Home-made Burgers with Relish

Today's recipe is a little different from my usual fare on this site.

This recipe is for a classic home-made burger served in burger buns with a hot relish made from a ratatouille base.

Home-made Burgers with Relish

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

2 whole shallots
500g (1 lb) minced (ground) beef
2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 fresh green chilli, finely chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
400g (14 oz) tinned or fresh ratatouille
4 burger buns
lettuce leaves
salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Method:

Place the shallots in a bowl, cover with boiling water and set aside to soak for 2 minutes. Slip off their skins, then chop the shallots finely.

Mix half the shallots with the beef in a bowl. Add the chopped parsley and tomato ketchup and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Mix well then divide the mixture into four portions. Knead each portion into a ball and flatten into a burger.

For the relish, heat the olive oil in a pan, add the remaining shallot, garlic and chilli and fry for about 3 minutes, or until softened. Add the ratatouille and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes to thicken. Take off the heat and allow to cool.

Cook the burgers either by frying or by grilling on a barbecue for about 8 minutes per side.

Slice your burger buns in half, sit a few lettuce leaves on the base and put the burger on top. Add a couple of generous spoonfuls of the relish, top with the second bun half and serve.