pepper jack, blue cheese, feta cheese, Swiss, provolone, or mozzarella.
• Ground meat selection – Bacon and cheese burgers tend to use ground beef, but you can use just about any ground meat you like. We now often substitute ground chicken for beef in a lot of our cooking because it generally feels lighter and can absorb the flavors nicely. You could also use ground pork, ground turkey, or ground lamb. You can also use different varieties of ground beef to see which works well for you. You may find that lighter beefs, like 90 lean or more, work well with a bacon and cheese stuffed burger because of all the added fat.
• Seasonings – Our bacon and cheese stuffed burger recipe uses southwest seasonings, but you are not limited to only those. You can omit them altogether, add more spices, use popular burger or steak spice blends, or use a bit of garlic powder with salt and pepper. You can also play around with the flavor of bacon you use. Different varieties of smoked bacon can alter the flavor in a good way!
• Change your cooking method – Grilling and pan frying these burgers are great choices, but you could also toss burgers in the oven. You can bake stuffed burgers in the oven set to 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until you reach your desired level of doneness. Thirty minutes generally cooks them to medium to well-done. You can also throw burgers in the air fryer. This method sears the outside and cooks them pretty fast. Set your air fryer to 375 and cook for about 8 minutes. The safe internal temperature is 160 degrees.
• Play around with the stuffing – Bacon and cheese not your thing? You can just add cheese. You could also add jalapenos or other hot peppers. You could also try just stuffing them with bacon and skip the cheese. Pepperoni is great substitute for bacon in this recipe. You can also try mixing in different cheese varieties and see how they turn out!

Looking for other burger recipes? Try these:

• Pineapple Barbecue Burgers
• Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Burgers
• Cheesy Taco Sliders

You can serve these bacon and cheese stuffed burgers with sweet potato fries, red, white, and blue fruit salad, or your favorite sides.

For dessert or a Memorial Day or Fourth of July celebration, try making this red, white, and blue s’more dip.

Did you make this? Let me know!

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