Waitrose Footbal Party Burger – Greece: The Deconstructed Moussaka Burger

Waitrose asked me to pull together a burger recipe to represent Greece for their football party Home Inspirations page. So I've created the deconstructed Moussaka burger for your chowing pleasure.

This recipe will feed 4 – 8 people, depending on how hungry you are!


Ingredients:

8 x Pitta breads
Olive and anchovy tapenade

For the burgers:
1kg essential Waitrose British beef frying steak
100g beef dripping

For the cheese sauce:
50g x Percorino Cheese, grated (similar to Greek Kalathaki)
Tablespoon cornflour
100ml Milk

For the aubergine tempura:
100g cornflour
150g plain flour
10g baking powder
1 x bottle Summer Lightning Ale, chilled (tenuously Greek because the label has Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and ale on it!)
1 x large aubergine

For the Greek Salad:
1 x medium onion, sliced
4 x small tomatoes
½ cucumber
½ jar pitted Kalamata olives
2 x lemon, juice
½ spoon of sugar
Fresh coriander

Preparation - Burger patties:

To make the burgers, thinly slice the beef frying steak into strips, and then chop across the strips to form a very coarse mince. Chill the beef dripping and then chop into small cubes and briefly mix together in a bowl with the beef – be careful not to overhandle the meat, but ensure the beef dripping is distributed evenly.
Form burgers using a cookie cutter or burger press – each burger should be 85-100g.

To cook the burgers, heat a cast iron pan or skillet until it’s smoking and then press the burgers onto the hot surface. Leave for at least two minutes before moving, to allow the fat to sear the coarse chopped steak together, and then flip. Leave for 2 more minutes to serve pink, or longer depending on your tastes.

Greek salad:

To make the greek salad, thinly slice onion, tomatoes, cucumber and olives and mix with the juice of two lemons, chopped coriander and a sprinkle of sugar.

Toss together in a bowl and refrigerate until ready to dress the burgers.

Aubergine tempura:

To make the aubergine tempura, cut the large aubergine into slices and lay the slices out on kitchen roll. Salt the pieces lightly and wait until they are ‘sweating’ before drying them off and flipping them over to do the same on the other side.

For the tempura batter, mix the cornflour, plain flour and baking powder in a bowl, and gently add the chilled ale, whisking as you pour. When the batter coats your finger, it’s ready. Use immediately, or keep chilled until you’re ready to cook.

To fry your aubergine, dip the aubergine slices in the batter and then add them to hot oil. Remove when golden brown and rest on kitchen roll to drain.

Pecorino cheese sauce:

To make the cheese sauce, mix the grated Pecorino cheese with the cornflour, and then add that to a saucepan of simmering milk. Whisk in the pan, and taste to ensure it is cheesy enough for your taste. Set to one side, and warm again before serving.

Building your deconstructed moussaka burger:

Slice your pitta breads to create a top and bottom bun, then lightly toast and spread the olive and anchovy tapenade onto the bottom section.

Spoon a good portion of greek salad onto the bottom, and place your burger on top.

Top your burger with tempura aubergine and a dollop of cheese sauce and then place the other half pitta bread on top.