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Crispy Panko Chicken Burger with Honey Mustard

A panko chicken burger with lettuce, tomatoes and pickles.

 


 

Crispy panko chicken burger with a delicious orange honey mustard sauce beats all the chicken burgers or chicken sandwiches out there. The panko makes for an extra crispy bread crumb and the chicken is just so juicy. Drizzle with a sweet and spicy orange honey mustard sauce, top with creamy avocado and fresh tomatoes, stuff it into a bun and dance your happy food dance. I know you have it.

 

I'm very excited about this chicken burger recipe. I made it early Fall last year, but it wasn't the right timing to post this chicken burger recipe on the blog just yet. People were just starting to get excited about pumpkin spice lattes, apple caramel cakes and sage brown butter. YES, myself included. However, this burger was soo good I was already looking forward to Summer so I could share it.

 

And here we are!

 

Honey mustard sauce and panko chicken breast and tenders

 

What is panko? Perfect crispy bread crumbs for chicken!

 

Panko is just lighter breadcrumbs. They are made from a special white bread without any crusts, and it makes them extra airy and crispy. And because of exactly this, it's perfect for fried food! This way the panko bread crumbs absorb less oil, making the fried chicken breast more crispy and less oily. Read more about panko here.

 

To make the panko bread crumbs, we mix all the (dry) ingredients together. Shocking!

 

Dry ingredients to fry panko chicken burgers.

 

How to prepare the chicken breasts for a chicken burger

 

Chicken breasts are often huge and also pretty uneven. Having a whole chicken breast inside one burger just seems excessive to me, so I like to slice it up. Note that some call a whole chicken breast in burger buns as chicken sandwiches, but I refer to them as chicken burgers anyway. No minced chicken!

 

What I do is I remove the chicken tenders from the chicken breast. And then slice the remaining chicken breast in two, lengthwise. This will give two thinner chicken pieces along with one chicken tender. You can also pound the chicken thinner with something heavy. And bonus - the panko chicken tenders are perfect just as a snack with the honey mustard dipping sauce!

 

panko chicken tenders dipped in honey mustard sauce

 

Making the best chicken burger marinade

 

This chicken burger marinade is made from all my favorite spices, ranging from garlic and onion, to smokey paprika and chilli. It also contains buttermilk, which is an acidic milk that works as a tenderizer. This makes the chicken so juicy and tender! In Norway, kulturmelk is often used as buttermilk. They are pretty similar, both being acidic, thick milks. Feel free to use that instead! Even milk with a touch of lemon juice will do.

 

What you do is simply whisk the egg, and mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl, and add your prepared chicken breasts to it. Marinate for about 1 hour.

 

Step by step photos for chicken burger marinade

 

Preparing your add-ons

 

Because this chicken burger is fried, we would like to have everything ready once they're done frying. You may begin with the orange honey mustard sauce. All you need to do is whisk it all together, give it a taste and season accordingly. This honey mustard dressing is light on the mustard. I think mustard can be really over powering, so I'm toning it down a bit, making the sweet orange marmelade and honey balance really well with the mustard.

 

Get your greens and vegetables ready:

  • Crunchy greens; spinach, arugula, lettuce or romaine
  • Something sweet: tomatoes, red bell pepper or corn
  • A touch of tartness: pickled cucumber or jalapeños
  • Flavor bombs: onion, garlic, green beans or green onions
  • And something creamy: avocado, baby!

 

Panko chicken burger in brioche bun with spinach and tomatoes.

 

The bold words are my choices. Burger is a perfect way of using ingredients you already have in your vegetable drawer, but I like to mix and match within these categories.

 

Warm up your favorite burger buns (0kay you can wait with this until frying the chicken). I really love brioche for this, but really, any kind of burger bun will do just fine. Sometimes I even like to brush a little melted butter on top of each bun. That is giving a salty kick once you bite into the burger - umm YESS.

 

Assembly of chicken burger, dolloping honey mustard on top.

 

Also important? Mayo, particularly garlic mayo. This checks both the creamy and flavor bomb categories for a perfect burger. Simply mix mayo with garlic powder, salt and pepper.

 

Fry chicken breast

 

Heat 3 cups of oil in a large skillet (or use a deep fryer), and once a drop of water sizzles into the oil, it's hot enough. This will be at a temperature around 350-375 F (175-190C). The temperature will drop once the chicken is in.

 

When the chicken has marinated for 1 hour, let the excess marinade drip off the chicken before placing it in the panko bread crumb mixture. Cover it nicely with the dry mixture and then fry them in the hot oil. Because the temperature is supposed to drop, I do suggest filling the pan with the prepared chicken breasts, although not overcrowding it. If you cook one piece at a time, the oil will be too hot, burning the panko bread crumbs (yes, been there, done that).

 

Bread crumbs for chicken burger breasts

 

Depending a little on the size of your chicken and the temperature of the oil, the chicken will be done at 5-8 minutes. If the oil doesn't cover the chicken entirely, flip them over once mid/late-frying. Remove from heat when they're golden brown. Drain on a paper towel.

 

Time to serve up the chicken burger

 

We've got all our elements prepared and we're ready for some burger assembly action. Slice your warm bun, spread garlic mayo on the bottom and honey mustard on the top (or vice versa of course). Get some greens and tomatoes on the bottom, add the chicken burger, onion, pickled jalapeños and avocado. Put the burger top on and you are officially ready to dig in. Of course, what veggies you add in a burger is completely optional, but here's my version!

 

Enjoy this burger with a refreshing pomegranate cucumber vodka lemonade, maybe up your avocado to guacamole and a side of summer watermelon salad with feta and mint, see next paragraph. Let the Summer begin! If you want to check out more burgers, here's 16 Burger Recipes to Try this Summer!

 

Closeup of a panko chicken burger that is taken a bite of.

 

Summer BBQ Party Recipes:

 

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Chipotle Cheddar Burger with Jalapeños and Chipotle Lime Mayo Wine glass, stemless with pink vodka lemonade. Backlighting. Chunky spicy guacamole in a bowl with three chilli slices and two lime slices.

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Watermelon salad in a white bowl on a wooden table, flatlay. Strawberry Arugula Summer Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette and Lavender Lilac Lemon Cupcakes + Recipe for Lilac Sugar and Lilac Syrup

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I’d love to hear your thoughts. Comment below or tag me @thegingerwithspice on Instagram. And don’t forget to Pin it for later!

 

 

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📖 Recipe

Panko Chicken Burger in hand.

Crispy Panko Chicken Burger with Honey Mustard Dressing

Yield: 4 people
Prep Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Crispy panko chicken burger with a delicious honey mustard sauce beats all the chicken burgers out there. The panko makes for an extra crispy bread crumb and the chicken is just so juicy.

Ingredients

Chicken Marinade

  • 2 chicken breast
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon chili flakes, optional
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • ½ cup buttermilk/kulturmelk, or equal amount milk + ½ teaspoon vinegar. 120ml
  • 1 large egg

Dry Ingredients

  • ¾ cup Panko bread crumbs, 180ml
  • ½ cup all purpose flour, 120ml
  • ¼ cup whole wheat flour, or more all purpose. 60ml
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon chilli flakes
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • salt after frying, optional

Orange Honey Mustard

  • ¼ cup orange marmelade
  • 2 tablespoon honey
  • 2 tablespoon mayo, or greek yoghurt
  • 1 tablespoon grainy mustard, e.g. Dijon
  • ¼ teaspoon chili flakes, optional
  • salt and pepper to taste

Assemble

  • burger buns of choice
  • lettuce or spinach
  • veggies like tomato, onion and avocado
  • pickled jalapeños or cucumbers
  • 2 tablespoon mayonnaise
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 3 cups oil for frying, peanut, canola or similar

Instructions

  1. Cut the chicken: Remove the chicken tenders from the chicken breast. And then slice the remaining chicken breast in two, lengthwise. This will give two thinner chicken pieces along with one chicken tender. You can also pound the chicken thinner with something heavy.
  2. Make the marinade: Whisk the egg. Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a large bowl and add your prepared chicken breasts to it. Marinate for about 1 hour, covered in the fridge.
  3. Prepare the bread crumbs: To make the panko bread crumbs, we mix all the dry ingredients together in a large dish.
  4. Make the orange honey mustard: Mix all ingredients together, taste and season accordingly.
  5. Prepare your add-ons: Cut your preferred vegetables (for example spinach, tomato, avocado, onion and pickled jalapeños) and make the garlic mayo. Mix mayonnaise with garlic powder, season with salt and pepper to taste. Toast burger buns when chicken is almost done.
  6. Heat the oil: Pour 3 cups of oil into a large pan, make sure it will not be more than ⅓ full. The oil is hot enough when a drop of water into the oil sizzles. This will be at a temperature around 350-375 F (175-190C). The temperature will drop once the chicken is in. 
  7. Bread the chicken: When the chicken has marinated for 1 hour, let the excess marinade drip off the chicken before placing it in the panko bread crumb mixture. Cover it nicely with the dry mixture, preferably using tongs.
  8. Fry the chicken: Add breaded chicken to the hot oil. Because the temperature is supposed to drop, I do suggest filling the pan, although not overcrowding it. If you cook one piece at a time, the oil will be too hot, burning the panko bread crumbs. Depending a little on the size of your chicken and the temperature of the oil, the chicken will be done at 5-8 minutes. If the oil doesn’t cover the chicken entirely, flip them over once mid-frying. Remove from heat when they’re golden brown. Sprinkle with some salt and drain on a paper towel.
  9. Assemble the burger: Slice your warm bun, spread garlic mayo on the bottom and orange honey mustard on the top. Get some greens and tomatoes on the bottom, add the chicken burger, onion, pickled jalapeños and avocado. Put the burger top on and you are officially ready to dig in.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 525

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or tag @thegingerwithspice on Instagram, I'd love to see!

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Stephanie Simmons

Wednesday 15th of May 2019

Ok, I'm LITERALLY drooling over this! We're having company from out of town this weekend and I think I just found what to serve for dinner!

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Saturday 18th of May 2019

Thank you so much, Stephanie! Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

Maman de sara

Tuesday 14th of May 2019

I love using panko bread for my recipes. That chicken sandwich is definitely my type, so yummy.

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Tuesday 14th of May 2019

Panko is fantastic. Thank you so much!

Mimi

Tuesday 14th of May 2019

Cirspy, delicious, huge... This burger is incredible! I guess you can easily say that this recipe has everything you can dream to have in a burger! I can't wait to try it!

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Tuesday 14th of May 2019

Thank you so much, Mimi!

April

Tuesday 14th of May 2019

When I look at you holding that burger in your hand, my mouth opens from all the watering that is hapenning there - this is an amazing burger, simple as that - one of the best ones I have seen lately!

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Tuesday 14th of May 2019

Thank you so much, dear April! I think this is one of the best burgers!

Emmanuella Sjögren

Sunday 12th of May 2019

Wow this looks delicious ! My daughter loves crispy chicken, this would make her very happy.

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Monday 13th of May 2019

Crispy chicken is the ultimate comfort food, right. Thank you, Emmanuella!

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