Mini Chicken Cigars With Sweet and Sour Dipping Sauce

Submitted by Sharlene~W

"This savory little morsel was one of the appetizers featured when Food Network chefs catered a wedding. (Rachael Ray's offering)."

 

• Ready In: 45mins
• Ingredients: 16
• Serves: 64

ingredients

• Chicken Cigars

• 1 1⁄2 lbs ground chicken
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons grill seasoning (recommended Montreal Seasoning by McCormick)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves (a handful)
• 8 sheets phyllo dough
• 1⁄2 cup butter, melted

• Sweet and Sour Dipping Sauce

• 2 tablespoons sweet plum sauce or 2 tablespoons Chinese duck sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1⁄4 cup light oil (such as peanut, canola, or vegetable oil)
• kosher salt
• fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 1⁄2 cup finely diced mango (optional)
• 1 scallion, green tops only, thinly sliced on the bias

directions

1. For the chicken cigars: Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Place chicken in a bowl and mix with spices and parsley. (I actually used my food processor to shred/chop chicken and mix in the spices and it worked nicely--use it to chop the parsley first and then add other ingredients).
3. Place a piece of phyllo on a nonstick cookie sheet and brush with some of the melted butter. Repeat 3 more times, placing each of phyllo over the last buttered sheet to make 4 layers. Cut layered phyllo into 16 rectangles (4 x 4).
4. On one end of each of the rectangles, place a heaping tablespoon of chicken filling. Roll up tightly to make mini "cigars". Cut each of these in half and place on a cookie sheet. (They should overlap slightly on the bottom--they will stay together nicely if you press them gently after you place them on the cookie sheet). Butter the tops of each.
5. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden brown.
6. Repeat with second half of phyllo sheets and chicken mixture.
7. Make the sweet and sour dipping sauce by whisking together plum or duck sauce and vinegar in a bowl. Stream in oil and continue whisking to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in mango and sliced scallions.
8. Serve either hot or at room temperature with dipping sauce.

Reviews

[5CardCharlie]

Cigar: Mini Chicken Cigar With Sweet and Sour Dipping Sauce<br/>Brand: Montecrisco<br/>Shape: Salomonella<br/>Wrapper: Dough<br/>Filler: Long filler chicken / short filler parsley blend-- Cuban Sandwich<br/>Binder: Butter<br/><br/>Upon lighting cigar, noticed heavy spice notes of pepper, cumin, and paprika. As burning progressed, hints of poultry and chili powder were detected. This cigar was extremely difficult to keep lit, especially when sweet and sour humidity was high. Harsh overtones in the smoke may indicate that this filler was plucked too early.<br/><br/>I'm now 2/3 down, and developing a nice buzz.<br/><br/>Final thoughts:<br/>Some aging may benefit these cigars, but they are very prone to mold.

 

[Callu]

Everybody loved these! I am thinking about using them for a catering event so I cooked them a couple hours ahead of time to see if they would stay crispy. They were crisp and delicious after sitting out for 3 hours or so. I did change up the seasoning a bit and added fresh garlic, a splash of my homemade basalmic marinade, paprika and flat leaf parsley. I also did a couple with the filling from recipe #52467 BLT bites and that also held up and was very tasty. I also just brushed 2 sheets rolled the whole thing and cut into 5 pieces. The possibilities are endless. Thanks so much for posting!

 

[Susie D]

Very nice recipe! I made the recipe for an appetizer night. This has a flavorful filling encased in a crunchy shell. We enjoyed the sweet & savory flavors. I was using smoked paprika so only used half of the cumin. The filling cooks down well & is dry, but I did notice the bottom phyllo discolored and had a red color from the chili powder & paprika. I didn't make the sauce. Instead I served with #169316 because of an abundance of fresh jalapenos & peaches on hand. Thank you for sharing your recipe!

 

[Tony Rules The Kitc]

Great appetizer while watching tv! We all loved them!

 

[jellyko]

very tasty. would reduce chili powder to 1 tsp. next time for our taste and cut into bite size pieces.. thanks!