Get Your Grill On

I love sliders. Although I don’t make them as often as I’d like to, I love their cuteness. Great for entertaining, kids and just a casual night in. During a recent dinner with our neighbors, a new recipe for sliders hit the table, courtesy of Rachael Ray.Literally taking just minutes to mix the concoction together, the Chicken Teriyaki Sliders were ready to eat in under 20 - my kind of dish. Nicholas, our five-year-old son, coincidentally, had asked for burgers for dinner (a newfound discovery of his), but I couldn’t convince him that these were regular burgers.

I couldn’t resist adding a bit of melty cheese to mine before popping it in my mouth, because lately, everything tastes better with cheese. The recipe yielded a most, healthy, juicy burger and a keeper in my book. Although the recipe indicates cooking the sliders on a stovetop, if it’s grilling weather where you are, they can certainly be done on the grill.

Chicken Teriyaki Sliders
Recipe courtesy of Rachael Ray

1 pound ground, all-white meat chicken
4 scallions (one large handful), chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
1 tablespoon grill seasoning
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/4 cup pickled ginger (I skipped)
1 cucumber, seeded and sliced
1 head Bibb or Boston lettuce
Small buns (about 3 inches in diameter) or dinner rolls

Yields: 8 servings

Combine meat, scallions, garlic, grill seasoning and teriyaki sauce. Score and divide meat into 8 portions and form small patties, about 1/2 inch thick.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add canola oil, about once around the pan. Cook mini chicken burgers in the pan, about 3 minutes on each side, until cooked through.

Place burgers on buns, top each burger with some pickled ginger, a slice of cucumber and some lettuce then place the top half of bun on top.