Luxury beef burgers

Serves 4

 

650 g premium beef mince
3 teaspoons caper berries or capers, drained and roughly chopped
1⁄4 cup (35 g) sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped; if packed in oil, drain and pat dry
50 g canned anchovy fillets, drained, dried and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons black peppercorns
1 can (about 400 g) canned artichoke hearts, well drained
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
3 teaspoons lemon juice
1⁄4 cup (30 g) pitted black olives, chopped
4 crusty bread rolls or hamburger buns, split sprigs of fresh parsley to garnish

 

 

1. Put the beef mince, caper berries or capers, sun-dried tomatoes, anchovy fillets and half of the oil into a large bowl and mix well.

 

2. Divide the mixture into 4 equal portions, shaping each one into a burger about 10 cm in diameter. Crush the peppercorns with a rolling pin or in a mortar and pestle and coat both sides of each burger with crushed pepper, pressing it gently into the meat.

 

3. Cut each artichoke heart into 4 slices lengthways. Heat the remaining oil in a frying pan and add the garlic. When the oil starts to sizzle, remove the garlic and set aside.

 

4. Add the artichokes to the pan and cook for 2–3 minutes until heated through, then stir in the parsley, lemon juice, black olives and garlic. Remove from the heat and cover to keep warm.

 

5. Lightly oil a hotplate or grill rack and preheat to medium–high heat. Cook the burgers over direct heat for 3–5 minutes on each side, turning
carefully, until cooked through and browned. Set aside. Grill the bread rolls, cut side down, for about 1 minute or until lightly toasted.

 

6. Serve the burgers on individual plates, spoon over the hot artichoke hearts with their dressing, place 1 bread roll on the side, and garnish with
sprigs of parsley.