Mozzarella beef burgers with spicy fried onions
Makes: 4
Prep time: 30 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Toby Scott
Mozzarella beef burgers with spicy fried onions
Makes: 4
Prep time: 30 minsTotal time: 
See more recipes
Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
864Kcal
Fat
52gr
Saturates
15gr
Carbs
52gr
Sugars
10gr
Fibre
4gr
Protein
48gr
Salt
3.5gr
Tamsin Burnett-Hall
Tamsin learned the tricks of the trade from cookery legend Delia Smith. A trusted recipe writer for the magazine for over 25 years, she is now our Senior Food Producer, overseeing testing and editing to ensure that every recipe tastes great, is straightforward to follow and works without fail. In her home kitchen, Tamsin creates fuss-free flavour-packed food for friends and family, with baking being her ultimate form of comfort cooking
See more of Tamsin Burnett-Hall’s recipes
Tamsin Burnett-Hall
Tamsin learned the tricks of the trade from cookery legend Delia Smith. A trusted recipe writer for the magazine for over 25 years, she is now our Senior Food Producer, overseeing testing and editing to ensure that every recipe tastes great, is straightforward to follow and works without fail. In her home kitchen, Tamsin creates fuss-free flavour-packed food for friends and family, with baking being her ultimate form of comfort cooking
See more of Tamsin Burnett-Hall’s recipes
Ingredients
- 2 x 250g packs rump steak (or 500g 15% fat Taste the Difference beef mince)
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 large black or regular garlic cloves, crushed
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- a pinch of hot chilli powder
- a pinch of smoked paprika
- 1 large onion, sliced thinly
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 x 105g pack smoked pancetta (12 slices)
- 1 x 125g-150g ball mozzarella (drained weight)
For the thousand island dressing
- 6 tbsp mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
- a squeeze of lemon juice
- ½ pickled cucumber, finely chopped (from a jar, we used Mrs Elswood)
To serve
- 4 seeded burger buns
- a handful of shredded Cos lettuce
- 2 large vine tomatoes, sliced
- 3 pickled cucumbers, sliced (see above)
Step by step
Get ahead
Make up to the end of step 2 a day ahead; chill. The dressing can be made a day ahead, too; chill. Fry the onions up to a few hours ahead. You can freeze the raw burgers; defrost thoroughly before cooking.
- Start by preparing the burgers, which need to be chilled to firm up. Dice the rump steak, discarding any sinew, but keeping the fat. Place the diced beef in a food processor and pulse chop until finely chopped, but still retaining some texture. Don't over-process the meat or it will become rubbery.
- Stir in the mustard, garlic and a seasoning of freshly ground black pepper, but no salt at this stage. Divide the chopped meat into 4, and shape each burger into a round patty, then put them on a plate, cover and chill for at least 30 minutes.
- For the spicy fried onions, combine the flour, chilli powder, smoked paprika and a little salt in a bowl, add the onions and toss to mix well. Heat the oil in a large frying pan until smoking hot, then add the onions (discard any excess flour). Fry over a high heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring constantly, until crisp and golden brown, then drain on kitchen paper.
- To make the thousand island dressing, simply stir together the mayonnaise, ketchup and chilli sauce, add lemon juice to taste and mix in the pickled cucumber.
- Preheat a barbecue (or large frying pan). Barbecue (or pan-fry) the pancetta slices for 3-4 minutes or until crisp, keeping a close eye as they burn easily. Set aside on kitchen paper to drain.
- Sprinkle the beef burgers with salt. Barbecue (or pan-fry) them for 10-12 minutes, turning regularly, until cooked to your liking. Don't cook them too quickly or too close to the heat as they need time to cook through. Slice the mozzarella and, towards the end of the cooking time, place a slice or two of mozzarella on top of each burger and leave it to melt. (If pan-frying the burgers, cover the pan with a lid for a few minutes to help the cheese melt.)
- Lightly toast the cut sides of the buns on the barbecue (or under the grill) and spread each side with some of the thousand island dressing. Pile up some shredded Cos lettuce on each bun base and add a couple of slices of tomato, then a burger. Top with the crispy pancetta, a few slices of pickled cucumber and a tangle of spicy fried onions, plus the bun top.
