Deep-fried without a batter
As you may have noticed, through no fault of my own, I’ve been writing about chicken recently. 10 years ago me would have been very disappointed, but that is only because “chicken” meant dry oven cooked bland tasting thingy.
So as I have told you previously, chicken tastes good as long as it is not too dry. So, today we deep fry it. We prepare chicken patties and deep fry them in oil. Now – no need to fill a whole pot of oil – a (relatively) thin layer of oil in the pan is enough to do the trick. Just make sure it is high enough to cover almost half of the patty’s height – so you get a nice browning all over the patty when you flip it.
Another option (more healthy) is not to use oil and fry the patty on a non-stick pan, but you won’t get the full, all-side browning, and the chicken will be a bit drier (the patties in the image were actually fried without oil – for my wife).
The seasoning of the patty is up to you of course, but I decided to go with a Mediterranean spin on it with a heavy emphasis on cumin. Eating it right off the pan is the way to go and you can serve it with mayo or mustard on the side (or a mustard aioli if you want to go fancy).
You may wonder if the patties need an egg to keep the meat together – they don’t and they taste better without the egg, but the breadcrumbs are essential, don’t skip them.
Thanks to my mother-in-law for the original recipe (and forgive me for the changes I made).
Ingredients
- ½ kg minced chicken meat [1lb]
- 4 cloves minced garlic
- 2 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- ½ tsp cumin
- ½ tsp paprika
- salt
- canola oil
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.
- Shape the meat in the shape of pucks – around 1-2cm (around ⅔ inch) in height.
- Heat the oil in a pan. The oil should be almost as high as half a patty.
- When the oil is hot – place the patties in it – don't overcrowd the pan as you want the oil to stay hot.
- When one side is done, flip the patty and cook on the other side.
- When ready – take them out, pat them dry and serve immediately.
Looks delicious