Portuguese Chicken Burgers with Rosemary and Paprika Hand-cut Chips

Owen has been talking about making his ultimate Portuguese burger for almost the entirety of our marriage. So tonight I decided to embark on this challenge, and ran the risk of dashing his epic dream into smithereens. I constructed this burger under the careful watch of my gorgeous husband and the result I must admit, was delicious! Feel free to add other elements to your burger like crispy bacon, tomato, cheese or anything else you desire.

 

Portuguese Chicken Burgers with Rosemary and Paprika Hand-cut Chips

 

1 chicken breast, slice in half lengthways

Piri Piri Sauce

4 birds eye chillies

3 garlic cloves

½ teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon each of sweet and smoked paprika

100ml olive oil

50ml red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Cos lettuce and rocket leaves

Avocado

Good quality whole egg mayonnaise (or homemade aioli)

2 fresh rolls (we used spelt ones)

Rosemary and Paprika Hand-cut Chips

3 large potatoes (kestrel are good for baking/roasting)

½ tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped finely

½ teaspoon each of sweet and smoked paprika

1 ½  tablespoons olive oil

½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper

Method

1. Heat a griddle pan to hot and add whole chillies and garlic cloves. Turn them every so often, but you want to char grill them. After about 5-6min, remove from pan. Take the skin off the garlic, chop the end off the chillies (remove seeds at this stage if you want to reduce the heat) and add to a small saucepan with chopped oregano, vinegar, oil and paprika. Heat and reduce liquid slightly. Remove from heat and add lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Place in a blender and wizz until smooth. Allow to cool, and marinate ¾ of the peri peri sauce with the chicken breast pieces for 3+ hours or overnight (set the ¼ of sauce aside for later).

2. Preheat oven to 220 degrees celcius. Cut potatoes into 1cm thick chips. Toss in a bowl with rosemary, paprika, olive oil, salt and pepper. Line a tray with baking paper, arrange chips so they aren’t touching, and cook for 20-25min or until golden brown (keep an eye on them, as the thinner you cut them, the quicker they cook).

3. Meanwhile heat an oiled griddle pan to a medium heat and cook the chicken breast until slightly charred and cooked all the way through. Remove and set aside to rest.

4. Mix remaining peri peri sauce with approx. ¼ cup of whole egg mayonnaise (more or less according to the heat you prefer). Wash lettuce and rocket, prepare avocado and toast buns under grill until just golden.

5. Assemble burger with avocado slices on the bottom, then chicken, lettuce and the chilli mayonnaise on top. Make little bags from baking paper, and fill them with the delicious hot chips. Arrange on a plate with a smear of mayo and chilli to dip the chips in. YUM!

Serves 2

 

Mr McDonalds remarks… “That was YUM! The only thing I would do next time is add some char-grilled capsicum to the sauce to sweeten it a bit. Make sure you add lots of tasty mayo and chilli sauce to make it deliciously moist with every mouthful”.

(Tip: to make chargrilled capsicum, cut it into large pieces and cut away the edge bits to make it flattish. Char-grill with the chilli and garlic, pull the skin away with a knife and add to the blender with other ingredients).