Vietnamese Grilled Chicken Burgers with Mango Slaw

Vietnamese grilled chicken burgers – green mango slaw, avocado, and crispy edged grilled chicken on toasted ciabatta buns.  Jump to Recipe 

Healthy winter burgers.

Yes, you read that correctly. Right now, that statement may seem a little dubious, with burgers being pretty strongly associated either with fried fat, processed meat and late night Macca’s trips or with summer barbecues and warm evenings with build-your-own burger construction lines – but these burgers are here to prove that wrong.

So, I present: Vietnamese Grilled Chicken Burgers with Slaw. Delicately constructed with toasted ciabatta buns, a layer of avocado, heapings of mango-capsicum-mint-coriander-basil-cabbage vietnamese slaw and slices of the easiest, amazingly tender grilled chicken, this is a winner. And yes, it is winter. And yes, you can still make these burgers. They are so NOT a summer-only deal. (In saying this, for all you lucky people in the Northern hemisphere going into summer: please make these too – also still perfect for a summer barbecue.)

PLUS they are healthy – burgers do tend to have a bad rep in that department. Without cheese, heavy mayo, sugary tomato sauce, or anything fried at all, these Vietnamese inspired burgers are just full of colourful veges, the healthy fats of avocado, and the good quality protein of grilled chicken thighs. Don’t take that to mean the flavour can’t pack a punch, however – the intensity of fish sauce, sharp fresh tones of coriander and mint, tangy lime and fiery chili, balanced by the sweet notes in the chicken, mango and smooth, rich avocado results in complex layers of texture and flavour.

Also vital to these Vietnamese burgers is that they are quick: exactly what you need on days when you get home from work late, or have just been flat-out with uni, or, like me, have had minimal sleep the night before and are struggling to muster energy to cook dinner. Last night was our college ball: a great night in Southbank which has left me a little bleary-eyed and ready to hop back into bed (and it is only 10am). The only pain was that it was freezing cold and raining (thank you, Melbourne) but there was no cloakroom at the venue, making for a particularly unpleasant trip there and back (not to mention the stress over my straightened hair – it was the first time I had bothered to straighten it in almost two years, so I was not keen for it to frizz up before we even got there!!). Anyway, I survived, and so did my hair, but if at home, I think I would head straight for this burger recipe for dinner. So easy, but also won’t leave you in a sugar-fat induced food coma. (Although, to be perfectly honest, I would probably follow it up with a big hunk of brownie or chocolate self-saucing pudding with ice cream….my self-control does not extend quite that far!).

Anyway, back to this recipe: I first constructed them in the easter holidays, inspired by Vietnamese banh mi and needing quick and easy holiday-house recipes, and just KNOW that they will be a staple for me in future. Winter, summer, autumn or spring, for a crowd or just for a few, both impressive and simple, these colourful grilled chicken burgers will always hit the spot.

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Vietnamese Grilled Chicken Burgers with Mango Slaw

Prep Time

45 mins

Cook Time

15 mins

Total Time

1 hr

 

This recipe makes quite a lot of slaw, so you could easily increase the chicken recipe and numbers of ciabatta buns to serve more people. Grilled chicken marinade adapted from the Banh Mi Handbook by Andrea Nguyen.

Course: Main

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Servings: 6

Author: Claudia Brick

Ingredients

Grilled chicken thighs

• 6 boneless , skinless chicken thighs, or about 700g
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• heaped 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1.5 tablespoons canola oil

Mango Slaw

• 1 slightly unripe mango (so you can actually cut it), julienned or cut into thin slices
• 1 red capsicum , cut into slivers
• 3 cups finely sliced green cabbage
• 2 large carrots , julienned
• 3/4 cup spring onion , thinly sliced
• 2/3 cup fresh coriander , roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup packed basil leaves , torn
• 1/2 cup mint leaves , torn
• 1/4 cup peanuts , toasted and roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds , toasted

Dressing

• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 2 tbsp white sugar
• 2 tsp fish sauce
• 1 small red chili , deseeded and very finely chopped
• 1 clove of garlic , minced
• 1 tbsp water

To serve

• 1 avocado
• 6 ciabatta buns , or other burger buns
• 1 red chill , finely sliced

Instructions

1. Stir together the chicken marinade in a bowl. Add the chicken thighs, coating each well. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate at room temperature for 30minutes or in the fridge for up to a day.
2. In large bowl, toss together the mango, capsicum, cabbage, carrot, spring onion, coriander, basil, and mint.
3. For the dressing, in a small bowl/cup, mix together the lime juice and white sugar. Stir though the fish sauce, finely chopped red chili, garlic and water. Taste for seasoning - you want a real sweet/sour/salty flavour.
4. Heat bbq grill bars on medium and brush a little canola oil over them. Lay chicken thighs flat on the grill and cook for about 5 minutes each side, or until browned and juices flow clear when you spear a thick segment with a knife or skewer. Rest for 5 minutes.
5. While the chicken is resting, halve the ciabatta buns and toast under a grill until crisp on the edges (or however you like your burger buns).
6. Just before serving, add most of the peanuts and sesame seeds (reserve some for serving) to the salad with the dressing and toss all to combine. Slice the chicken across the grain into slices about 1.5 cm thick.
7. Construct burgers with a layer of sliced avocado, a big serving of vietnamese slaw, and slices of grilled chicken, with a bit of reserved sesame seeds, chopped peanuts and extra red chili sprinkled on top. Enjoy!