Banh Mi - Style Chicken Burgers

Vietnam has been high on my list of must-visit countries for some time now. I can't wait for the chance to see the colonial architecture of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, rice

paddies, the Mekong Delta and - of course - the FOOD. 

The banh mi was inspired by Vietnam's history of French colonialism. It combines classic French ingredients (baguette, pate, mayonnaise) with classic Vietnamese ingredients (cilantro, pickled vegetables and hot peppers). The banh mi sandwiches that you will find in the US are delicious but far from light. I played around with a few recipes and came up with this lightened up version using ground chicken, fat free Greek yogurt and a whole wheat bun. I served it with an easy red cabbage slaw and some steamed veggies for a great weeknight meal.

What you'll need: 

1 lb ground chicken

2 Tbs sliced scallions

1  large handful of fresh cilantro

1 Tbs soy sauce

2 cloves garlic

3 radishes (thinly sliced)

1/2 c shredded carrots

2 tsp rice wine vinegar

1/2 tsp sesame oil

1 English cucumber (thinly sliced)

Pickled jalapenos (for garnish)

1 Tbs mayonnaise (heaping)

1/2 c fat free Greek yogurt

1 1/2 tsp sriracha (Asian hot sauce)

1/4 tsp garlic powder

olive oil 

2 Tbs chicken stock

3-4 whole wheat rolls (depends on the size burger you want)

salt

black pepper

How to do it:

First, prep the pickled veggies that will be one of your burger toppings. This is one of my favorite parts of the burgers. I love putting cold crisp veggies on hot dishes. Combine the sliced radishes, shredded carrots, rice wine vinegar and sesame oil in a small bowl. Add 1 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro and a pinch of salt. If you like spice you can also add about 1/2 tsp of the pickling liquid from the jar of jalapenos. Mix well and chill until your burgers are ready.

Next, combine your meat and spices. Put the ground chicken in a large mixing bowl. Add the scallions, soy sauce, 2 cloves finely minced garlic and 2 Tbs chopped cilantro. Combine all of the ingredients without over mixing and then form into 3-4 patties. Ground chicken can be really sticky. I find that it helps to form the patties with damp hands.

Let the burgers sit out and warm up a bit before you cook them. Now is a good time to make your sriracha yogurt sauce. Combine the mayonnaise, Greek yogurt and garlic powder in small bowl. Add the sriracha (or other hot sauce) to taste. I used 1 1/2 tsp. You may want to start with 1 tsp and then add more if you like. Add a generous pinch of salt and some freshly cracked black pepper. Mix well and pop into the fridge.

Now you are ready to cook the burgers. If you're like me you've been tasting the pickled veggies and that delicious sauce and now you're STARVING. Don't worry, these burgers cook quickly.

Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and lightly coat with olive oil. Your pan and oil should be hot when you hold your hand over but not so hot that its smoking. You should hear a nice, satisfying sizzle when you put the burgers into the pan. If you don't quickly fish it out and wait until your pan is hot enough.

Cook the burgers on 3 minutes per side. Then add about 2 Tbs of chicken stock to pan. Cover the pan and reduce the heat to somewhere between low and medium. Cook for another 3 minutes and then remove the cover to let the moisture evaporate for about 1 minute. Adding the chicken stock really helps keep turkey and chicken burgers moist. They can dry out easily since you have to be careful to cook them all the way through. I use this last minute to lightly toast the buns. 

So all of your components are ready and your kitchen smells awesome. Now it's time to artfully craft your burger. Slather the top and bottom of your bun with the sriracha sauce. Put a few slices of cucumber on the bottom and then top with the patty. Pile the pickled veggies on top along with a few jalapenos and a few tablespoons of fresh cilantro (whole leaves) - really pile it on there as a substitute for lettuce. 

This burger is as satisfying as your classic cheeseburger but it is full of new and exciting flavors. I hope you enjoy as much as we did!

Roasted Chicken & Honey Mustard Potatoes

Have you ever heard of engagement chicken? It's a recipe for roasted chicken that is supposed to be so amazing that your boyfriend will be moved to propose to you after eating it because it is the type of meal a wife would make. This is not that chicken recipe.

While I do think the concept of engagement chicken is a pretty ridiculous I totally agree that a roasted chicken is a beautiful thing. Roasting a chicken is actually incredibly easy yet the finished product seems impressive. I highly recommend it for company or a special occasion. It allows you to do a little work up front and then you're free to entertain your guests, drink wine, fold laundry.... whatever it is you rather be doing instead of sweating over a complicated recipe that you may just mess up at the last minute anyway.


I paired this lemony roasted chicken with roasted potatoes in a honey mustard glaze. If the oven is going to be on you may as well use it to make your side dish. Again, the work for the potatoes is done mostly ahead of time.

One note: I find that chickens (especially organic) really don't feed more than 2-3 people. If you are planning on serving a larger group make an extra chicken or two and adjust the other ingredients accordingly.

LEMONY ROASTED CHICKEN

What you'll need:
1 whole chicken (I recommend organic whenever possible. I think mine was about 4-5 lbs)
4 cloves garlic
1 lemon
2 Tbs honey
1 Tbs rosemary
1 Tbs Dijon mustard
1/4 c olive oil
salt
pepper
paprika
red pepper flakes

How to do it:
First you'll want to take the chicken out of the fridge about an hour before you want to start cooking. You don't want to put a cold chicken (or any type of meat) directly in the oven. Also, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

While you wait for the chicken to come to room temperature and the oven to heat prepare the rub for the chicken.  First chop the garlic gloves and zest the lemon. Be careful to only remove the yellow parts and not the white pith, which is very bitter. Combine about 3/4 of the garlic and all of the lemon zest in a bowl. Add the honey, rosemary, mustard and the juice of half the lemon. Add a generous pinch of salt (about 1/2 tsp), a good amount of black pepper and some red pepper. Combine with a fork or whisk and then slowly stream in about 1/4 cup of olive oil. Set aside.

After the chicken is at room temperature remove the neck and giblets from the cavity, put it in a roasting pan (preferably one with a rack that will elevate the chicken) and pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Sprinkle generously with salt, pepper and paprika. Be sure you add a bit of salt inside the cavity too.

Put the two lemon halves (one has been squeezed, one hasn't) and the remaining garlic in the cavity. Now spread the rub you prepared all over the chicken. Make sure you lift the skin a bit and get some right on the breasts. Dont' neglect the thighs and legs and be add a little to the cavity as well.

At this point I sprinkled a bit more olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika on top for good measure. I also recommend that you tuck the wing tips under the bird before you put the chicken in the oven. You can see from the photo of my finished product below that I forgot this step and my wing tips burned.

If you do have a roasting rack I recommend putting an inch or so of water in the bottom of the pan. This will help to keep the chicken moist and will stop the drippings from burning and sticking to your pan. Skip this step if you don't have a roasting rack. In that case you may want to put the chicken on a bed of an onion and/or some celery and carrots. It helps to prop up the chicken a bit and makes a pan sauce.

Put the chicken in the oven and cook at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and cook for 45-60 more minutes. I think I cooked mine for about 50 more minutes after the initial 15. This will depend on your oven and the size of the chicken. I recommend using a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the breast about 45 minutes in. You want the temperature to be about 165. The temperature will continue to rise while it rests.

Once the chicken is ready remove it from the oven and cover with tin foil. Allow to rest for about 10 minutes before carving.

Carve and enjoy!

HONEY MUSTARD POTATOES

What you'll need:

1 lb waxy potatoes (I used an awesome mixed color medley from Trader Joe's. Avoid russets; which is what you would usually use for a baked potato)

2 Tbs Dijon mustard

2 Tbs honey

3 Tbs olive oil, divided

salt

pepper

red pepper flakes

1 handful fresh parsley, chopped

How to do it:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Wash and dry the potatoes and then cut them into chunks - about an inch or so in size. Add them to a roasting pan. I sometimes use cookie sheets for roasted potatoes but you'll want a pan with somewhat higher sides for this dish.

Dress the potatoes with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a generous amount of salt (about 1/2 tsp) and black pepper. Combine well so all potatoes are coated. Roast the potatoes for about 30 minutes. Turn them over one or twice so that the potatoes brown evenly.

While the potatoes cook prepare the glaze. Combine the mustard, honey and olive oil in a bowl. Add a good pinch of salt, black pepper and a bit of red pepper flakes. Stir to combine.

Once the potatoes are browned and nearly done, remove the pan from the oven and mix in the glaze - coating the potatoes evenly. Return to the oven and cook for another ten minutes or so.

Karl noted that these would also taste great with some bacon fat so if you happen to have any leftover from breakfast feel free to add that to the glaze.

 After 10 minutes remove them from the oven and taste. Add another sprinkling of salt if you need and add the fresh parsley. Delicious!

Some tips for making these dishes together:

1. Prep the chicken
2. Make the rub
3. Prep the potatos
4. Make the glaze
5. Add pototoes to oven when chicken has about 30 more minutes to go
6. Add glaze to potatoes when you remove chicken and rest it
7. Potatoes will be done when chicken is fully rested



New Year, New You: Turkey Breakfast Sausage

Happy New Year (a bit late)! OK, so I'm also really tardy with this post. Holidays, travel, broken computer - blah, blah, blah. I'm back now.

Like most people I resolved to be healthier this year. Luckily, experience has taught me that you don't have to sacrifice everything you love in order to eat in a more healthy way. That is one of the things I love most about cooking. When you prepare your own meals you control what goes into it and, more importantly, what doesn't.

Karl and I looove to have breakfast sandwiches on Saturday mornings. You really can't beat a bacon, egg and cheese on an English muffin. And I honestly think the sandwiches I make at home are better than what you would get at a diner. Plus, we don't need to put on real pants. I also love a good sausage patty with my eggs but even turkey sausage often has a lot of added fat and fillers. It's pretty scary if you read the ingredients on the average box of breakfast sausage. Ick.

I decided to try to make my own breakfast sausage using extra lean ground turkey. This is a lighter substitute for bacon (and wayyyyy better for you than prepared sausage) and the patties were really easy to make. This recipe makes about 10-12, depending on how large you make them. You could even freeze them and then microwave one to make a quick weekday breakfast later on.

What you'll need:

1 lb extra lean turkey sausage
1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp thyme
1 tsp ground fennel seed
1/2 tsp ground sage
generous pinch red pepper flakes (1/8 to 1/4 tsp depending on how spicy you like it)
2 Tbs maple syrup (use the real stuff)
freshly ground black pepper
drizzle of olive or canola oil for cooking the patties

How to do it:
Put the ground turkey into a large mixing bowl. Add the salt through maple syrup. Crack a good amount of black pepper on top.

Mix up the meat and spices with your (clean) hands. Lean ground turkey is pretty sticky and annoying to work with. If you start with wet hands it will be a bit easier. Thoroughly combine without over mixing.

Next heat a non stick skillet and add a bit of oil. Once the skillet is hot scoop the turkey mixture in. I used a 1/4 c measuring cup but next time I think I would use a 1/3 c. At first you will keep the sausage in these little round balls but don't worry - they'll be patties soon.

After the sausage browns on one side flip it and then use your spatula to push it in patty. It is very important that you push down on the side that's already browned. If not the mushy turkey will get stuck in your spatula and will basically ruin your life. Trust me. I am speaking from experience.

See? Push on the browned side. Cook a few minutes per side until each side is browned like this.

Then drizzle about one tablespoon of water into the pan and cover for a minute or so until the water evaporates. This helps to deglaze the pan and the steam ensures that the turkey is cooked all way.

I like tons of flavor in my sausage so I sprinkled it with a bit more salt, pepper and red pepper once it was cooked. You can do the same or you can cook a small test patty and then adjust your seasonings as necessary.

The patties are great on a breakfast sandwich (see above) or crumbled into an omelet, served next to scrambled eggs, with french toast. You name it.

They reheat easily in the microwave (30-60 seconds). You can also put them in a single layer on a plate in the freezer. Once they freeze throw them into a freezer baggie. This makes it easy to grab one at a time later on.

Enjoy!