Satisfy Your Cravings with a Crispy Chicken and Mac and Cheese Delight

Crispy Chicken Burger with Honey Mustard Coleslaw on a toasted brioche bun, with jalapenos and crunchy lettuce. Waaay better than takeout!

Ingredients

Chicken Marinade:

3 large chicken breasts – sliced into long, thick strips
240 ml (1 cup) buttermilk
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp white pepper
¼ tsp garlic salt

Crispy Chicken Coating:

180 g (1 ½ cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
½ tsp garlic salt
½ tsp celery salt
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp chilli flakes

Honey Mustard Coleslaw:

⅓ white cabbage
1 medium carrot – peeled
4 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp honey
2 tsp lemon juice
pinch black pepper
Also:

vegetable oil – for deep frying
4 slices gouda cheese – I used the ready-sliced kind, or you can slice it yourself
4 brioche buns – toasted
8 pieces crunchy lettuce – I used ‘O’ so sweet’ variety – but Romaine or Little Gem are great too
1-2 jalapenos – sliced
½ red onion – peeled and thinly sliced

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the chicken in a bowl. Add the buttermilk, salt, pepper and garlic salt. Mix together, cover and place in the fridge to marinade for at least 1 hour (up to over night)

Preheat the oven to a low heat (to keep cooked chicken warm). Heat a large pan of vegetable oil (or preheat your deep fat fryer) until hot (you can test by dropping a small cube of bread in there, if it rises immediately to the top and starts to bubble rapidly, it’s hot enough). You’ll need at least 1 litre (4 cups) of oil – but make sure your pan is no more than one third full.

Mix together the crispy coating ingredients in a small bowl. Take the chicken out of the fridge. Lift a piece from the buttermilk and allow the excess to drip off. Dredge the chicken in the crispy coating mixture – ensuring it’s fully covered. Place on a tray and repeat until all of the chicken is coated.

Once the oil is hot enough, add in 5 or 6 of the chicken tenders. You can add more or less depending on the size of your pan, just be sure not to overcrowd the chicken. Cook for 3-5 minutes until golden brown and cooked in the middle. You can check this by cutting open a piece of chicken, if it’s no longer pink in the middle, it’s cooked.

Place on a tray in the oven to keep warm whilst you cook the rest of the chicken.
Make the coleslaw by using a mandoline to julienne the cabbage and carrot (or you can slice thinly by hand). Place in a bowl with the mayonnaise, mustard, honey, lemon juice and black pepper. Stir together, then cover and refrigerate until needed.

Now it’s time to assemble. First, arrange the chicken tenders into four piles and place the gouda on top. Grill or place into a hot oven for a couple of minutes until just melted.
Place the bottom of the brioche buns on four plates. Top with the lettuce leaves, followed by the cheesy chicken pieces.

Spoon on the coleslaw, then sprinkle on the red onion slices and jalapeno slices. Place tops of the buns on top and serve.

NOTES

Nutrition info is for one chicken burger. This info is approximate, as all of the flour may not be used up in coating the chicken (I’ve counted all of the flour as part of the nutritional info though). Also, I’ve included 1 tbsp of oil per serving to account for the oil that is absorbed during deep drying (this is an *approximate* amount, the chicken may absorb more or less).

 Click here to get full recipe of Mac and cheese