There are certain seismic events which have the ability to unite the greatest of our gene pool. The Olympics, The G8 summit and of course the Taste of London Food Festival.
A yearly event, "Taste" (as the cognoscenti call it), brings together the great and the good of UK cuisine so that hordes of foodies can queue up to eat their finest offerings from paper plates on plastic garden furniture.
I turned up this year having undergone an entire day of Yom Kippur style fasting to find that something was strangely amiss - sitting on an upturned vegetable crate outside Regent's Park was the one and only Mushroom Man himself, Antonio Carluccio. Further surveillance revealed Michel Roux jnr. pacing moodily around a police car whilst various other tv chefs who I couldn't quite place impatiently twiddled their thumbs. It looked like the culinary version of Edward Hopper's Nighthawks.
As it turns out the denizens of global terror were giving up on Parliament and turning their attention to far bigger targets: Gordon Ramsay at Stall 55E. Speculation was rife as to the source of the terrorist threat but AA Gill and Ainsley Harriet were both in the frame. As it turns out the suspect package was no more threatening than a dirty nappy in a Lidl Bag (or was that a misplaced sous vide concoction a la Blumenthal ?) and after 45 minutes we were in...
A yearly event, "Taste" (as the cognoscenti call it), brings together the great and the good of UK cuisine so that hordes of foodies can queue up to eat their finest offerings from paper plates on plastic garden furniture.
I turned up this year having undergone an entire day of Yom Kippur style fasting to find that something was strangely amiss - sitting on an upturned vegetable crate outside Regent's Park was the one and only Mushroom Man himself, Antonio Carluccio. Further surveillance revealed Michel Roux jnr. pacing moodily around a police car whilst various other tv chefs who I couldn't quite place impatiently twiddled their thumbs. It looked like the culinary version of Edward Hopper's Nighthawks.
As it turns out the denizens of global terror were giving up on Parliament and turning their attention to far bigger targets: Gordon Ramsay at Stall 55E. Speculation was rife as to the source of the terrorist threat but AA Gill and Ainsley Harriet were both in the frame. As it turns out the suspect package was no more threatening than a dirty nappy in a Lidl Bag (or was that a misplaced sous vide concoction a la Blumenthal ?) and after 45 minutes we were in...
Ingredients
500g best quality minced beef
200g shredded chorizo
Half cup of breadcrumbs
1 whole egg
Tablespoon of pine nuts
Ketchup
Dried oregano
Chilli seeds
Salt and pepper
Mild goat's cheese
Method
Firstly prepare to be astounded by your cooking prowess - this one is as easy as finding dirt on a Labour politician.
Put the minced beef, shredded chorizo, egg (sans shell please), a good squeeze of ketchup, and a couple of good pinches of oregano and chilli seeds in a bowl.
Next put your pinenuts in a dry frying pan over a medium high heat and toast them to a golden colour whilst making witty innuendos to your guests about burning your nuts.
Add the pinenuts to the mixture, season with salt and pepper then get your hands dirty to mix it all up. At this stage I always take a teaspoon of the mixture and cook it in the frying pan to check the seasoning. Not enough Ketchup ? Give it another squidge. Flavour of the beef not quite standing out ? Season that bad boy.
Chill the mixture for at least 20 minutes before dusting some flour on the work surface to make your patties. Grab a handful just smaller than a tennis ball and roll it in the flour before giving it a bit of a slap and neatening up the edge.
Now here's he crucial bit - you can fry, grill or barbeque your burger but don't start basking in your prospective culinary glory just yet or you'll end up overcooking it. I would recommend cooking the burger on a medium high heat for a few minutes each side and topping it with some mild goat's cheese for the last couple of minutes. Medium rare is best in my book.
This burger is so damn good that it doesn't need a bap - for the carb inclined though a nice fresh ciabatta is the best option with a simple side salad and a nice cold Budweiser.
Next week I'm planning a fantastic summer dish which first saw the light of day when I shot a pilot show in LA last year so check in with me then.
Enjoy !
x
(P.S. You've got to love Shoreditch House - I am typing this as Sophie Ellis Bextor is standing two metres away preparing to do a live set...wonder what her favourite dinner would be ?)
