Parsley Chicken Filet Burger

Every time my husband spots a Mac D, he wants to have the Chicken Maharaja Mac burger. EVERY TIME. I mean it. He will always order one Maharaja Mac burger meal, which comes with some french fries and a glass of freshly carbonated Coke. And that is his idea of a “perfect meal”.

Very frankly, I am not and never have been fond of McDonalds. I just think it is too bland, especially for our masala-loving, fiery-hearted Indian taste buds. So I had been doing research and experimenting with different ways to make the perfect spice infused chicken filling for a wholesome burger. In some hope that Akshay (my husband) would like it at least half as much as he likes Maharaja Mac.

Chicken pieces and patties have become passé, so this time I pounded the chicken into an even 1/2 inch thick slice, marinated it and pan grilled on the tava (pan). It was deliciously moist and full of flavor.

Also this summer, we found some bright green banana peppers and used them to make the banana pepper hot sauce. It went so beautifully well with the parsley chicken, spread out on one slice of the burger bun. Then a nice thin slice of cheese with a layer of mayo on the other side of the bun. And of-course, Caramelised Onions. How could I forget them?! They took the chicken burger to a whole new level!

My husband’s grandmother had come to our house for lunch. And she is a strict vegetarian. So we also made potato and green pea patties to put in the burger instead of chicken. Hot pepper dressing and salad remained the same, and we had two different burgers at the same time.

Having fresh off-the bakery burger buns helped in getting the texture right. The burger was soft yet crisp.

Yield : 4 chicken burgers

Ingredients :

For Chicken filling :

250 gm boneless chicken breast
1 lemon juice
1 tbsp dried parsley leaves powder
1 tbsp Cajun spice powder
1/2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
Salt to taste
1 tbsp oil for cooking chicken

Banana Pepper Sauce :

10-12 banana peppers, chopped
4 medium onions, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
3-4 cloves of garlic
Salt, as per taste
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup water

Caramelised Onions

8-10 onions, sliced into thin circles
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp barbeque sauce
1 tbsp oil for caramelising onions

Others :

1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tomatoes, sliced
6-8 leaves of iceberg lettuce
6 burger buns

Method :

Cooking the chicken :

Make the marinade by mixing cajun spice powder, parsley powder, lemon juice , ginger garlic paste and some salt. Set aside.
Put the boneless chicken in a ziplock bag and pound it down evenly with a rolling-pin, to make an even slice of about 1/2 inch thickness.
Rub the chicken with the marinade and let it marinate for 20-30 minutes. Then drizzle some oil over a skillet/pan and cover and cook the chicken at medium heat for 7-8 minutes, till the chicken is tender. Be careful not to overcook the chicken as it is now spread out in a thin layer. Remove it from heat and divide it into 6 equal parts.

Making Caramelised Onions :

In a deep pan, heat 1 tbsp oil and add the onions. Stir well to coat the onions in oil. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, till the onions get translucent and soft.
Then add the sugar, and cook for another 15 mins, stirring at intervals. Add the barbeque sauce and cook for another 5-10 mins and take it off the heat.

Caramelised onions are an excellent addition to any burger/sandwiches/subs. It can be made in advance and stored upto 10 days in the refrigerator.

If you wish to get brown cramelised onions, just substitute granulated sugar with brown sugar. I dint have any brown sugar on hand, so I used white sugar. That works very well too.

For the hot pepper sauce :

Grind the chopped banana peppers, onions, tomatoes, garlic cloves to a fine paste. Then add salt and lemon juice and 1/2 cup of water.
Bring this mixture to a light boil and remove off heat. The peppers release their flavors now and if you wish to make the sauce spicier, continue to boil it for additional 3-4 minutes

Assembling the burger :

Take a burger bun, cut it into half. Apply mayonnaise on the top part and the hot pepper sauce on the lower half.
Prepare the burger by putting a generous amount of caramelised onions on the lower part of the bun, then one part of the chicken slice, top it with 3-4 slices of fresh tomatoes, 1-2 leaves of iceberg lettuce, then a cheese slice and then the mayo layered top part of the bun.
Either grill it for a couple of minutes or heat it on a pan with a cover for a couple of minutes, so that the cheese melts into the burger.
Serve it with coleslaw salad or french fries or wedges.