Beef Burger with Assorted Vegetables

Ingredients

For the beef burger

1. 12 Jacob's cream crackers
2. 500g quality minced beef
3. 1 large free range egg
4. Salt
5. Feshly ground black pepper
6. Olive oil
7. 1 round lettuce
8. 3 tomatoes, sliced thin
9. 1 red onion, sliced thin
10. 6 fresh burger buns
11. 6 slices cheddar or mozarella cheese
12. Mustard, optional

For the assorted vegetables

1. 1 Carrot, cut into matchsticks
2. 200g Asparagus, washed and bottom 1cm cut off (I peel the outer layer off so that its not so fibrous.)
3. 3 Tomatoes, by the stem

 

Method

Making your burger

1. Put crackers in a plastic bag and smash them up till fine, breaking up any big bits and put them in a large bowl.
2. Finely chop the parsley, including the stalks.
3. Add the parsley, mustard and minced beef into the bowl.
4. Crack the egg and add a good pinch of salt and pepper.
5. Scrunch and mix everything well. 
6. Divide into 6 and roll each piece into a roundish ball shape.
7. Drizzle the burgers with oil, put them on a plate, cover with foil and place in the fridge till needed. We do this to firm up the meat so it is easier to handle when cooking it. 

Cooking your burger

1. Preheat griddle or grill pan on high heat. Once hot, turn down to medium heat.
2. Place the meat balls down and use a spatula to lightly press down on them, making sure they are in full contact so as to cook evenly.
3. Cook them till they are a bit crispy.

Preparing the vegetables

1. Steam for 15 mins and set aside for serving later.

Serving your burger

1. Wash and dry the lettuce leaves, making sure they are of the right size for the buns.
2. Lay them on the buns in whichever order you like. Put the tomatoes, spinach, cheese and meat patties.
3. Lay the vegetables at the side of the plate.