indian-spiced chicken burgers
Poultry, Sandwiches January 25th, 2010
I’ve had a recipe for Indian-spiced chicken burgers bookmarked in my Great Food Fast cookbook since I bought it, shortly after it came out. A couple Saturdays ago I took inspiration from it and made my own version. The boys wouldn’t touch it so I made them plain chicken burgers and they were quite happy with them. (My seven-year-old did try a bite, to his credit, but didn’t care for them.)
Indian-Spiced Chicken Burgers
First, make the cumin yogurt sauce so the flavors have time to come together. You’ll need:
1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
handful of chopped cilantro
salt and pepperCombine the first three ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well. Add salt and pepper to your taste. Set aside.
Next, gather your ingredients for the burgers:
1 package of ground chicken breast (approx. 1 lb.)
4 scallions, thinly sliced
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced
2-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
1/2 tsp. red chili powder
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. ground turmeric
1 Tbsp. ground coriander
salt and pepper
mini pitas
chopped onions and tomato
Cumin yogurt sauceIf you’re cooking these burgers outdoors, pre-heat your grill to medium-high. I just cooked mine on the Foreman Grill (yes, I still have one!) and it worked out just fine. Now, combine the ground chicken, scallions, jalapenos, ginger, lemon juice, chili powder, cumin, turmeric, coriander, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Stir everything together really well then let the mixture sit for about 10 minutes.
Gently form burger patties. I made mine more oblong in shape to better fit inside the pitas. Season the patties with a little salt and pepper if you desire and then grill until the ground chicken is opaque throughout the burger. That should take about 3-4 minutes per side. I grilled mine on the Foreman for about 8-10 minutes total.
Cut four pitas in half and warm them either on the top rack of your grill or in a toaster oven. Don’t overheat them or else they’ll get too crispy. Place two patties in each pita half along with diced onion and tomato. Add a healthy dollop of the cumin yogurt sauce and serve.
While these were very tasty, they didn’t have the curry flavor I’d imagined. Instead they had the flavor and texture of falafels. They were still really good and we went back for seconds. I’m going to come back to these and see if I can tweak the flavor further. I might use ground turkey next time. It doesn’t dry out as much as the chicken, and the extra bit of fat holds flavors better I think. Still, a good lunch.
Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Breasts
Main Dish, Poultry February 7th, 2009
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
4 teaspoons minced green onion
1 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves
1 teaspoon black pepper
8 slices smoked bacon
1. Split each breast horizontally, making a pocket and leaving one edge intact. Set aside.
2. Combine cream cheese, green onion, tarragon, and black pepper. Spoon 1/4 cheese mixture into the pocket of each breast. Wrap each with 2 slices bacon and secure with wooden picks.
3. Cook over medium heat on the grill or under the broiler, about 10 minutes per side, or until bacon is crisp and chicken tests done.
Honey Corn Flake Chicken Fingers
Appetizers/Snacks, Main Dish, Poultry February 7th, 2009
2 pounds chicken tenders
Salt and pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs
A splash milk
2 cups corn flakes
2 Tbsp. honey
1 cup bread crumbs
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons grill seasoning
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Season chicken tenders with salt and pepper. Place flour in a large shallow dish. Coat chicken in flour. Beat eggs and milk in a shallow dish. Combine cereal, bread crumbs, paprika, poultry seasoning, grill seasoning and vegetable oil in food processor. Transfer breading to a shallow dish. Place a nonstick baking sheet near chicken breading station. In batches, take flour coated chicken and coat in eggs then in breading and place on nonstick cookie sheet. When all the chicken has been coated, transfer to oven and bake 15 minutes, until evenly brown and cooked through.
Baked Swiss Chicken
Main Dish, Poultry February 7th, 2009
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1 can (10-3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
½ cup white wine
6 slices Swiss cheese
1 cup crushed seasoned croutons
Place chicken in a greased 13×9×2 baking dish. In a bowl, combine the soup and wine; pour over chicken. Top with cheese and sprinkle with croutons. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 35-40 min. or until chicken juices run clear. Yield: 6 servings
Brown Sugar Baked Chicken and Oven Fries
Main Dish, Poultry February 7th, 2009
3 large baking potatoes, cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch thick slices
1 Tbsp. oil
3 Tbsp. light brown sugar
2 tsp. chili powder
2 tsp. freshly grated orange zest
Salt
8 chicken drumsticks
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
1. Position racks to divide oven into thirds. Heat to 450 F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with foil. Set a wire rack on 1 sheet; coat rack well with cooking spray.
2. Put potatoes and oil in large bowl; toss potatoes to coat. Spread out on prepared rack, overlapping if necessary. Bake on top oven rack 10 min.
3. Meanwhile, mix sugar, chili powder, orange zest and 1/2 tsp. salt in a large plastic food bag. Add drumsticks and shake until chicken is coated. Arrange on second baking sheet.
4. Place chicken on lower oven rack and bake 25-30 min. or until potatoes are tinged golden brown and chicken’s juices run clear when pierced with fork. Drizzle any juices in baking sheet over chicken. Sprinkle potatoes with 1/2 tsp. salt and the pepper.
Buffalo Popcorn Chicken Bites
Appetizers/Snacks, Poultry February 7th, 2009
Vegetable oil, for frying
2 1/2 cups complete pancake mix, any brand, divided
1 1/4 cups water
8 teaspoons hot sauce, divided (recommended: Tabasco)
1 1/4 pounds chicken tenders or chicken breast cut into small bite-sized pieces
1 cup store bought, good quality refrigerated blue cheese dressing (recommended: Marie’s brand)
2 scallions, finely chopped
1 teaspoon coarse black pepper, 1/3 palm full
Cut celery sticks, store bought
In a deep sided skillet heat 1 1/2 inches of vegetable oil over medium heat. If you wish to test the oil, add a 1-inch cube of bread to hot oil. If it turns deep golden brown in color in a count of 40, the oil is ready.
While the oil is heating make the batter. In a wide mixing bowl combine 2 cups of the pancake mix, 1 1/4 cups water and about 6 teaspoons hot sauce. (Use a regular teaspoon you would stir coffee with – that’s what I did. I don’t, technically, have a set of actual measuring spoons.) Place the remaining plain 1/2 cup pancake mix in another wide mixing bowl. Arrange the batter and the bowl of plain pancake mix near the cook top and the heating oil. Line a plate with a few sheets of paper towels and keep within reach.
Once the oil is heated and ready, toss the chicken pieces in 2 teaspoons of hot sauce then toss in the plain pancake mix, coat evenly and shake off excess. The plain dry pancake mix will help the batter stick to the chicken pieces. Add some of chicken to the batter, you are going to want to work in 3 to 4 batches coating and frying. Using a fork, toss the bites in the batter. Remove the first batch from the batter, shaking off the excess batter as you carefully add them to the hot oil. Fry for 2 minutes on the first side, or until the first side is a deep golden brown, flip and continue to fry for another 2 minutes or until deep golden brown all over. Remove from the oil and drain on the paper towel lined plate, season with salt. Repeat until all the popcorn chicken bites are fried. Serve immediately with refrigerated, good quality creamy blue cheese prepared dressing with chopped scallions and black pepper stirred into it for dipping. Garnish platter with celery sticks.
Country Coq au Vin
Crock Pot, Main Dish, Poultry February 7th, 2009
1/2 pound sliced bacon, diced
1 lb. chicken breasts
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 pound small white mushrooms
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
6 garlic cloves, chopped
3 sprigs fresh rosemary (or 1 tablespoon dried rosemary leaves)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium-low heat until crisp. With a slotted spoon, transfer it to a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker. Pour off all but a light coating of fat from the skillet. Add the chicken and brown over medium-high heat; transfer to the cooker. Pour the wine into the skillet and scrape up any browned bits; add the skillet contents to the cooker, along with the mushrooms, onions, garlic, rosemary, and salt. Cover and cook on low heat for 6 hours, or on high for 3 hours. Transfer the chicken, bacon, and vegetables to a platter; keep warm. Pour the sauce into a small saucepan. Combine the water and cornstarch; stir it into the sauce. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Pour over the chicken.
This is my adaptation of a recipe from Real Simple magazine. I like mine better. I bet this would also be fantastic using Marsala wine instead of a dry white. I suggest you serve this with garlic mashed potatoes, but that is just my preference!