Sweet and Savory Chicken Burgers with Quick Pickles

I unfortunately am having computer internet problems in which my computer says it is connected to the internet but won’t let me online. This being said, please bare with formatting and grammar snafus- I am retyping this and publishing from my phone. It is not exactly as I originally wrote it, but perhaps it is better!

Now, the skinny on the skinny burgers: In the future I will try a buffalo version with some spice and crumbles of bleu cheese, but the basic recipe will still stand. Initially I was planning on grilling for a faux Memorial Day celebration but I thought the burgers would need more binding with this recipe so I pan sautéed instead. I would consider adding an egg or milk/breadcrumbs heading forward and using my gold old smoky Joe…for some nostalgia as much for the actual chargrill of the grill. Cooking them on a stovetop made it easier to gauge when they were done cooking but if cooking on a grill I would encourage you to bust out your trusty meat thermometer if there’s a question of if they’re cooked all the the way through. These burgers are your own healthy version of the traditional, with just as much of the celebration which goes with traditional burgers, but not as much of the guilt. You could dress them up with homemade sauce or dress them down and serve them with traditional fixings to your simple eating folks. .

When cooking for this site I often seek sweet and savory recipes and this called to my heart. I got this from a fellow food blogger and she wrote in a very funny way about cooking chicken for her chicken loving husband. During these unusual times it is funny what I noticed about what brings me comfort, and I am embarrassed to admit I take real comfort in the chicken breasts I store in baggies in my freezer. In every area of my life I have been trying to reduce my use of single use plastic, and I have even saved ziplock bags my tortillas come in for their abilities to both zip and lock, but when it comes to chicken in my freezer I am stuck on freezing them in baggies for reasons of frugality and salmonella saviness. I find deep comfort in knowing despite the world is headed who knows where, I have fajitas fixings frozen in my f*ing freezer… I like chicken breasts and alliteration apparently. And let’s be honest, chicken is an affordable protein (for people who eat meat) with much to offer, and a blank canvas which is hard to mess up, so I feel like I am preparing for future blog posts of recipes of the week.

Having experienced food insecurity, I have in the past I noticed funny things about food bring me comfort. Sometimes I get up in the middle of the night and open my “so small it is ridiculous” fridge to check the food which was in there when I went to bed is still there and I notice, as the grocery store shelves are bare in places they were not usually, I am doing this more often. Opening my freezer can trigger an avalanche of empanadas and frozen turkey bacon but I run the risk to do my own “frozen chicken breast” head count, sometimes in my pajamas and sometimes in the middle of the afternoon. Having chicken makes me feel financially solvent, no matter my bank account and in buying the family pack and freezing individually I feel like I am preparing for the future the best I can. I feel grateful I have food in my fridge and can today afford to eat the way I have to (which is in a way which requires me to eat meat), but I feel deeply for the people experiencing food insecurity now. My Dad has been volunteering at a local food pantry and I hope when I can, I can help people who have had hunger in the ways I have. In the past I actually volunteered at a food pantry and it was a small way to give back to a universe which tried so hard to feed me. As for the baggies, I will dedicate myself to finding a compostable version to ease my own apprehension and the earth’s needs.

*written on 05/26- this morning I woke up with my own craving for chicken burger leftovers and my bbq sauce is missing! I looked everywhere!

Ingredients

For burgers:

lb ground chicken

Serving suggestion - fruit as your side, burger garnished with quick pickles, onions, cheese and more sauce

tsp of paprika

tsp of onion powder

tsp of powdered garlic

0.25 tsp salt

0.25 pepper

0.25 cup finely shredded cheddar

0.33 cup bbq sauce

For serving:

buns (I used Kings Hawaiian)

quick pickles

cheese - I used pepperjack because my Gouda mysteriously disappeared

more bbq sauce

red or green onion thinly sliced

Plan of Attack

Using your hands, mix all everything in the burgers Until completely integrated

Make your burgers into your preferred size and thickness making sure to keEp in mind the thinner they are the more quickly they will cook

Add 2 tbls of olive oil to your medium skillet and cook until browning appears On both sides.

Keep your burgers warm and serve according to your preferences for garnish.

Bonus- Quick pickles recipe

Using a mandolier or your paring knife thinly slice a cucumber (I used English seedless since I’m so fancy ma) into thin coins. Thinner coins pickle more quickly but don’t always retain the crunch some people look for in quick pickles.

Add 3 Tbls of seasoned rice wine vinegar, tsp of sugar and tsp of salt to your sm/medium bowl and cover. Your pickles should be tart in 30 minutes, and pickled in about an hour.