Kirkwood Mexi Cali Chicken Patties and Mediterranean Style Chicken Patties

Last Updated on April 25, 2023

EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated to reflect that these may be a Seasonal Item. 

My family sometimes likes to eat loaded burgers — those gourmet beef patties that are sold with mix-ins such as cheese, onions, bacon, and other ingredients worked into the beef mixture. We can buy burgers like that at our local large inventory grocery store, where they’re often sold at the butcher counter. Aldi also sometimes stocks loaded burgers as limited-time specials.

When browsing the Aldi freezer aisle, I also discovered some chicken patties with extra ingredients mixed in, including cheese, peppers, red onions, and various spices. These are similar to the loaded burgers my family likes, but they’re made with chicken instead of beef. I picked up a box in each flavor — along with a bag of Aldi Kaiser sandwich buns to serve the patties on — to try one weekend when we had nice grilling weather.

Kirkwood Mexi Cali Chicken Patties and Kirkwood Mediterranean Style Chicken Patties cost $7.99 at the time of publication for a 32-ounce package containing six 1/3-pound patties. The Mexi-Cali patties feature red onion, pepper jack cheese, roasted red peppers, jalapeno peppers, and cilantro. The Mediterranean Style patties include red onions, spinach, roasted red peppers, and feta cheese.

When I first bought these in the late summer, I thought they were a Regular Buy that was available year round. There was no signage indicating they were a seasonal or limited product. However, I later saw them listed among Seasonal Items in a weekly ad in the spring. That means these may only be in store for a few months, likely during the spring and summer grilling season. If these are not in stock at your local store, Aldi does not offer online ordering.

If you’re looking out for allergens, both flavors contain milk.

Nutrition information and ingredients. (Click to enlarge.)

The boxes have directions for cooking these on a barbecue grill, on a stove top or electric grill, or in an oven broiler. These should always be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Do not defrost the chicken patties before cooking, and the package instructs not to cook these in the microwave.

To cook on a barbecue grill, lightly oil a preheated grill and place the frozen chicken patties on the grill. Cook for approximately 6-7 minutes on each side, for a total of 12-14 minutes.

To cook on a stove top or electric grill, preheat a lightly oiled pan or flat grill. Cook the frozen chicken patties on medium heat for approximately 6-7 minutes on each side, for a total of 12-14 minutes.

To cook in an oven broiler, preheat the oven on the high broiler setting. Place frozen chicken patties on a lightly oiled broiler pan and place on the middle oven rack. Broil chicken patties for approximately 6-7 minutes on each side, for a total of 12-14 minutes.

Patties after grilling. Mexi-Cali chicken patties on the left, Mediterranean chicken patties on the right.

We opted to cook these on our gas grill for an easy Friday night dinner. Be sure to oil the grill as the instructions state or the patties will stick. Otherwise, they were quick to prepare, and we air fried some tator tots and served it all alongside a salad kit from Aldi for a complete meal. We served served these on lightly toasted Kaiser buns with a bit of mayonnaise, opting to keep the toppings simple the first time we tried these patties so that the flavors in the chicken could really come through. In the future, we might also top these with lettuce, sliced tomato, or onion.

Keep reading for more information on each chicken patty flavor.

Kirkwood Mexi Cali Chicken Patties

A cross section of a Mexi Cali patty.

The box describes these as “1/3 lb. gourmet chicken patties with red onion, pepper jack cheese, roasted red peppers, jalapeno peppers, cilantro, spices & olive oil.”

We found these patties to be good, although the flavor is predominantly a mild spiciness. It wasn’t as easy to taste the other ingredients such as cheese or cilantro.

Ingredients are pretty straightforward, with natural flavoring and vague “spices” being the only processed items on the list. Everything else is easily identifiable, including white meat chicken, veggies, cheese, sea salt, and extra virgin olive oil. If you’re looking for food that is minimally processed and contains simple ingredients, this is pretty good for something that’s ready-made.

One patty (151 grams) has 220 calories, 6 grams of total fat (8% DV), 1 gram of saturated fat (5% DV), 340 mg of sodium (15% DV), 4 grams of total carbohydrates (1% DV), and no added sugars.

Kirkwood Mediterranean Style Chicken Patties

A cross section of a Mediterranean patty.

The box describes these as “1/3 lb. gourmet chicken patties with red onions, spinach, roasted red peppers, feta cheese, olive oil & spices.”

This was our favorite of the two chicken patty varieties. It has more complex flavors with onion, peppers, feta cheese, and spices compared to the simply spicy Mexi Cali patties. If I were to buy the Kirkwood chicken patties again, I’d opt for the Mediterranean ones.

Again, ingredients are easily recognizable, including white meat chicken, veggies, cheese, extra virgin olive oil, and sea salt. Similar to the Mexi Cali patties listed above, these Mediterranean Style patties also contain vague “spices” and natural flavor, but everything else is easily identifiable, so if you’re looking for food that’s ready made and minimally processed, this may be a decent choice.

One patty (151 grams) has 220 calories, 12 grams of total fat (15% DV), 4 grams of saturated fat (20% DV), 510 mg of sodium (22% DV), 4 grams of total carbohydrates (1% DV), and no added sugars.

The Verdict:

Kirkwood Mexi Cali Chicken Patties and Kirkwood Mediterranean Style Chicken Patties are a nice changeup when you want a burger that isn’t made of beef. The Mexi Cali version mostly has a mild spicy flavor owing to jalapeno peppers and pepper jack cheese, while the Mediterranean version has a nice mix of onions, peppers, spinach, and feta cheese. If you like chicken, or if you’re looking for something different to toss on the grill, these are worth a try.