Crunchy-nut chicken burgers with spicy mayo recipe

This intriguing mash-up takes the humble chicken burger to Indonesia by way of everyone’s favourite nutty breakfast cereal. 

I took the inspiration from gado gado salad and made a kecap manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce) mayo to go with it, adding chillies and ginger to stop it getting too sweet. This is also balanced out with sharp radish pickles and fresh cucumber. It is everything you want in a meal – sweet, salty, sour, spicy, nutty, crunchy, soft, crisp, juicy – utterly compelling.

Timings

Prep time: 25 minutes, plus marinating and pickling time

Cook time: 15 minutes

Serves

4

Ingredients

For the chicken

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 300ml buttermilk
• 100g plain flour
• 2 tsp garlic granules
• 2 tsp mild chilli powder
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 200g honey-nut cornflakes (such as Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut)
• neutral oil, for frying

For the pickles

• 4-6 radishes, finely sliced
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp honey

For the kecap mayo

• 4 tbsp mayo
• 2 tbsp kecap manis
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 1-2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• ¼ red chilli, deseeded and finely diced
• ½cm piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and grated

To serve

• 4 brioche burger buns
• lettuce leaves
• cucumber slices

Method

1. Slice each chicken breast into 3-4 thick strips. Put them in a bowl, add the buttermilk and season. Leave to marinate for a few hours in the fridge to tenderise the chicken, but let it come to room temperature for 20 minutes before coating and cooking.
2. To make the pickles, put the radishes in a small bowl with the rice vinegar and 1 tbsp water. Add the honey and a pinch of salt, stir together, then leave for at least 30 minutes – or a few hours in the fridge if you want them to go completely pink.
3. For the kecap mayo, combine the ingredients in a small bowl, adding more lemon juice and salt to taste.
4. Once the chicken has marinated, set up a production line. Put the flour on a plate, mix in the garlic granules and chilli powder, and season well. Put the beaten eggs in a shallow bowl. Crush the cornflakes into smaller pieces, but not into crumbs, and put them on another plate.
5. Remove a piece of chicken from the buttermilk and shake it to remove any excess liquid. Dip it in the flour, then the egg and finally in the cornflake crumbs, making sure it is completely covered at every step. Repeat to coat all of the chicken.
6. Heat 1.5cm of oil in a sauté pan or deep frying pan over a medium heat. Once hot, fry the chicken for a couple of minutes on each side until golden, crispy and cooked through. You will probably need to cook it in batches. Drain the chicken on kitchen paper while you cook the next batch.
7. To assemble the burgers, halve the buns and lightly toast the cut sides on a hot, dry griddle/grill pan or frying pan. Spread the base of each bun with a little kecap mayo, then layer with the lettuce, cucumber slices, pickles and chicken pieces.
8. Drizzle a little more mayo over the chicken, then pop the lids on the buns.

Recipe from BOLD: Big Flavour Twists to Classic Dishes by Nisha Katona (Nourish Books, £30)