A hungry man's burger

After reading the wonderfully composed review of Byron and their burgers, I wanted to give you some lovely burger recipes to have a go at yourself.

I have always been a fan of the versatility of mince, and making great home made burgers is an easy, cheap, and fun alternative to the usual chilli con carne or spag bol.

In this post i will show you my own basic burger recipe, and then also some little variations i like to do occasionally to really mix things up.


Ingredients
500g of beef mince (normally a large pack) the better the meat, the better the burger.
Half an Onion - as finely chopped as possible
1 clove of finely chopped or garlic
1 egg
1 tablespoon of mustard
Lots of salt and black pepper

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl until the mixture is combined. To taste fry a small amount of the mixture in a hot pan. Adjust if needed, and then make the remaining mixture into burgers. I like quite thick burgers to get a slightly pink centre, but if you don't like that then make the patties a bit thinner. This will allow full cooking without burning the outside. If you have enough time, try and leave them in the fridge for an hour or so before cooking.
Cook on a BBQ/griddle/dry pan. Make sure these are all smoking hot before putting the burgers on to ensure the caramelisation of the meat. They will probably take about 5 mins on each side (for a thick burger).


Ahungryman's Burger Variations 

1. Italian Burgers:
1. Add some sliced and diced olives and sun-dried tomatoes a drop of olive oil and some freshly chopped basil to the mixture.
2. It is possible to take a small bit of mozzarella and stuff it into the middle of the burger so you end up with a burger with a melting middle.
2. Thai Burger
1. Add a couple of teaspoons of thai green curry paste, and some chopped coriander to the mix.
3. Moroccan Burger
1. Substitute the beef mince for lamb.
2. Throw in a handful of finely chopped mint and a tablespoon of cumin 

To be fair though the best thing about making burgers for me is the freedom to do whatever you want with them. Try ingredients that you like, leave out ones that you don't.
Can you create the ultimate burger? Challenge on.

If you think you have created the perfect burger send in a recipe and/or a picture to share the meaty love.