First posted: Oct 7, 2013
Quick Quick Cajun Chicken Burgers with Lime Mayonnaise
I feel like burgers have a bit of a bad rap these days. We’re all on about healthy this and healthy that and salads and schmalads and what-not, and the poor old burger has been banished by many to the head-shaking eyebrow-furrowing fat camp in a distant corner somewhere. And, truly, in many cases I can agree, they’re often made with leftover meat dregs, drowned in oil and left swimming sadly in all sorts of gooey processed sauces.
But not in our house they ain’t. No siree, burgers are much loved and one of our friend-feeding favourite crowd-pleasers. To start with, let’s not forget one of the best characteristics of burgers – adaptability. The options are endless, the toppings are endless, the feasting fun is pretty much endless. Whether it’s the beef variety swathed in oozing brie and red onion marmalade (yes!), or salmon with wasabi mayo (light, fresh, über-good-for-you), or these flavour-packed cajun-style lovelies with simple chicken breasts and quick quick home-made lime mayo, they are welcome at our table. And that’s not just because they’re delicious, but also because if you take a little time to make them from scratch they really can be pretty healthy too.
Ingredients
Cooks in: Serves:4
For the Burgers- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 4 rashers streaky bacon
- 2 chicken breasts, preferably free-range
- 1 tsp cajun spice mix (my favourite is NoMu)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 ripe avocado
- 2 fresh hamburger rolls
- Fresh watercress or basil, to garnish
- 1 egg
- 1 clove garlic
- Zest of 1 lime
- 2-3 Tbsp lime juice (or lemon)
- Pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup cooking oil (not olive oil)
What to do
For the Burgers 1. To a large frying pan on medium-high heat add the olive oil and then the bacon rashers. Fry until golden and crispy, turning halfway through (3-5 minutes). Remove and drain on kitchen paper. 2. Meanwhile, halve the chicken breasts through their bellies so that you end up with 4 thin breast 'patties'. Season with the cajun spice mix and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Fry the chicken breasts in the same pan that you cooked the bacon in, on medium-high heat, until just cooked through and golden (2-3 minutes on each side). 3. To assemble your burgers, dollop a little mayonnaise onto your burger buns, top with the chicken, sliced of avocado, crumbled bacon bits and fresh watercress or basil. Eat as soon as possible with extra may on the side. For the Mayonnaise To a blender, add all the ingredients except the oil. Then slowly drizzle in the oil in a constant stream with the blender on a low speed. Continue blending until all the oil is incorporated and the mixture thickens to the usual consistency of mayonnaise. Notes If not using avocado, just use 1 cup of oil.
If you don't have your own cajun spice mix, you can use a little ground cumin and ground coriander along with some dried thyme and smoked paprika.
For a healthy side dish, I'd recommend roasted sweet potato wedges, drizzled with a little honey and cinnamon for the last few minutes of cooking so that they're golden and sticky.
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