When your Sunday includes a late, hearty breakfast and an afternoon filled with shopping and a stop at a sidewalk café, dinner needs to something light and simple. I considered a picnic dinner, but with the threat of chilly temperatures at sunset, eating indoors was the better option.
As we left the house on Sunday, I had the beginnings of a dinner plan: use the ground chicken that was defrosting. Knowing that we wouldn’t be home until mid- to late afternoon, I wanted to make a dinner that wouldn’t require either a lot of active cooking time or that would need to simmer for hours. With those conditions in mind, I knew that meatballs wouldn’t be an option, as they are much better after simmering. I also knew that grilling wasn’t a great choice, as my last set of chicken burgers that we cooked outdoors were a disaster.
Combining the two dishes that weren’t going to be made, I decided to make a slider. Taking the seasoning that I used in a meatball and forming the patties into a smaller size delivered a good amount of flavor. A smaller size also equals the ability to pan-fry them. Also, with a well-seasoned slider, there would be no need for buns, which would make this meal even lighter.
Served with a delicious topping and some quickly pickled veggies, it was the perfect indoor picnic dinner!
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 2 teaspoons Emeril’s Chicken Rub
- 1 shallot, minced
- salt & pepper
- olive oil
- Combine chicken, rub, and shallot in a large bowl.
- Mix well to combine. S
- eason mixture with salt and pepper.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.*
- Heat a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat.
- While heating, form chicken mixture into 12 patties.
- Coat frying pan with a small amount of olive oil.
- Place 6 patties in pan and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Flip and cook for an additional 3 minutes, or until cooked thoroughly.
- Wipe residue from pan (or it will be difficult to flip next batch), coat with more olive oil, and add remaining patties.
- Repeat cooking directions.
- Serve immediately.
- *Allowing the mixture to chill for an hour allowed the seasonings to intensify.
[…] week I wrote about the chicken sliders that I made for an indoor picnic. These sliders are flavorful and make delicious mini-burgers […]