Thai chilli jam beef burgers with buttermilk fried onion rings, Swiss cheese and avocado mayo

Since launching our new website in March 2017 my love for burgers has gone through the roof. No doubt the fact they can taste damn good is one reason but perhaps it’s the experimentation with different meats, fillings and buns that’s intrigued me. You can think of a bun as a blank canvas. From there you can change the meat, how you prepare the meat, what cheeses to use (if any), different condiments and so on. The list is endless!

The Thai chilli jam used in this burger is an old time favourite condiment of mine. There are a lot of flavours and layers to it that all work really well together. It’s that tasty I sometimes have it on toast or crackers with a thin slice of cheese. You do have to be a little careful however when adding it to other meals so not to overpower everything else. Use a small amount to begin with and increase it from there.

The idea for buttermilk fried onion rings came from our Buttermilk Fried Chicken Burger. Buttermilk works a treat when it comes to frying as it imparts flavour, tenderises and helps the coating (in this case cornmeal) stick. The use of cornmeal was derived from Jamie Oliver’s The Best Buttermilk Onion Rings.

There’s definitely room to experiment here with another condiment to complement the chilli jam. I used our Avocado Mayo and I’m sure something with lime would cut through the jam nicely.

ingredients 

• 1 kg beef mince – I used a 80/20 mix of chuck and brisket trimmings to make 7 patties. Straight chuck would work just fine.
• salt and pepper
• Thai chilli jam
• 2 brown onions, sliced into 4mm rings
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/3 cup flour (we used gluten free)
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 750 ml sunflower oil
• Swiss cheese slices
• Avocado mayo
• lettuce
• tomato
• brioche buns

directions

for the patties

1. If you have a mincer at home grind up the mince yourself and make the patties. If not, ask your butcher to do it for you. Please try to avoid the store bought variety.*
2. Just prior to grilling, season the patties with a generous amount of salt and pepper.
3. Fire up your grill to a medium-high heat.
4. Cook your patties, flipping regularly and just before the last flip brush them with the chilli jam, flip, and then brush the other side.
5. Place the cheese slices onto the patties 30 seconds before removing from the grill.
6. Now the second best part – build you burger! From the bottom up… bun, lettuce, tomato, patty, cheese, onion rings, top bun with the avo mayo.
7. Now for the best part – time to eat your chilli jam beef burger burger!

for the onions

1. Pour the oil into a heavy based saucepan or wok and aim to get the oil to 180c/350f.
2. Season the flour with salt and pepper and toss the onion rings into the flour, then the buttermilk and finally the cornmeal.
3. Drop the rings into the oil for about 1 minute until golden and crispy, flipping them after 30 seconds. Don’t overcrowd when cooking, work in batches if needed.
4. Remove the rings onto some paper towel to drain off the excess oil.

*For a more detailed explanation on burger patty making you can read my Extreme Beef Burger article here.