Chicken and cashew burger with sesame and tandoori mayonnaise

Homemade, juicy and delicious, this is the recipe that Virginia, author of Sweet&Sour , brings us to make chicken burgers at home. I bet you can't resist the temptation!

Who doesn't enjoy a good homemade burger? Homemade burgers have very little to do with the fast food sold in fast food establishments. Starting with the raw material.

In my case, to start with, I always buy the meat to mince, because those pre-packaged minced meat preparations that they sell seem simply horrible to me and have little meat flavor. I still haven't been able to discover what they add to them, but they have very little minced meat. In fact, since I have the manual Meat Grinder , I have started to prepare not only beef hamburgers, but also other types of meat, such as chicken, lamb or turkey, which are not usually minced in the butcher's shop, since it is prohibited due to cross contamination, and in the best of cases, you have to wait until the last minute or first thing the next day. It is robust, easy to use and easy to clean and I find it to be the most vintage in my kitchen.

De Buyer iron grill

As for burgers, one of my favourites is this chicken burger, lighter than the beef burger but very juicy. I recommend that you preferably use thighs that are juicier than breast. But even with breasts these burgers come out very juicy, thanks to the creme fraiche and the teaspoon of tahini that we added.

The cashews and sesame seeds that we added give it a crunchy and flavorful touch. Oh, and don't forget to add the lemon zest, it's a necessary contrast.

To shape them I use the Gefú burger press , which allows me to keep all my burgers the same size and shape and cook them equally on all sides. A tool that I have considered essential in my kitchen since I've had it for years, even though it may seem like a superfluous utensil. A burger that we have shaped like this has nothing to do with a burger that we have prepared by hand, not only in presentation but also in cooking.

To cook it I used the De Buyer mineral iron grill , not only beautiful, but ideal for cooking grilled meat and fish, as it distributes and retains heat very well, and you can even put it directly in the oven.
Let's get on with the recipe.

INGREDIENTS: (For 4 burgers of about 200gr.)

For the burgers:

• 4 hamburger buns
• 800g of chopped chicken thighs or breasts
• 1 onion, chopped into brunoise
• The zest of 1 organic lemon
• 2 tablespoons creme fraiche or Greek yogurt
• 1 egg (M)
• 4 tablespoons fine breadcrumbs
• 1 tablespoon of tahin
• 2 tablespoons chopped cashews
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• Salt and pepper
• Sesame Oil "La Tourangelle"

For the Tandoori mayonnaise:

• 4 tablespoons of mayonnaise
• 2-3 teaspoons Indian Tandoori Curry Paste

For assembly

• Canons
• Red pepper strips

PREPARATION

We prepare the Tandoori Mayonnaise by mixing the mayonnaise with the paste. We keep it in the fridge.

Let's go with the burger:

1. We start by mincing the meat with our manual meat grinder , if the butcher has not minced it for us.

2. Mix all the ingredients well and add salt and pepper.

3. Make balls of dough, the weight you want your burgers to be, and shape them. To do this, sprinkle the inside of the Gefú burger press mould with a little breadcrumbs, so that they come off easily when you remove them (this dough is rather soft). Flatten them with the back of a spoon and press them with the porcelain handle of the press. Turn them over and you're done. Repeat the operation until you're done.

Gefu Manual Meat Grinder and Burger Press

Since this press can make burgers weighing between 120g and 200g, I have made 200g burgers that are more substantial and, because they are thicker, juicier.

4. We put our De Buyer mineral iron grill on medium-high heat and when it is very hot, we add a drizzle of sesame oil . We place our burgers and cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side.

While the burgers are cooking, we also roast the red pepper strips.

5. Once cooked, we toast the bases of the hamburger buns on the same grill, so that they remain crispy and do not become soft with the sauce.

6. Assemble the burger, adding a spoonful of tandoori mayonnaise, some lamb's lettuce and cover with the strips of red pepper, more mayonnaise and lamb's lettuce.

Ready to enjoy in good company with a refreshing beer.

Enjoy.
Virginia