This month’s Secret Recipe Club assignment found me over at Sarah’s blog, Everything In The Kitchen Sink.
Sarah is a 20-something engineering undergrad student at UMD who is “eating and cooking her way through life in DC”. She’s admirably ambitious. Besides writing a food blog, in any given week she’s taking and teaching classes, playing in sport leagues and spending whatever time is left with friends and family. When she cooks, all pots, pans and utensils end up in the kitchen sink. Hence the name of her blog.
Scrolling through her blog posts, I came to a screeching halt at Chicken Chorizo Burgers with Cumin-Lime Quick Pickles. When I read “this recipe is for the chicken burger doubters” (which would be me) I knew I had to give it a try.
Sarah nailed it with this burger. Simply flavored with onion and garlic, she warns us not to over mix the chorizo and chicken meat. This helps to maintain a good end result in texture. And with the pockets of chorizo these burgers weren’t dry and lifeless like other chicken burgers I’ve tried.
What really brings this burger to the forefront is the topping of the cumin-lime quick pickles. Zesty with lots of lime, rich with cumin, the flavor is complimented with the addition of smoky goodness. The recipe called for smoked salt, which I couldn’t find at the store, so I grabbed a jar of smoked black peppercorns which ended up to be a very nice addition. Add some lettuce and tomato and you’ve got a tasty burger.
Sarah also topped her burger with some corn crema as a condiment. For absolutely no reason other than I needed a side dish, I served the corn separately.
This was a delicious and adventurous Saturday night treat. Thanks for a great burger recipe Sarah.
For the Burgers:
1 lb of ground chicken
1/2 pound of chorizo sausage
1/4 onion, grated
2 cloves of garlic, grated
Pepper to taste
- Begin by removing the casing from the chorizo sausage (slice with a paring knife and pull off) and adding it to the ground chicken. Grate in the onion and garlic. Add pepper.
- Mix together gently, being careful not to over mix. This will create pockets of chorizo in the burgers.
- Form patties and cook in a grill pan or cast iron skillet. Tent with foil towards the end to insure they are no longer pink inside (about 160 F).
- To build the burgers, start with a toasted bun and the chorizo chicken patty. Top with a few of the quick pickles (recipe below), a slice of tomato and some lettuce.
Cumin-Lime Quick Pickles
1 package of Persian cucumbers, about 2 1/2 cups sliced (I found baby cucumbers at Whole Foods)
Pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup of rice wine vinegar
2 limes, zest and juice
1 1//2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
About 1/4 teaspoon of smoked salt (I used smoked cracked peppercorns)
A pinch of salt
- Begin by slicing the small cucumbers into the pickle shape, using the slicing blade on your food processor.
- Extract some of the water from the cucumbers by placing them in a colander, adding a pinch of salt, and letting it drain for about 2 hours. This helps the cucumbers ready to absorb flavors.
- After draining, build the quick pickling liquid. Combine the vinegar, lime zest and juice, cumin, garlic powder, smoked peppercorns and salt. Pour over the cucumbers and let sit for about an hour before topping the burgers with the quick pickles!
I made these pickles when I had her blog – I love them!
Those pickles are GOOOO-od
This is an inspired combination of flavors. The pickles just made my Must Try list.
It’s a great recipe SeattleDee. We enjoyed the whole thing, from chicken to pickle.
Those sound wonderful!
Thanks Ashley. And thanks for stopping by and the comment. Love the name of your blog.
great flavor combo…the pickles look amazing..
Those pickles are special.
Oh, man! This looks outstanding! Wow!
Thanks Adam
Wow I would have to visit at dinner time. wish I could change what we were having for dinner. Those look amazing and great photos too
Thanks Marla, and thanks for stopping by and the comment.
Nice, I think I could eat about 10 of these right now! Dee-lish!
I always feel that way about any burger.
My mouth waters when I look at your photo! I just have to make these burgers! Thanks!
Thanks Lynne. And thanks for stopping by and the comment.
I would normally not get to enthused over a chicken burger, but the addition of chorizo got my attention. The pickle topping sounds perfect and I like being able to make them in a couple of hours. Great shot of it with the pickle that has fallen off.
I would normally not get enthused over a chicken burger either Larry. Especially since I always buy ground breast. Maybe I should try ground thighs next time. Anyway, yes, that pickle is a nice flavorful topping. Thanks for the compliment on the photo.
So imaginative. I think this combination sounds delicious. Good looking burger Lea Ann.
Thanks Karen.
I always get enthused about a chicken burger. I can imagine the chorizo lifting it to a whole new level!! Am glad you are in the chicken burger camp now :d
That chorizo most certainly didn’t hurt that burger.
Wow – that looks like a delicious burst of flavor, with everything going on in that burger. YUM. What a great choice!
Thanks Shelley C.
I am totally not surprised that this recipe caught your eye. I’m with you about chicken burger, but the addition of chorizo wins me over and the pickles…it is now a must try.
Those pickles really made that burger.
What a great looking sandwich, Lea Ann! I love the idea of a chicken burger, even better with chorizo.
Thanks Holly.
Now I’ve made beef and chorizo burgers before, but never chicken… this will be going on the must try list for sure!
I’d like to try Beef Chorizo burgers too!
I really want to make this recipe. It sounds amazing! Second one I have seen that uses Chorizo. Now I need to go get some so I can make these. Thanks for sharing!
Make sure you get chorizo from a butcher. Some of the grocery stores sell chorizo in a tube that’s got an awful lot of grease.
I also find most chicken and turkey burger recipes lacking in taste. The chorizo in these sounds great along with those zippy pickles!
Susan, couldn’t agree more and the chorizo really does make this a good burger. But also rather defeats the “health” part. However, if you notice, I used a whole wheat bun.
Chicken burgers sound delicious, but those pickles are like a siren song. Yum! Also, just love the pictures. The vibrant green pickles, the Frankoma bowl and the crinkled paper – girl!
Thanks Vickie. Bob art directed the shot after I said “lets see …… what plate would this burger look good on”. And I too love those little Frankoma bowls. Those pickles are really good.
I an decidedly on the burger-are-made-from-beef side of the fence, but this recipe just might get me to change my mind. Great photos, btw.
I’m on your side of the buyers-are-made-from-beef side of the fence. This one was pretty darn good.
What a delicious-looking burger!
Thank you Nancy.
It’s noon, here, and I think it’s a mistake to watch this page … I’M HUNGRY AND I WANT THIS BURGER !!
Unfortunately, I don’t have to be hungry to want this burger.
Looks great and why have I never thought of mixing chorizo with another meat… I’m thinking it would be great mixed in with some ground venison… will have to try that next time.
I’m loving that ground venison idea Karen. Wish I had a freezer full.
These sound awesome! Already pinned because I’ll totally be trying these.
Please let me know how you like them. Thanks for stopping by Colleen and the comment.
Hi there. The current Food on Friday on Carole’s Chatter is about burgers. I do hope you link this lovely one in. This is the link . Please do pop back to check out some of the other links – there are a lot of good ones already. Have a great week.
Hi Lea Ann,
I can’t wait to try these awesome burgers and pickles.
Happy Valentine Day!
Miz Helen
SRC Group B
Thanks Miz Helen. So nice of you to stop by and comment.
I’m a big fan of pickles, and these sound delightful! Perfect for a chicken burger too. Now, I want to look for smoked pepper!
I found that smoked pepper at Whole Foods. I was really surprised they didn’t have smoked salt. I remember my son buying it there a couple years ago. Those pickles are really good Lisa. We had friends over and I ended up sending a few home with my begging friend Dan. He went crazy over them.
I have a pack of pickling cukes in the fridge right now, I might do a version of these pickles for tonight.
Let me know how you like it Chris.
Love the pickle recipe, Lea Ann. I don’t make burgers of any kind very often…but was recently watching a show with Ina Garten and she went on and on about overmixing hamburger meat and how it makes it tough all scrunched up like that. Do it lightly so air is left in, she said. I cringed when I remembered doing that very thing for my family. Never too late to learn!
Yummy burger!
I learned not to overmix years ago. And yes, what a difference it makes. Thanks for stopping by Barbara, always good to hear from you.
This is definitely a creative burger! Love it.
Thanks Velva.
Lea Ann, thank you for linking this in to Food on Friday. We have got a super collection of burgers together. I hope you have stopped by some of the other links to check them out!
Ps I have just signed up to follow your blog. A follow back to Carole’s Chatter would be wonderful – or have you already followed? Cheers
Ps If you would like email reminders of future Food on Fridays, just pop by and comment and include your email – I won’t publish it – and the reminder will be by bcc so it will remain private
Thanks Carole. I most certainly will follow Carole’s Chatter.
I usually shy away from ground chicken, but that burger looks delicious, Lea Ann. I saw Persian cukes at Costco last week and was trying to think of something to do with them. Love your photos. They make my stomach growl.
I do too Cathy, but I did find this to be good burger. I’ve never heard of Persian cucumbers. I’ll have to check Costco next time I’m over there.
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Dropping by to let you know that your Chicken Chorizo Burgers with Cumin-Lime Quick Pickles were Tuesday’s featured recipe on the Secret Recipe Club! Thanks for sharing and being a member of the club.
Thanks April. Love seeing my name in lights … and these burgers were very deserved. Delicious.
hey lady! just wanted to let you know the burger got featured on buzzfeed food! thanks again for speaking so highly of it!
http://www.buzzfeed.com/rachelysanders/badass-burgers-to-grill-this-weekend
Very Cool! Thanks for such a great recipe, and thanks for letting me know.
Thanks so much for letting me know… and for a great recipe.