Midweek meals: Five easy burger recipes ready in 40 minutes or less

From crispy Korean chicken to air fryer halloumi, these burgers won’t last long on the table

Midweek meals: five burger recipes to try this week

Basic beef burgers

recipe by:Darina Allen

The secret of really good beef burgers is the quality of the mince, it doesn't need to be an expensive cut but it is essential to use freshly minced beef. A small percentage of fat in the mince will make the burgers sweet and juicy – between 20-25%

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 10 mins

Total Time

 20 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 15g (½ oz) butter or extra virgin olive oil

• 75g (3oz) onion, finely chopped (optional)

• 450g (1lb) freshly minced beef — flank, chump, or shin would be perfect

• ½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

• ½ teaspoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

• olive oil

• To serve (optional):

• burger or brioche buns

• lettuce

• sliced ripe tomatoes

• sliced red onion

• crispy bacon

• avocado slices or a dollop of guacamole

• fried onions

• roast or piquillo peppers

• kimchi, pickled slaw or pickles

• spicy mayo, spicy tomato sauce,

• barbecue sauce, hot sauce, bacon jam or relish of your choice

Method

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan, toss in the onions, if using, cover and sweat over a low heat for 5-6 minutes until soft but not coloured. Set aside to get cold.

2. Meanwhile, mix the beef mince with the herbs and season with salt and pepper. Then add the cooled onions and mix well. Fry off a tiny bit of the mixture in the pan to check the seasoning and adjust if necessary.

3. With wet hands, shape the mixture into four burgers, or more depending on the size you require. Chill until needed.

4. Cook to your taste in a little oil in a medium-hot frying or barbecue, turning once. For rare, cook for 2 minutes on each side; for medium, 3 minutes; and for well done, 4 minutes. If you’re cooking the burgers in batches, make sure to wash and dry the pan between batches. Burgers can plump up in the centre while being cooked; to avoid this, make an indentation in the centre of each raw burger with your thumb. Serve with any of the serving suggestions above, or try one of the variations.
   
   Extracted from How to Cook: The 100 Essential Recipes Everyone Should Know by Darina Allen (Kyle)

 

Korean fried chicken burger

recipe by:Colm O'Gorman

This chicken burger served with cheese, lettuce and spicy apple is delicious with spicy mayo on a warm brioche bun

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 40 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Korean

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts

• 30ml rice wine

• 2 garlic cloves 

• 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger

• 250g cornflour

• 4 brioche buns

• 8 potatoes

• 4 tbsp Mayonnaise

• 4 tbsp Gochujang chilli sauce

• 3 tbsp ketchup

• 1 tbsp brown sugar

• 50g honey

• 1 tbsp sesame oil

• 2 tbsp soy sauce

• To serve:

• Little gem lettuce

• grated Cheddar

• For the Ssamjang (optional):

• 80g Korean soybean paste or miso

• 2 tbsp gochujang

• 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil

• 1 tsp honey

• 1 garlic clove, grated

• 1 tbsp finely chopped onion

• 20g flaked almonds

• ½ apple, cored and finely chopped

Method

1. Flatten the chicken breasts a little. I use a rolling pin to do this, just pound them gently to make them a uniform thickness. Grate the garlic, pop it into a bowl with the rice wine and ginger. Cut the chicken breasts in half, add them to the bowl and stir to cover with the marinade. Let them marinate for about 30 minutes.

2. Now make the pickled cucumber. Warm 60ml rice or white wine vinegar in a small pan, add one teaspoon of sesame oil, one teaspoon of Korean red pepper flakes or ordinary chilli flakes and one tablespoon of caster sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Thinly slice a cucumber, pop it into a bowl and pour over the vinegar mix.

3. Pop all the ingredients for the ssamjang into a food processor and blitz until smooth. This will only take a minute or two. It is optional, but it really adds something special to this dish.

4. Peel a few potatoes per person and cut them into two-centimetre cubes. Toss them in a little olive oil and roast in an air fryer or oven at 200ºC until golden brown. Heat one litre of sunflower oil to 180ºC. Dredge the chicken pieces one at a time in the cornflour. Carefully lower them into the hot fat, one-by-one. Do not crowd the pan, you will need to do this in batches of three pieces or so at a time. Fry them for five minutes. After five minutes, let the chicken drain on a rack over a tray or on some kitchen paper. 

5. While the chicken is frying, toast the burger buns lightly. Make a sauce for the side serving of chicken and the potato by mixing the ketchup, two tablespoons of gochujang, two grated cloves of garlic, the soy sauce, brown sugar, honey, and sesame oil in a bowl. In another bowl, mix the mayonnaise and the last two tablespoons of gochujang. Now fry the chicken again for another two minutes. Plate up.

6. Put some lettuce on each bun along with some pickled cucumber. Next, put on a piece of chicken, add some of the gochujang mayo and some grated cheddar. Toss the potatoes in a little of the sauce you made earlier. Sprinkle with some toasted sesame seeds and some chopped spring onion. Serve on the side along with another piece of chicken and a little dish of the sauce.