I ♥ Burgers!

So, with it being Valentine’s Day and all, I thought I’d post about something I enjoy doing the most with Miguel – cooking unhealthy food! There is nothing we love more than a sloppy burger, so much so that we convinced ourselves we’d try and sample all the burgers in London. Though, rather than bankrupting ourselves, we thought it more sensible to embark on a mission to recreate our favourite burger at home (proceed with caution, this will lead to gaining a few lbs!). After lots of misses, we’ve managed to create a super sloppy double cheeseburger that we’re happy with, and thought we’d share it with you (call this your Valentine’s gift!).

We’d love to hear if you have any burger-making tips, or even where your favourite place to eat them is…we’ve still got a fair few places to tick off the list! Without further ado…

You’ll Need…

- Minced beef – we aim to get mince with around 20% fat as it’s less dry and makes for a juicy burger!
- Mozzarella slices
- Red Leicester or other cheese of your choice
- Soft white buns – we’re a fan of Warburtons, as we’ve had no luck sourcing brioche buns
- Thousand Island dressing
- Mayonnaise
- Tomato ketchup
- American-style mustard
- Salady bits of your choosing

Shape & Season

In the past we’d tried making fancy burgers with things in the middle, but they always ended up tasting dry and rather like eating a heavy block of mince. So, we switched things up a bit and we’re pretty happy with the result.

Try to handle the burgers as little as possible – no mixing together the mince. Simply grab a small handful (around 100g) and press it into shape on to your plate or chopping board – this ensures your burger will stay juicy. You’ll want to make them as flat as possible, this means they only need to be in the pan briefly – remember, you’re doubling them up! Season one side with salt and pepper and you’re almost ready to go.

Ooh, Saucy!

Whilst Miguel prepares the burgers for cooking, I quickly whip together a sauce. We’ve not quite managed to match Meat Liquor’s Dead Hippy, but this is great nonetheless. Add 40% Thousand Island dressing, followed by 30% mayonnaise, 20% mustard and 10% ketchup. If you like your burger sauce particularly tangy, add a little of the vinegar from your jar of gherkins!

These quantities change all the time depending on what I’ve got left in the fridge – so don’t be afraid to be more liberal with the mustard or ketchup if they are your faves, it’s always going to taste good, I promise ; )

Get Flippin’

Heat your pan to a high temperature – when it starts smoking you know that you’re ready to go. Flip your burgers in to the pan seasoned-side down, and cook for around a minute. Squirt a little mustard onto the uncooked side before flipping and cooking for another minute. As soon as you begin to start cooking the second side, season and then slap on your cheese slices to ensure they start to melt. We use one slice of mozzerella on one patty, and mild cheese like Red Leicester on the other. If you have a pan with a cover, now would be a great time to hold it over the burgers to help your cheese to melt. Take your burgers off the heat as soon as that minute is up – you don’t want to overcook them as they will become dry.

Quickly pop each half of your bun into the pan to toast it and mop up a bit of the grease (I told you they were filthy, didn’t I?!). If you have space in your pan, do this step whilst your patties are cooking. When they are sufficiently crispy, get ready to put everything together!

Assemble!

Smother each side of your bun with the sauce and get assembling! Then all that’s left is to pour out the milkshake, grab your fries and enjoy! Remember, if this burger isn’t dripping and falling apart, then you’ve done something wrong! Remember the kitchen roll ; )

…Enjoy!