You want to know one of my favorite convenience foods I miss the most since switching to real food? Processed chicken patties for chicken sandwiches. (Bet you never would have guessed that, since that’s what this post is about.)
I grew up microwaving Schwan’s chicken patties and slapping them on white buns for a quick meal or snack after a sports practice. They were yummy and easy and while I couldn’t care less about many other processed convenience items (I gave up boxed pizza rolls several years ago and never looked back) – I do miss the taste and handiness of chicken patties.
So why it’s taken me this long to figure out a recipe that resembles the beloved frozen chicken patties, I do not know. But here I am, finally learning a way to make breaded chicken patties for sandwiches. The best news is that you can make these in bulk and freeze them for a fast, convenient, ready-made meal on a busy day.
Homemade Chicken Patties for Sandwiches
- 3 pounds ground chicken
- 4 teaspoons onion powder, divided
- 3 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
- 1 teaspoon sea salt, divided
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 3 cups whole grain flour (I used whole wheat, but if you need these to be gluten free, use your favorite flour choice)
- Palm shortening or oil of choice
- In a large bowl mix ground chicken, 2 teaspoons onion powder, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, and ½ teaspoon sea salt.
- Shape meat mixture into 15-20 patties (make them larger or smaller depending on your family's portion size needs)
- Beat eggs into a bowl.
- Pour milk into a separate bowl.
- In a third bowl, mix flour, 2 teaspoons onion powder, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, and ½ teaspoon sea salt.
- Heat palm shortening or oil on a griddle.
- Dip prepared meat patties in egg, then flour mixture, then milk, then flour mixture again.
- Place battered chicken patty into oil on the griddle.
- Repeat process with each chicken patty.
- Cook for 7-10 minutes on each side, mashing down lightly as needed.
- Serve right away, or cool and freeze for future use, then rewarm in a 350 degree oven until heated through.
Are you ready to see some ugly chicken patty pictures? This isn’t pretty, friends. Raw meat pressed into patties – well there’s a reason we call stuff like this “processed food.” But take great comfort in the fact that this is all made from real food and wholesome ingredients and ignore the fact that naked ground chicken pressed into a patty really just ain’t purty.
See the patty breading process? First the egg.
Then the flour.
Then the milk.
Then the flour again.
Then comes the part where we fry the patties in oil.
We watch in amazement as they turn into beautiful chicken patties we can’t wait to put on a bun or between two big leaves of lettuce.
Sure, it’s thicker than the patties we grew up eating. We like it that way. That means there’s double the meat.
One of the biggest perks is that you can form your chicken patties into any size you need for your family. Have small children? Make small patties. Have teenage boys? Make the patties nice and big. Have some big eaters and small eaters? Make a variety.
The biggest win is that if you make a bunch, you’ll have yummy chicken patties ready to warm up for sandwiches on a day you don’t have time to cook!
Did you grow up eating and loving processed chicken sandwiches?
