Brussels Sprouts and Dill Chicken Burgers

Lately, these chicken burgers are what I have been eating a LOT of. My husband and kids love it. I make a large batch, and then I'm set for a meal or two! Plus, it gets some green veggies in too.  Improvise this recipe to suit your pantry. 

Change the greens around, add herbs of your choice, use different spice mixtures, switch the chicken to turkey or beef. Enjoy and get creative, barbecue away this summer! 

Ingredients
1 tablespoon coconut oil 
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 cup minced red onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2-inch ginger, minced
1 cup finely sliced brussel sprouts (or 1/2 bunch spinach, finely sliced, or 1 cup finely sliced Kale)
2 tablespoons fresh dill (optional)
1 teaspoon garam masala
Salt, to taste

1 lb ground chicken
1 teaspoon coriander powder
Red chili powder, to taste (optional)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Method

1. In a large skillet, heat the oil. Fry the cumin seeds for a minute, or until the color changes slightly, do not burn the seeds. Immediately add the onions and sauté until it turns pink. 
2. Once the onions turn pink, add the green vegetable (brussels sprouts or spinach or kale), dill, garam masala, and salt. Cook until the vegetable is cooked, remove from heat.
3. While the onion-vegetable mixture cools, in a large mixing bowl, mix together the ground chicken, coriander powder, red chili powder, and fresh cilantro.
4. Mix the cooled onion-vegetable mixture with the ground chicken and form burgers. Use an ice cream scoop to make it easier. 
5. Cook the burgers over medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side.

If you want to freeze the burgers, form them and lay the uncooked burgers out on a baking tray. Put it in the freezer for 15–20 minutes. Remove and put them in a resealable bag. 

Asian Sliders

I absolutely love any recipe from Ching He-Huang. Simple & Delicious seems to be her mantra. Most of the ingredients she uses in her recipes are easy to find. The only ingredient that she uses often and was difficult for me to find was Shaoshing rice wine, which I eventually found easily in Chinese supermarkets. However, Ching recommends using dry sherry as a substitute. She says that it adds a 'sweet-bitterness' to the dish, but I also think that it adds that Chinese food aroma, making it feel authentic! 


The main reason I started writing this blog is because many of my friends would exclaim when I told them I cooked almost every day, that it didn't mean spending many laborious hours in the kitchen and nor was it a chore for me. Not that I am against eating out or ordering in, but I am for cooking most of your meals (at least week day meals). It's usually healthier and definitely healthier on the wallet ;-)


The best tip I can give any new home cook is to have your basics in your kitchen prepped as much as possible. Once I week I mince onions, ginger and garlic and store them in the refrigerator in airtight containers. You can use a food processor to help you quickly chop. I also wash cilantro and store it tightly wrapped in paper towels in a ziploc bag. These are my basic ingredients that I use all the time in most of my home cooking. So if you look at the ingredient list below, the only chopping I had to do for this recipe was to finely slice the spring onions.


These sliders are what we had for dinner tonight, and they were simply incredible! Hmm… maybe a new recipe to save for those Fourth of July barbecue's coming up?

Adapted from Ching He-Huang's Chinese Sliders recipe
Makes 8 sliders


Ingredients
For the patties
1 pound ground chicken or ground lean pork
2 spring onions, finely sliced
1-inch ginger, grated
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon Shaoshing rice wine, or dry Sherry
1 large egg
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon soya sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon Sriracha, or any Asian chili sauce
Salt and pepper, to taste


2 tablespoons vegetable oil


For the sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1-inch ginger, minced
1 cup hoisin sauce
3 tablespoons honey


8 English muffins, very slightly toasted
Cucumber, sliced
8 slices of onion
Jalapeño slices (optional)


Method

1. In a large mixing bowl, mix the ground chicken or pork with the next nine ingredients for the patties. Mix with clean hands and form into 8 mini-patties, slightly larger than a golf ball. Let it marinate for two hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 450F.
3. Preheat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Raise the heat to high and add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Add the chicken burgers and cook, turning once, until well-browned, about 3 minutes each side.
4. Transfer the cast-iron skillet to the preheated oven and continue to cook, about 10–15 minutes. Alternatively, cook entirely on the stove top and avoid the oven entirely. 
5. Using a spatula, remove the burgers onto a plate and return the cast-iron skillet to the stove top. Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil over medium-high heat and add the ginger, hoisin sauce and honey. 
6. Add the chicken burgers and coat in the sauce.
7. Assemble the sandwiches, layered with cucumber slices and onion.