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Monday, 17 December 2012

[Recipe] Bareback-style burgers

Following the In-N-Out pop up in London back in October 2012, where I took down a double double animal-style burger, I thought I'd take the idea of grilling burgers with a condiment to something a whole lot more British - horseradish.

So here's my take on an animal-style burger - I call it bareback-style.


Makes 4 burgers.

  • 1 x pack of Warburtons soft white rolls (as used in the In-N-Out London pop-up)
  • 1.2 lb chuck mince from your butcher (600g)
  • Creamed horseradish
  • American or cheddar cheese
To garnish:
  • Sliced dill pickles
  • French's mustard
  • Heinz ketchup
  • Salt (ideally flaked sea salt) to season

Divide your minced chuck into four equal portions of around 5oz (around 150g) each, then lightly compress the beef into patties. I used a 3 inch cake cutter for this recipe. Try not to overwork the beef, a few quick presses will be sufficient. Aim for around 1 inch thick.

Heat a cast iron pan until it begins to smoke, then just before you add the patties to the pan, rub sea salt into one side and place into the pan for about 2 1/2 minutes (for medium rare burgers). No need to add oil.



After about 20 seconds, if you have a steak weight, use this to gently press the patties down into the pan. This will enhance the Maillard Reaction (producing a fantastic caramalisation of the beef against the hot metal). If you don't have a steak weight, you can use your hand.


Once pressed, add creamed horseradish liberally with a teaspoon over the top of the burgers.

After 2 1/2 minutes, flip the burgers, top with your cheese of choice (I used a medium cheddar, but would have chosen american cheese if I had any kicking around) and leave for another 2 1/2 minutes.



Whilst the burgers are cooking on the second side, pop the Warburtons buns into the pan and lightly toast on each side 





Once toasted, dress your buns with your condiments of choice. By now your burger patties should be cooked to your liking. Remove from pan and let them rest on a warm plate for at least 5 minutes to relax.


Serve them up, and take them down!


And just for kicks, here's a bit of the Maillard Reaction going on in my cast iron skillet:

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