Tailgate fried chicken burgers
Normally you would be right in thinking that making a fried chicken burger out of the back of your car is going to be kind of hard. Fortunately for me i like a challenge.
Fried chicken is another thing that I’ve made a ton of, at one stage a few years ago we went all in on the full fried chicken set up with a pressure deep fryer to cook fried chicken just like our friends at KFC, it was a winner. These days i still like to make hot fried chicken usually in the style of Nashville, and usually not in bulk quantities.
For a burger i’d use a chicken thigh, it’s just easier, and I trim any excess fat and any veins that are still present.
I brined the chicken overnight in buttermilk, salt, pepper, paprika and chilli powder.
I made these burgers with bacon, American cheddar, roast capsicum mayo on a brioche bun, and some lettuce.
The capsicum mayo is super easy,
Either roast the capsicum yourself in the oven or buy the packaged ones from the deli section, then chop finely and combine with your favourite store-bought mayo, I use kewpie or hellman’s usually.
To make the chicken you’ll need some plain flour seasoned with salt and pepper, i also add more paprika and chilli powder. take the chicken straight from the buttermilk and dump it in the flour to coat it thoroughly. I used a cast iron skillet to heat up the canola oil ( you can use any high temp oil you like for this part) it’s a little tricky to get the temperature right, it’s probably a good idea to have a thermometer, ideally you want the oil to be at 180˚c. gently place the chicken into the hot oil and let it fry.
Give it a good 6 - 8 minutes turning it every now and again. If you added paprika and chilli powder the chicken with be slightly darker than if you didn’t. It’s a good idea to stick your thermometer into the fattest part of the chicken to check the temp when you think it’s done, anything over 65˚ is good as it will continue cooking after being removed from the oil. Take out the chicken and drain it on a wire rack. I cooked the bacon and toasted the buns prior to cooking the chicken which I think is a good idea - I like to have it all ready to go when the chicken comes out of the fry oil.
I stack mine like this.
mayo on the bottom and top of the bun
chicken - cheese - bacon - lettuce
super simple.
The cooking set up I used was just my trusty gasmate 2 burner gas bbq and a cast iron skillet. Most of the bowls and trays i use are from catering supply shops, far cheaper than camping stores for cooking equip.
I only used one knife for these burgers, the santoku inspired carbon steel chef’s knife, it’s something i make and sell a lot of, it has a great feel to it and just super versatile.
