lamb burgers?

sm1971

Hello all!

I have just picked up a free pack of lamb mince from Waitrose with a voucher they sent me (yay!). However, I'm a veggie although my other half isn't. I also have meat-eating family here this weekend so thought I could make lamb burgers for them all. However (again!) I have no idea how to do this! I've been veggie for over 30 years and tend to only cook chicken breasts for my OH (he really likes veggie food!)
It needs to be simple as I don't want to spend ages in the kitchen when I have visitors, but thought I could make a veggie burger for me and serve the burgers with salad and spicy sweet potato wedges (so not a spicy burger, really).
I know at least one of you lovely lot must be able to help!
Thank you

Gigervamp

Lamb with either rosemary or mint. Add an egg to the mince and herbs, give a good mix by hand and press into burger shapes.

It really is that easy!

natbags

lots of flavourings into the mixture as they can sometimes taste a little bland - I always make a mixture up (eggs to bind, breadcrumbs if a little sloppy, fresh or dried herbs (lots) - mixed, basil, rosemary, mint etc... whatever you like and lots and lots of S&P) and then I fry off a little bit to taste - could your OH do that bit? Lamb burgers go very very well on a bun with Tzatiki - Yum !

Stoodles

For use as a burger, I just add salt and pepper and squish them firmly into shape, then fry gently. I want them to taste of lamb and nothing else.

I'd only add egg and crumbs if I wanted meatballs to go in a sauce

sm1971

Thank you for all the advice - would you all say I'm better to fry them than put them in the oven? And how long to cook them for?

FairyPrincessk

My OH always cooks them in the oven because he is lazy and can't be bothered standing there. However, if you want them to be nicer I'd fry them--they probably don't need any fat or just a touch to keep them from sticking. How long depends on how big they are and how well done you want them. You may want to 'test' one by cutting into the middle to see how cooked it is. You can usually just ease a knife in and peek without slicing it in half.

marleyboy

A lovely Shepherds Pie with cheesy mash on top

ciderwithrosie_2

I tried these not long back and they were really good...

http://www.hairybikers.com/recipes/dieters-doner-kebabs/1767#453OaOHdprPAHEgf.97

Pollycat

I make a lot of burgers with all sorts of mince.
I think lamb, beef (steak mince, no cheap rubbish) & pork work well but chicken & turkey mince tend to be a bit 'wet'.

For lamb, I'd add either dried mint or a bit of mint sauce.
I use Coleman's Fresh Garden Mint Concentrate as it's the nearest thing to 'proper' mint sauce.
Herbs
Pepper, no salt as I don't use it in cooking.

I never add egg or breadcrumbs to burgers, I find if you work the mince with your hands, really squidging it up, it stays together - but I do use a 40+ year old Tupperware burger press to form them up.

I agree that Tzatziki goes well with lamb.

I think Marleyboy has a good suggestion with Shepherd's Pie.
We had this last night:
lamb mince with onions & carrots, a bit of mint sauce, herbs, pepper and a topping of mashed potato & mashed swede.

Steve059

Try this ...

BEEFBURGERS

Makes 2 quarter pounders

INGREDIENTS

250g of lean minced beef
1 tablespoon of oil

METHOD

Divide the mince into two halves. Squeeze each half into a ball and then flatten it out into a disc.

Put the oil into a frying pan on a medium heat. Fry the burgers for about 5 minutes on each side.

ADDITIONS & ALTERNATIVES

Use good quality lean and finely ground mince. The cheaper the mince, the higher the fat content and the more coarsely it is ground.

Use minced lamb, pork or turkey instead of minced beef.

If you use minced lamb, add some finely chopped mint, dried mint or some mint sauce.

If you use minced pork, add some finely chopped apple or some apple sauce.

If you use minced turkey, add some cranberry sauce.

Add some finely chopped onion. Add some herbs.

If the burgers won’t hold together, add some beaten egg. If you make the mixture too wet, add some breadcrumbs.

Cook the burgers under a preheated medium grill for about 5 minutes on each side instead of frying. If the mince is very lean, you might even need to coat the burgers with a little oil.

TIPS

Make them firm, so that they don’t fall apart. Make them chunky, as thin edges will cook too quickly.

When squeezing the mince, imagine that it’s someone you don’t like.

Chilling the burgers in the fridge helps them to hold together whilst cooking.

You can make the burgers using a burger press. This is a round mould, which you fill with the mince and then press it into uniformly sized burgers. However, hand made burgers have more ‘rustic charm’ and there’s no washing up.