Burgers With A Spanish Flair Recipes

SPANISH BURGERS

Steps:

• Heat gas grill on medium or charcoal grill until coals are ash white.
• Combine ground beef, 1/4 cup olives, 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes and pepper in bowl; mix lightly. Shape into 4 patties.
• Place patties onto grill. Grill, turning once, 15-18 minutes or until internal temperature reaches at least 160°F and meat is no longer pink in center. Top with 2 slices cheese during last minute of cooking.
• Combine remaining olives, remaining sun-dried tomatoes and salsa in bowl.
• Place 1 lettuce leaf onto bottom half of each bun; top with burgers, salsa mixture and top half of buns.

SPANISH BURGER WITH PICKLED SHALLOTS

Steps:

• For the spiced butter: Melt the butter over low heat in a small saucepan. Add the harissa and garlic and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, cover and let sit 1 hour to allow the flavors to meld.
• For the pickled saffron shallots: Bring the vinegar, sugar, salt and saffron to a boil in a small saucepan set over medium heat; remove from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes. Put the shallots in a small bowl, pour the vinegar mixture over, cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.
• For the aioli: Combine the mayonnaise, harissa, smoked paprika, piquillo peppers, anchovy and lemon juice in a blender and blend until smooth; season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
• For the crispy prosciutto: Heat the oil in a small saute pan over medium heat until it shimmers. Add one slice of the prosciutto at a time to the pan and cook until just crisp. Drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
• For the burgers: Combine the chuck and fat in a meat grinder and grind coarsely into a large bowl (or put the 80/20 beef into a large bowl). Mix in some salt and pepper. Divide the meat into 4 equal patties.
• Heat a cast-iron pan over high heat until smoking. Add the canola oil and burgers and cook until the bottoms are golden brown and a crust has formed, about 4 minutes. Flip over and begin brushing and basting with the spiced butter. Cook until the bottoms are golden brown and the meat is cooked to medium, another 4 minutes. Top the burgers with the fontina, add a little water to the pan, cover quickly and cook until the cheese is completely melted, about 1 minute.
• Spread some aioli on the top and bottom buns. Place a burger on each bottom bun, top with some of the pickled shallots, followed by a slice of crispy prosciutto and some arugula. Add the top buns and serve.

SPANISH BURGERS WITH MANCHEGO AND CHORIZO HASH BROWNS

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a skillet over medium heat then add chorizo.
• While chorizo is rendering and browning, peel onion. Place meat in a mixing bowl. Grate a few tablespoons of onion directly over the meat. Quarter the remainder of the onion and thinly slice.
• Add potatoes and onions to the chorizo. Season the hash browns with salt and pepper and fresh thyme. Once the potatoes are lightly browned, 7 to 8 minutes, flip them and press them down with a spatula to crisp them, continue to cook 7 to 8 minutes more.
• To the sirloin, add parsley, smoked paprika, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix the burgers to combine and form 4 large patties. Create an indentation in each burger using the heal of your hand to counter the burger at the center that happens to burgers as they cook - your burgers will be nice and flat for topping if you use this trick!
• Heat the remaining extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the burgers to the skillet and cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side for medium rare burgers and up to 6 to 7 minutes on each side for well done. Melt manchego cheese, 2 thin slices on each burger, the last 2 minutes they are in the pan. Tent the skillet with loose foil to trap enough heat to melt the cheese.
• Place pequillo peppers in food processor and add hot sauce, salt and pepper. Process the peppers into a smooth paste.
• To assemble, place burgers on bun bottoms and top with sliced red onion, cucumber and tomato. Slather the bun tops with pepper paste and set into place. Serve crispy hash browns with chorizo along side.