Hungry Jack's Cheesy Bacon Spicy Jack's Fried Chicken

The Cheesy Bacon Spicy Jack's Fried Chicken is $12.26 and 3,307 kJ, the heaviest chicken burger on the Hungry Jack's menu. Thick crumbed fillet, premium eye bacon, melted cheese, lettuce and Signature Spicy Sauce on a toasted brioche bun.

Cheese against chilli is the interesting combination here. Dairy fat mutes capsaicin, which is why milk works on a burnt mouth and water does not. A slice of melted cheese sitting between the sauce and the fillet takes the top off the heat and stretches it out. The result is warmer and rounder than the plain Spicy version rather than hotter, even though there is more going on.

Bacon pushes it the other way. Salt sharpens the perception of heat, so the eye bacon puts back some of the edge the cheese takes off. The two work against each other and the burger lands somewhere in the middle, which is more comfortable to eat than either extreme.

At 1,690mg the sodium is the highest of any chicken burger here, driven by the bacon and the sauce together. Protein is 41.6g and fat is 43.6g, which is actually lower than the Cheesy Bacon Classic at 53.1g because spicy sauce carries less fat than mayonnaise.

Who it suits: someone who wants the loaded version and the heat, and does not want to choose. It is the most complete burger on the chicken board and the one that eats most like a full meal on its own. Cheesy Bacon Spicy calories are worth a look before adding chips.

Pair it with Large Frozen Drinks at $2.00, or compare against the Cheesy Bacon Classic at the same price.