I wanted to try making a burger from scratch, make it someone everyone could love and with locally available ingredients - I had to make 3!
I did a delicious modern chicken burger, a spicy italian lamb and a contemporary indian veggie burger!
BUNS
I've found that the secret base to any great burger is the bun. I really desperately hated any burger bun I found in stores around me in Delhi, even those served at critically acclaimed restaurants served the same flavorless bun, soaking wet with the juices; often not grilled correctly or at all. I decided on making my own. A different one for all three.
MEATS And PattIES
Obviously it is hard to find a hamburger in this place, so I had to go for alternatives. I did a chicken thigh burger, but a little added secret ingredient in the filling. With the lamb burger, I got my butcher to chop off the meat from the rack (or mutton chops) and then had him grind it. For the veggie patty, I took inspiration from an amazing 'sabudana tikki' (a soga cutlet) I had recently.
Recipe:
Ingredients
For the Buns:
460 gm flour
15 gm instant yeast
60gm powdered sugar
Salt to taste For the Brioche:
20 gm softened butter
20 gm milk powder
220ml warm milk
1 egg yolk
For the Spiced Brioche:
15 gm butter
5 gm olive oil
220 ml warm milk
1 tsp chili powder
1 egg
6 cloves of garlic
A handful of fresh Italian herbs: rosemary/oregano/thyme
For the Indian Bun: 25 gm desi ghee
100 ml milk
100 ml warm water
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp coriander powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
For the Patties:
Chicken:
400 gm chicken thighs; minced
20 gm butter
1/4th of a chicken stock tablet
Lamb:
400 gm lamb; minced
50 gm dried breadcrumbs
1 egg
35 gm parmigiano reggiano
Veggie:
1 cup soga/sabudana
2 cups of boiled riced potatoes
1/4 cup roasted peanuts
3 cups of bhel/sev
2 tbsp garam masala
2 tbsp aamchur/dried mango powder
3 eggs
1 cup cornflour
Salt and Pepper
For the Sauces:
Chicken:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp ketchup
1 1/2 tbsp mustard
1 tbsp peri peri sauce
3 tbsp pickled jalapenos
1 whole lemon
1 tbsp honey
Iceberg lettuced, chopped finely (optional)
Lamb:
1/2 cup hung curd
1 tbsp of tomato paste
1 tbsp sundried tomato paste
1 1/2 tbsp whole grain/english mustard
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp honey
Veggie:
1 onion
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
1 tbsp garam masala
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup mango juice/aamras
1 cup milk
A handful of cashews
Salt and pepper to taste 3 tbsp jaggery
2 tbsp aamchur
1 thumb sized piece of ginger
1 tbsp red chili powder
3-4 cherries, pitted
2 tbsp tamarind sauce
1/2 cup of water
Other:
4 whole onions, sliced thinly
4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp brown sugar
4 rashers of bacon
2 leaves of iceberg
1 cup cornflour
2 cups bhel
6 slices of mild cheddar
100 gm of mature cheddar
2 slices of gouda
Prime pork ham
8 slices of burger pickles/gherkins (according to your preference)
(Makes two-three burgers each, depending on size of buns rolled out)
Method
For the base of all the burger buns combine the dry ingredients together.
For the brioche, add in the egg, milk, baby powder, softened butter and combine till it becomes one. Knead for 10 minutes.
For the italian, add the rest of the ingredients excluding the egg into a pan and simmer till halved. Top with 100 ml of milk. Knead for 10 minutes.
For the Indian, combine all ingredients. Knead for 10 minutes. Place in a bowl and cover all three with clingfilm. Let proof for around 2 hours. Roll out again and divide each into 2-3 pieces. Form into burger bun shaped balls, making sure the top is fairly plain. Place no more than 4 pieces in a baking tray and let them rise for around 1 hour; covered under clinfilm. Bake at 215*C for 20 minutes then at 250*C for a further 5-6. Let them rest for at least 4 hours.
For the sauces for the chicken and lamb burgers, combine the ingredients together.
For the indian burger, in a pan place the onions, garlic, ginger and garam masala with some desi ghee and fry till golden. Add in the tomatoes, mango juice and some salt. Let it simmer for around 15-20 minutes. In the meantime, boil the cashews in the milk. Then, grind them in a food processor till they form a fine paste. Add into the sauce and blitz the sauce using a hand blender or the food processor. Sieve through.
To make the cherry tamarind sauce, combine all ingredients and simmer till as thick as ketchup.
To make the caramelized onions, add in onions, balsamic and brown sugar in a pan and sweat till onions become jammy.
For the crispy pancake, combine the 2 cups of bhel with around 1/4 cup of cornflour and olive oil (enough to make a malleable mixture). Fry in a shallow pan on medium heat till golden on both sides.
For the chicken patty, combine chicken, egg and breadcrumbs. In a pan, melt together the chicken stock and butter. Freeze until solid. To cook the patties, make two pieces of the chicken stock butter and add one in each patty, right in the center. Grill on a high heat for around 6-8 minutes on each side. Place around 35 gm of the slices/pieces/grated mature cheddar cheese on each and grill in the oven till cheese is melted.
For the lamb patty, combine lamb, breadcrumbs, parmigiano and egg. Grill for 9-10 minutes on each side on medium high heat. Place 3 slices of mild cheddar on each and grill in the oven. Meanwhile, add the bacon into a pan on medium heat from cold with no fat. Once cooked, add on top of the melted cheese. Fry the prime ham in the bacon fat till browned on the edges.
For the indian patty, combine the soba, potaotoes, roasted crushed peanuts and salt in a bowl. Form patties and drop into cornflour to coat. Then, drop into the egg till thoroughly coated. Place in a bowl/dish containing the bhel. Let the patty be coated by the bhel and fry till golden brown. Once removed from the heat, place the gouda cheese slice on top.
Grill both sides of the buns in ample amount of butter, making sure that the butter coats the burger completely. For the Italian burger, grill the burger in the pan with the bacon grease, but butter that bun too.
To finish off, for the chicken burger, place burger sauce on the base of the bun, top with caramelized onions, them the patty and some burger pickles. For the Italian burger, place a piece of iceberg lettuce on the base, followed by the patty, then the sauce and top with some sliced jalapenos. For the indian burger place the bhel and conflour pancake on the bottom, then place the cherry tamarind chutney over it. Top with the patty and the cashew mango sauce, and some fresh chopped onions.
Serve!