If I had a photo, I would most certainly use it. That is... unless the photo I have sucks. For now, you'll just have to picture a big heaping helping of
Everyone loves chicken, but a chicken smash burger somehow gets missed in the love - and it shouldn't.
2 Burgers
Ingredients
1 large yellow onion, sliced in half then into thin half rounds
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 pound ground chicken, thighs would be your most delicious option here - but you do you sparky
1 Serrano pepper, diced small
1 teaspoon garlic powder (not garlic salt!)
Kosher salt & fresh ground pepper
1/2 red pepper, sliced into thin strips
Neutral oil for frying
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon smoked paprika (reg is fine)
4 slices Monterey jack cheese
3 tablespoons mayo (Kewpie if you have it & you should)
2 burger buns, brioche or at least something very decent
Directions
Take half the onions, put them into a bowl with buttermilk, making sure they’re all covered and refrigerate 20 minutes
Put chicken into a bowl, add Serrano, garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon each salt & pepper - mix well, then separate into 4 balls
Heat a pan on medium/high, add a tablespoon of neutral oil then the remaining onions and red peppers - let cook about 10 minutes or until beautifully softened, season to taste with salt & pepper & set aside
Heat about an inch of oil in a pot to 350 degrees
Put flour and paprika in a large bowl and mix well to combine
Remove onions from the buttermilk, shake off excess and drop into the flour mixture, making sure all get evenly covered
Carefully put onions into the hot oil, separating them as you go - give them a gentle stir to keep them from clumping together and cook until golden brown and crispy 3-4 minutes, then keep warm (you’ll likely need to do this in batches so you don’t crowd the pot)
Heat a large non-stick pan or griddle to medium high, lightly oil and add each ball of chicken
Use a large spatula to squish the chicken into a flat patty about 3/8 inch thick and cook about 3 minutes, or until halfway done, flip over and add a slice of cheese to each
Toast the buns lightly and add mayo to the bottom bun, then both patties with cheese when done, some of the peppers, then the onion straws and finally the top bun
