Recipe: Tamari-Ginger Chicken Sliders with Quick Pickles & Pea Shoots

by Michelle Dudash, Chef and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist

August 15, 2012 • 2 comments

Labor Day weekend just screams for tossing a piece of meat on the grill and eating on the patio, preferably in a bathing suit with a frosty beverage in hand. Give this recipe a try if you aim to step up your grilling prowess. The slow cooker Braised Pork Buns in my cookbook, Clean Eating for Busy Families (available now for pre-order), was the inspiration for this new creation, enabling me to satisfy my cravings for similar flavors in mere minutes.

Grinding the chicken in your food processor yields a tender, juicy patty, but if you need to skip that step, go ahead and buy pre-ground chicken. If you do grind the meat yourself, it’s important to keep ice cold so the patty does not turn to mush and retains little crevices that hold onto flavor. The store where I shopped just happened to be out of the bean sprouts I normally use, but they had pea shoots, which worked out fine.

What is your “go to” grilling recipe?

Tamari-Ginger Chicken Sliders with Quick Pickles & Pea Shoots

For the cucumbers:

1 tablespoon honey

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1 cup sliced English or Persian cucumbers (or peel traditional cucumbers, cut in half lengthwise, seed with teaspoon, and then thinly slice)

For the burgers:

1 clove garlic

1 slice peeled ginger

1/2 cup sweet onion chunks

1 pound trimmed skinless chicken thighs, cut into halves or thirds, placed in freezer for 10 minutes

2 teaspoons tamari sauce (or soy sauce)

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (or Sichuan peppercorns for a more authentic taste)

To assemble:

10 mini whole-wheat hamburger buns

5 teaspoons Korean barbecue sauce*

Fresh pea shoots (or bean sprouts)

Light mayonaisse

Preheat the grill on medium heat.

For the cucumbers: Dissolve honey and salt in rice vinegar, add cucumbers and chill.

For the burgers: Mince garlic, ginger and onion in a food processor. Add chicken, tamari and pepper and pulse until chicken is just ground, with some small pieces remaining. Dump meat mixture onto cutting board and shape into patties. To prevent tough burgers, the less handling, the better.

Oil grill and cook patties on one side until done almost half way through, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until done, about 2 more minutes. Place buns on grill, cut sides down, and toast until golden.

Put cooked patties, barbecue sauce, drained cucumbers and pea shoots on bottom halves of buns and finish with tops of buns, spreading with mayonnaise as desired.

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Makes 5 servings (2 sliders each, with 1 teaspoon barbecue sauce and 6 cucumber slices)

*I used Annie Chun’s Korean Barbecue Sauce (free sample), which can be found in the natural foods aisle.

Nutrition Facts (per serving): 310 calories, 8 g total fat (2 g saturated fat, 0 g trans fat), 780 mg sodium, 60 mg cholesterol, 32 g total carbohydrate (4 g fiber), 26 g protein, 14% DV iron, 6% DV calcium, 10% DV Vitamin A, 4% DV Vitamin C.

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Tamari-Ginger Chicken Sliders with Quick Pickles & Pea Shoots

By Michelle Dudash, Chef and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Published: August 15, 2012

• Yield: 2 sliders each (5 Servings)
• Prep: 30 mins
• Cook: 5 mins
• Ready In: 35 mins

Give this recipe a try if you aim to step up your grilling prowess.

Ingredients

• For the cucumbers:
• 1 tablespoons honey
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 cup English or Persian cucumbers or peel traditional cucumbers, cut in half lengthwise, seed with teaspoon, and then thinly slice
• For the burgers:
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 slice peeled ginger
• 1/2 cup sweet onion chunks
• 1 pound trimmed skinless chicken thighs cut into halves or thirds, placed in freezer for 10 minutes
• 2 teaspoons tamari sauce (or soy sauce)
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or Sichuan peppercorns for a more authentic taste
• To assemble:
• 10 mini whole-wheat hamburger buns
• 5 teaspoons Korean barbecue sauce
• Fresh pea shoots (or bean sprouts)
• Light mayonnaise

Instructions

1. Preheat the grill on medium heat.
   
2. For the cucumbers: Dissolve honey and salt in rice vinegar, add cucumbers and chill.
   
3. For the burgers: Mince garlic, ginger and onion in a food processor. Add chicken, tamari and pepper and pulse until chicken is just ground, with some small pieces remaining. Dump meat mixture onto cutting board and shape into patties. To prevent tough burgers, the less handling, the better.
   
4. Oil grill and cook patties on one side until done almost half way through, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until done, about 2 more minutes. Place buns on grill, cut sides down, and toast until golden.
   
5. Put cooked patties, barbecue sauce, drained cucumbers and pea shoots on bottom halves of buns and finish with tops of buns, spreading with mayonnaise as desired.
   

• Cuisine: Asian
• Course: Entrée
• Skill Level: Moderate