My Classic Beef Burger with Not-So-Secret Sauce
The sauce alone makes this burger worth every bite
30 Jan 2016 15 minutes 4
[ess_post]
We all love a good burger, but sometimes you can get carried away with mountains of fillings and sauces. In my humble opinion, a great burger comes down to three elements: the patty, the sauce and the bun. Get these right and everything else falls into place. For the patty, it has to be a 50/50 blend of freshly ground sirloin and brisket. Nothing less than a toasted soft brioche bun will do, and the coup de grâce is my irresistible, not-so-secret sauce cascading over the beautifully charred patty. Now, stop drooling and go make this bad boy.
Ingredients
340 grams freshly ground sirloin steak
340 grams freshly ground brisket
12 gem lettuce leaves
3 tomatoes, sliced
175 grams smoked Havarti cheese, cut into 12 slices (I used Kapiti brand)
Not-So-Secret Burger Sauce
5 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 heaped teaspoon American mustard
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon smoked hickory BBQ sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
salt and pepper
1 heaped tablespoon finely diced shallot
2 gherkins, grated
1½ cups very finely chopped gem lettuce
4 x brioche burger buns, halved and toasted
extra mayonnaise for the buns
Recipe
Sauce: Place the mayonnaise, mustard, ketchup, BBQ sauce and lemon juice in a bowl, season and mix until well combined. Add the shallot, gherkin and lettuce and mix until fully incorporated. Set aside until required. (The sauce can be made a day ahead kept in the fridge.)
Patties: Place the meat in a large bowl with a good pinch of salt, mix well and shape into four evenly-sized patties. Cover and set aside.
Cook the beef patties on one side over a high heat on a barbecue grill or in a griddle pan for 3-4 minutes. Flip and place 3 slices of cheese on each patty, cooking for a further 2-3 minutes, or until cooked to your liking, with the cheese just melting over the sides. Remove, cover and rest for 8-10 minutes.
To assemble: Spread a tablespoon of mayonnaise on each toasted bun bottom, add 3-4 gem lettuce leaves, some tomato, a burger patty and a healthy spoonful of the not-so-secret sauce. Finish by squishing the bun on top, so the sauce cascades over the burger and devour with joy!
