Crispy Fried Chicken Burger with Sticky Chilli Glaze

This is not the kind of chicken burger you make when you feel like being sensible. This is the crispy, sticky, messy one. Proper crunch from buttermilk-fried chicken, then finished with a hot honey-style glaze that actually has some punch to it.

Using chicken thigh fillets from The Lucky Pig is what makes this work. Thigh stays juicy, handles the fryer better than breast, and gives you that proper burger bite instead of drying out halfway through.

The glaze is where it turns from good to dangerous. A mix of honey and Six-Eyed Scorpion Chilli Oil gives you sweetness, heat and a bit of attitude. Then the Kewpie and pickled ginger cut through it so the whole thing stays balanced instead of just heavy.

If you’re building out your burger and comfort food rotation, head through the Recipe Hub for more butcher-led meals.

Why chicken thigh makes the better burger

Chicken thigh is the right cut for this job. It has more flavour, more forgiveness, and stays juicy under a crisp coating. That matters when you are frying, glazing and stacking it into a burger bun.

The buttermilk helps tenderise the chicken and gives the coating something to grip to. Then once it is golden and crisp, the sticky chilli glaze finishes the whole thing off without softening it too much.

Crispy Fried Chicken Burger with Sticky Chilli Glaze

Serves: 2
Prep time: 15 minutes, plus 2 hours marinating
Cook time: 10–12 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 chicken thigh fillets from The Lucky Pig
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup plain flour
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp salt
• Oil for frying

Sticky chilli glaze

• Honey
• Six-Eyed Scorpion Chilli Oil

To serve

• 2 burger buns
• Lettuce
• Pickled ginger
• Kewpie mayonnaise
• Coriander

Method

1. Marinate the chicken thigh fillets in buttermilk for at least 2 hours, or overnight if you have the time.
2. In a bowl, combine the plain flour, paprika, garlic powder and salt.
3. Heat frying oil to 170–180°C.
4. Remove the chicken from the buttermilk and coat well in the seasoned flour.
5. Fry for 5–6 minutes, or until golden, crisp and cooked through.
6. Lightly toast the burger buns.
7. Mix honey with Six-Eyed Scorpion Chilli Oil to make the glaze, then coat the hot fried chicken.
8. Assemble the burgers with lettuce, coriander, Kewpie, pickled ginger and the crispy glazed chicken.

Butcher’s tip

Do not overcrowd the fryer. Fry the chicken with space around it so the coating stays crisp and the oil temperature does not crash. Also glaze it while it is still hot, but not so early that it loses all its crunch before it hits the bun.

Better than takeaway

This is the kind of burger that reminds you homemade can still win. It has crunch, heat, sweetness, richness and enough freshness from the pickled ginger to stop it feeling too heavy.

Start with good chicken and good chilli oil and the rest gets much easier. Grab your chicken thigh fillets here and your Six-Eyed Scorpion Chilli Oil here, then come back to the Recipe Hub for the next one.

Visit The Lucky Pig

The Lucky Pig
452 Centre Road, Bentleigh VIC 3204

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