Grind Your Own Chicken Shawarma Burgers Recipes

"GYOB" (GRIND YOUR OWN BURGERS)

Steps:

• Place the beef chunks on a baking sheet in a single layer, leaving a little space around each piece. Freeze the meat until it's very firm and starting to harden around the edges but still pliable, 15 to 30 minutes. Freeze the blade of a food processor at the same time.
• Place half of the meat in the food processor fitted with the chilled blade and pulse until coarsely ground, 10 to 15 one-second pulses, stopping to redistribute the meat with a wooden spoon around the bowl as necessary to ensure even grinding. Turn out the meat onto a baking sheet (just dump it out - try not to touch the meat too much). Repeat the grinding with the remaining meat. Spread the meat on the baking sheet and inspect carefully, discarding any long strands of gristle or large chunks of hard meat or fat. Season the meat with salt and pepper.
• Divide the meat into 4 equal piles. Form the piles with your hands into 4 large thin patties, about 4 inches wide. The patties should be loosely packed.
• Heat a large cast-iron skillet or large heavy griddle pan over high heat. Spread the butter on the cut sides of the buns. Toast the buns in the skillet until golden brown, about 2 minutes.
• Working in two batches, add the beef patties to the skillet and immediately press them down once with a spatula; do not smoosh them again. Cook until crusty brown on the bottom, 4 to 5 minutes; flip once, top with a piece of cheese and cook until the other side is crusty and the cheese melts, about 4 more minutes. Place the burgers on the toasted buns; top with sliced avocado. Serve with steamed broccoli.

SHAWARMA BURGERS WITH TAHINI-YOGURT SAUCE

Steps:

• Gather your ingredients.
• For the sauce: Peel a clove of garlic with a crack of knife against the heel of your hand. In a small bowl, whisk up yogurt, tahini, the juice of 1 lemon and cumin. Then grate the garlic into the sauce with a zester or paste it with a knife (add a fat pinch of salt). Whisk sauce again.
• For the burgers: Preheat a cast-iron skillet or heavy griddle or frying pan over medium to medium-high heat.
• Place ground lamb or chicken in a mixing bowl. Season the meat with salt and pepper, cumin, coriander, paprika, sumac if using, turmeric, cardamom, crushed red pepper, allspice and nutmeg. Crack 2 cloves garlic and grate them into the bowl or finely chop. Peel the onion and grate about 3 tablespoons of it into the bowl. Finley chop the mint and parsley then add them to the lamb. Combine all the ingredients and mound up. Score meat into 4 equal portions and form 4 patties, thinner at the center for even cooking.
• To prepare the burgers, add EVOO, 1 slow turn of the pan, to skillet (a thin layer to just glaze the surface). Add patties and cook about 7 minutes for lamb, a minute or two longer for chicken, turning occasionally. If cooking lamb, press down with spatula when you turn the patties -- lean ground lamb tends to tighten as it cooks more so than other ground meats.
• When you remove the patties they can be served as such but for a more authentic facsimile of shawarma, we rest the patties and very thinly slice them on a bias. Regardless, while the burgers cook, prepare your toppings of choice.
• Assemble burgers: bun bottoms, sauce, patty or thinly sliced shawarma, lettuce, hot cherry peppers, cucumbers, herb leaves, dressed fennel and onions, bun top. OR split a pita and fill with giardiniera and Israeli pickles.
• Poke with a couple of toothpicks and split burgers down the middle. Serve burgers with chips.

CHICKEN BURGERS

Steps:

• Be sure to use ground white meat chicken. If you're buying your ground chicken from the grocery story, ring the bell and ask them if they've got what you're looking for or if they'll grind some chicken breast for you. You can also grind it yourself in a food processor. Remove all excess fat and cartilage from boneless, skinless chicken breast and tenders, cut into 1-inch cubes and pulse until coarsely chopped.
• Use fresh bread crumbs. It only takes a few extra minutes. Remove crusts from good bread or don't remove the crusts, tear into chunks and pulse in a mini chopper or food processor. Make a giant batch and freeze them so next time you can skip this step.
• Place chicken in a mixing bowl. Using a rubber spatula, fold in milk, 1/2 cup bread crumbs, onion, cayenne, salt and pepper. The mixture will be very wet which means it will be a tiny bit icky forming it into patties but forge ahead. Place remaining 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs on a dinner plate or cookie sheet. Divide chicken meat into 4 or 5 piles (you decide which portion size is best for you) and using your hands, shape into patties. Coat each patty with bread crumbs. Heat olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat and fry patties until golden and cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Serve immediately.