Everybody knows somewhere decent they can pick up a handmade burger with fries, chips, wedges and a side salad or whatever else tickles the chef’s fancy in whatever establishment people find themselves in. I’ve had a love-hate relationship with burgers down the years; some really good ones eaten in a variety of pubs/bars which do excellent beers to accompany a tasty meat patty (or bean burger where the fancy has taken me), where others including a dabble with the trial and error of homemade burgers using eggs, flour, onions and beef mince have met with curiously mixed results (including terribly flavourless ones). Two places of note where I have had excellent burgers and they continue to supply fine beers alongside great burgers and fluffy crispy french fries or skins-on-chips are firstly The Holyrood [ http://fullerthomson.com/eating-and-drinking/holyrood/ ] located on Cowgate just off the Royal Mile in Edinburgh which has an extensive burger menu including chicken and numerous vegetarian options and the second is The Shipping Forecast [ http://www.theshippingforecastliverpool.com/ ] in Liverpool on Slater Street. Both places stick in my mind at the moment as the best places I have eaten a burger in recent memory anyway, but should I find any more, I will add them via a comment. With regard making your own burgers, there are a number of recipes that I have tried, as mentioned above. The results were mixed, no doubt. However, upon taking advice, mainly from two people; one being my sister in law and using her approach to making meatballs/meat in a ragu sauce (which I incidentally used in my Mexican Chilli but never considered before); and the second from my friend’s Brother. He spent a great deal of time in Texas, being a geologist and drilling for oil, but was told if he was going to stay in Texas, he must learn to Barbeque properly. This involved making burgers; he always said to use the cheapest and fattiest mince (don’t forget fat = flavour!!) and to pound it within an inch of its life (if it had one) and then reform the mince into a patty. Further inspiration was taken from the different styles of meatballs that people make, I recently read an article on the Guardian website written by Felicity Cloake in her ‘The Perfect…’ column [ http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/felicity-cloake+lifeandstyle/series/how-to-cook-the-perfect ]. Although for ultimate burger satisfaction, I will forego any breadcrumbs in my recipe. Fret no more guys, because below you will find my standard burger recipe that has what I regard as an excellent savoury flavour and good texture. I’ve made it as simple as possible and removed a lot of superfluous stuff that used to pollute my wares. If you want to alter the recipe to your taste though, feel free, there is lots of ‘wiggle room’! Ingredients (Makes 4 ~½ pounders):
600g Beef Mince (or chuck – put through a mincer on finest setting) 400g Pork Mince 1 Red Chilli, finely chopped and de-seeded 1 Red onion, very finely chopped 3 Cloves of garlic Salt and Pepper to season as required What to do: 1. Make sure the chilli, onion and garlic are all very finely chopped to ensure even distribution during the mixing of the burger patties. In a large mixing bowl, use your hands to combine the beef and pork mince with the onion, garlic and chilli. Add seasoning as required at this stage, but don’t make it too salty, as the pork will provide much of the savoury kick needed. 2. If you’re making ½ pounders, then divide the thoroughly mixed forcemeat into four equal portions and shape each one into a burger patty using your hands. Now add a pinch of salt to each side of the burger patties and leave to rest for around 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes is up, take a paper towel and pat dry any water that is drawn out of the burger patties. 3. Fry the burger patties in a little oil in a skillet pan if possible on a medium to low heat to ensure they are cooked thoroughly (being so thick, you’ll need a while to ensure they are cooked). A giveaway to the burgers being cooked though is that the juice will run clear as you press the burger patty down using a slice or spatula; juice from an uncooked patty will be cloudy or bloody. 4. Allow the burgers to rest for 5 minutes once they’re cooked and then add to your bun with a relish or seasoning of your choice. With these burgers, I have found that some more red onions, a little mayonnaise and coarse grain mustard along with fresh rocket is absolutely fine! Enjoy amigos! Pedro. x
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Hi Everyone!! I think my first effort for some of you to try (those who have already salivated at the photos I have shown on my phone at least may have already guesssed.....) will be a nice and warming casserole dish using some hearty ingredients with a bit of hispanic influence. As with many of my recipes, there are many tweaks and adjustments to be had if you're confident of what you're doing (it's not rocket science anyway! I have faith in you all!!), feel free to play about with the recipe and see where it takes you. Any improvements you think you have made, please feel to throw them at the comments below or in the feedback section of my blog. Anyway, on with the protocol for this little gem - first off, here's what you'll need to put this one together: The Roasty bit - 8 Plain Pork Sausages (that is - not herby ones!), 110g Chorizo, chopped into chunks or discs to your preference, 420g cooked Red Kidney Beans, 1 Whole Red Onion, 1 Whole Red (Bell) Pepper, 2 Chillies - 1 Red and 1 Green - preferably sweet larger ones for this recipe and deseeded, 3-4 finely chopped tomatoes, 1 tbsp Tomato Puree, 150ml Chicken or Vegetable Stock, 100ml Red Wine, 2 Cloves of Garlic, 1 tsp dry-roasted and crushed/ground fennel seeds, 1 large piece/square of dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids or greater). The Topping - Sliced White Potatoes (enough to cover the casserole - depends on dish size!), Flaked Red Chillies, Salt and Pepper, Olive Oil, 1 tsp Paprika (either sweet or smoked is fine). What to do: 1. Heat the oven to 230 degrees. Chop the red onion into strips, scatter half of these across the bottom of the casserole dish with a sprinkling of olive oil. Now cut all of the pork sausages in half and place these on top of the onion, place in the over for 10-15 mins. Add slices of red pepper over the top, scattered equally - see Picture 1. 2. While the pork sausage and onions are roasting, slice the chillies, garlic, rest of the onion and the chorizo up into small chunks or discs and place in a frying pan, fry until the edges of the chorizo start to blacken and the onion slightly caramelises. Now add the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, stock and red wine and the cooked kidney beans, simmer until reduced by a third and add the dark chocolate, stir through and if still not thick enough for your tastes, add a little roux at a time (1/2 tsp cornflour in milk will do the trick - be sure to stir through properly to avoid lumps). 3. In a separate frying pan, dry roast the teaspoon of fennel seeds until the pan is lightly smoking, transfer to a mortar and pestle and grind to a fine powder, add this to the reduced and slightly thickened, chorizo-stock-wine and bean mixture. Stir through and then pour this over the top of the pork sausages, peppers and onions. Over the top of the casserole, place slices (around 0.5cm thick) of the white potatoes, which should cover the sauce and sausages underneath. Season the potato topping with salt and pepper, flaked red chillies, paprika and a generous drizzle of olive oil. 4. Place the casserole back in the oven at 250 degrees for around 35-40 minutes, the potatoes should be crisping up and golden brown with some of the sauce bubbling up at the sides... it'll then be ready to serve as shown in picture 4! 5. The serving suggestion below (picture 5) shows the casserole with some wilted spinach (with a tiny bit of butter and olive oil) and some fresh sourdough bread for mopping up any leftover sauces. You can of course use flour tortillas or some rice if you so choose.... Hope this tickles people's fancy anyway, it certainly did the trick on a gloomy sunday evening where only something comforting and filling would do the trick. Enjoy! Pedro. |
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