Giving KFC a Run For Its Money – Maybe

There are just some days when, at the mere thought of having to fire up the wok and rustle up some dinner, you can immediately feel the onset of a headache. Inwardly you groan and drag your emotional feet. You would do anything to not have to cook…

Your heart is tempted… oh so tempted… to just step into the nearest fast-food joint and pick up a couple of burgers…

But wait!

You don’t have to cook… still get to eat your burgers… and still feel virtuously healthy…

How?

Well…

You make your own burgers…

Wait. Where you’re goin’? Come back. I haven’t finished yet.

C’mon. Bunging something into the oven, and cutting open a packet of pre-made sauce can hardly constitute cooking. Right? And there really is only just the one pot and one baking sheet to wash. Promise. (Okay, except for the plates. But that’s not too bad, surely.)

Some time ago, the ads for KFC’s seasonal offering of Satay Burger were screaming out from print and screen media left, right and center… cajoling, nay, “demanding” that I try their special concoction of “juicy, tasty” (their words, not mine) chicken topped with spicy, peanutty satay sauce, and sandwiched between a soft, fluffy hamburger bun. But I steadfastly refused to partake in all that greasy and oily deep-fried-ness. Besides, since when had real-life burgers ever come any where close to those depicted in the advertisement photos? Yet, it sounded like a wonderful idea… crispy chicken with spicy, nutty sauce…

Okay, I’d make my own then. But no deep-fried chicken. This would be the perfect time to finally try out the oven-fried method that I had read about on Owen’s site some time back and had been meaning to attempt.

The picture in my mind looked and sounded good… whole filets of boneless chicken thigh, moist, juicy and succulent from being marinated in buttermilk, crisply coated with panko and tastefully paired with the deep, intensely rich flavors of satay sauce. And it couldn’t be easier.

I don’t know about you, but I usually know in the morning, when I start my day, that I’m going to be feeling lazy about cooking that evening. Correction. Actually, I know the night before that I’m going to be feeling lazy about cooking on the evening after. I call it the “art of laziness”! And I think I’ve mastered the art form pretty well – right down to all the fine details!

So, this is what you do when you feel an episode of “artistic laziness” setting in: just before going to bed the night before, take out several boneless chicken thighs (you can use breasts if you want; I’m okay with that) from the freezer and pop them into the fridge to defrost overnight.

[De-boned chicken thighs are some of the greatest things to keep on hand in the freezer at all times; so incredibly useful and versatile. We usually buy a couple of dozen thighs and have the poultry guy filet them for us. Once home, they are placed in a single layer in freezer bags, and frozen. Whenever we need some chicken meat for stir-fries or any other dish really, we simply break off and defrost just the number of chicken thighs we need. They can be diced and sautéed with vegetables, used in green curries and all sorts of dishes. Really, very convenient indeed.]

Anyway, the next morning, simply and quickly trim away the skin (or just keep it on, if you prefer) and any excess fat. Oh alright, my house-help does this for me, but it is still a relatively brief and painless process. Then, it’s just another few minutes to put the marinade together. I used (for four chicken thigh filets) two whole cloves of garlic, lightly bruised; about an one inch knob of ginger, cut into rough chunks and bruised; a small bunch of fresh coriander (cilantro / Chinese parsley), roughly chopped; about three tablespoons of light soy sauce; a generous sprinkling of ground white pepper; and enough low fat buttermilk to thoroughly coat all the chicken.* Mix well, plonk it into the fridge, and leave to macerate while you go about your day. And by the time you get home in the evening, the chicken is all moist and juicy, and ready to be cooked.

[* I kept the seasonings very light as the satay sauce packs a powerful taste punch. But if serving the “fried” chicken on its own, feel free to add a variety of herbs (dried or fresh), paprika or any other flavorings that you may fancy. No rules here at all.]

In the evening, it is just a simple matter of pre-heating the oven to about 200C (400F) and removing the chicken from the fridge to allow them to come back to room temperature. That gives you 15-20 minutes or so to change into comfy, slouchy home clothes, to make yourself a nice warm drink (or a stiff, highly alcoholic one, if that is your preferred poison), and to just relax a little before putting the dinner together. Once you are sufficiently soothed, pour some panko Japanese breadcrumbs (I find these to be one of the most useful things to have a bag of, sitting in the freezer at any one time; they store well there, are truly great as coating for all sorts of dishes, or even as a binder, and are way better tasting than the insipid, stale pre-made regular breadcrumbs that are sold in the supermarkets – plus, who has the time to blitz up some freshly made breadcrumbs whenever the need arise, right?) into a shallow dish.

[Again, if not serving the chicken with a strongly flavored accompaniment like satay sauce, feel free to season the panko with dried herbs, salt, pepper or even Old Bay Seasoning.]

Take another sip of your drink as you grab a baking sheet and coat it liberally with cooking spray (or, if preferred, with about 2-3 tablespoons of vegetable cooking oil). Remove the chicken, piece by piece, from the marinade, allow any excess buttermilk to drip off (you don’t want the chicken too wet and thus making the breadcrumbs all soggy), and scrape off any bits of coriander that may be sticking to the meat. Place the filet in the panko and coat evenly on all sides before putting it onto the greased baking sheet. Once all the chicken is ready, spray the meat surface with a light layer of cooking spray. (I forgot this time, but it would be a good thing to do.) That’s it. Into the oven they go, for about 15 minutes or so.

Meantime, rustle up the satay sauce. This is as simple as simple is. Grab a packet of pre-made, store-bought satay sauce. (This time, instead of using my regular version from the Malay lady at Redhill Market, I decided to try out a new offering that I spotted at NTUC Supermarket the other day…)

Pour the contents of the entire pack into a medium pot, add just under one cup of hot water, and stir to combine. I think I used just under one cup of water, I can’t be too sure; I was just adding it in dribs and drabs until I got the desired consistency. The package label recommended about 1¾ cups of water, and that would have given a fairly liquid sauce, which would be great for things like satay bee hoon (rice vermicelli) or other dishes. For the burger, I wanted the gravy relatively thick and chunky – something that would stay in the bun and not ooze out all over the place.

Allow the sauce to come to a gentle boil, taste it and adjust the flavorings according to personal preferences. I added (as I usually do, to any store-bought satay sauce) a small chunk of gula melaka (palm sugar), a tiny dash of light soy sauce and a fair bit of ground peanuts (I like my satay sauce nicely chunky and highly redolent of peanuts.) Do whatever it is that pleases you. Let the gravy return to a boil, and you’re done. That’s it. And it takes all of 4-5 minutes. Painless.

This brand’s offering is actually very good. Note the nicely authentic, tasty and required layer of chilli oil rimming the gravy. The flavors are punchy, with just enough spicy heat – the taste is fairly suave, rounded and smooth. Not bad at all. I like it.

[Since you are at it, it’s an useful idea to make plenty of extra gravy. Pop the leftovers into the fridge, and it can be the basis for a scrumptious lunch the next day: simply reheat the gravy, add a little more water if necessary to bring it to the correct consistency, and pour it over some cooked rice vermicelli (bee hoon) to create the uniquely Singaporean dish “Satay Bee Hoon”. Add some cubed tau kwa (firm bean curd) or tau pok (fried bean curd skin), shredded chicken meat, blanched kangkong (water spinach), sliced hard boiled eggs or whatever you have on hand really – there’s no need to worry greatly about authenticity or creating unnecessary work for yourself. And lunch can be ready within minutes. Or, chop up various vegetables and make the Indonesian salad gado-gado, using the satay sauce as dressing. Extra gravy can also be used to stir-fry chicken or beef for a dinner dish. Of course, needless to say, it is also great with satay.]

Okay, you still have many minutes more before the oven timer goes off. So, busy yourself with cutting up some cucumber (I like the dark green Japanese variety, but any type will do) into thin slices. And whilst you have the knife and chopping board out, cut more cucumber into medium cubes, together with a few lush, ripe fresh tomatoes, a bunch of fresh coriander, and a couple of shallots or red onions (whichever you have on hand). Place all the diced vegetables into a large bowl, toss with some rice vinegar (or lime juice), a couple of teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil, some sugar, pepper and salt to taste – and for me, a couple of tablespoons of Thai chilli sauce… and you have a refreshing salsa to go with the burgers.

If you want to get really fancy (and go one up on KFC), prepare some onions to go into the burgers too. Slice one large yellow onion into rings, and sauté in a little bit of oil until soft, translucent and barely colored. No need for seasonings or flavorings; it’ll all come from the satay gravy.

Yep, some of mine got a little charred – I was momentarily distracted by something far more interesting than frying onions. But hey, the charred bits were great – giving a wonderful smoky flavor to the onions.

Oh, alright, so making the onions will mean another pan to wash. It isn’t necessary to do the onions; KFC didn’t, and I really don’t think the burgers missed them. However, I won’t deny that they do add a rather nice sweet and crunchy touch to the burgers. Just do as you please or feel up to.

Right on cue, the oven timer goes off. Yank the chicken out, and carefully flip them over**. Coat the freshly exposed side with more cooking spray and pop the filets back into the oven. ***

[** Take care when doing this. There is a tendency for chunks of the panko coating to be left behind on the tray – as I found out. Probably, the next time, I will want to bake the chicken on a rack; this will help keep the panko crust intact.]

[*** At this point, I suddenly decided to stop baking the chicken and to broil them instead. They were pretty much cooked through already, and just needed more coloring and crispiness on the crust. So, I switched the oven to “grill” mode, popped the chicken back in (keeping the tray on the middle rack of the oven) for oh, about 5 minutes or so, until the tops were nicely golden brown. If necessary, you can flip the chicken back over, and grill the other side too for 3-4 minutes to get the required deep, rich color and crunch. Just be sure to keep an eye on them the whole time. With the broiler, they go from nicely brown to charred in a blink of an eye.]

Ta-da…

… oven-fried chicken. Not a bad looker - for a first attempt, no? Okay, it got a little charred in some places – my 18 year old oven is notoriously temperamental and uneven at the best of times.

But it was scrummy.

Okay, assembly time. Split burger buns into half (I like to use the kitchen scissors for this; it makes for perfectly halved buns that are not inadvertently flattened or misshapened by heavy fingers, and that stay nicely soft and fluffy). If desired, pop the cut bun halves into the toaster oven (cut side up) for a couple of minutes to give a light touch of crispiness, and to help prevent the buns from going soggy too quickly from the gravy. Not necessary at all, but nice if you have the inclination.

Place a layer of cucumber slices on the bottom half, top with the chicken filet, add some onions (if using) then finish off with a liberal dollop of satay gravy. Cap with the top half of the bun. Dinner is served.

The burger was seriously good. In the words of A, our house-help: way better than KFC’s version (which she had tried) – our gravy was not as sweet and the fresh-out-of-the-oven chicken was crispier, tastier, more juicy, moist and succulent than the commercial offering. She really liked the buttermilk-marinated, oven-fried chicken. So did I. As did everyone else.

I really like this way of cooking chicken. The buttermilk gives the meat incredible moistness and tenderness. I can just see me making all sorts of chicken this way – the flavorings can be varied endlessly (using hoisin sauce, teriyaki sauce, herbs and spices – whatever I may fancy – with the buttermilk). And it doesn’t even have to be oven-fried chicken each time. I think this would be a great way to marinade chicken for grilling or roasting. Great stuff.

Oh, I can also see doing this chicken burger in different styles too. One in a Californian-style would be delectable… with some sprouts and an avocado-tomato salsa topping the chicken filet instead of the satay sauce. Or, borrowing an idea from Burger King, pour some spicy rendang sauce over the meat. Yum!

And after that rather simple but healthy and very tasty dinner, time for a luscious reward – a Ben & Jerry’s sundae. Cookie dough ice cream, here I come! Oh yeah!

Copyright © 2004 Renee Kho. All Rights Reserved.
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