I really fancied some pub-type grub to go with my watching the football last night (it just doesn’t feel right to be eating anything fancy while I’m simultaneously drinking beer, shouting at the television and jumping up and down like a mad person). I also have all things America on the brain at the moment, which is probably why the idea of home-made burgers and chunky chips popped into my head as easily as it did. Here’s my recipe…

Wolf ‘em down burgers with pub grub-style chunky chips

For the chips…

It’s probably a good idea to get the chips prepared and into the oven before you even think about making the burgers. I used 4-6 medium sized potatoes from my farm box, which I washed and scrubbed, and then cut into thickish chip shapes (leaving the skin on – it turns a lovely, crunchy golden brown in the oven). I put mine on a pizza tray, because it has holes in the bottom to allow the heat to get in from underneath as well as from on top. Before putting my chips in the oven, I sloshed a generous amount of olive oil over the top of them, and sprinked them with salt and coarse black pepper. Mine took 30-40 minutes to bake at around 180 degrees.

For the burgers…

It’s probably wise to consider the size you’re planning on making your burgers when deciding how much mince to buy. I was exceptionally hungry last night, and so bought 500g of mince, from which I fashioned two of the largest burgers I’ve ever seen in my life (please note that I only ate one of them!). The same amount of meat could easily make three or four medium-sized burgers.

I put the raw mince in a bowl, and added one finely chopped onion, a sprinkling of dried chillies for a little spice and one beaten egg to bind them nicely together. It would be worth experimenting with different types of herb or spice to suit your tastes – I’m picturing myself adding dried rosemary, thyme, basil and/or oregano to my burgers in future. Perhaps even some ginger or cinnamon (just a little) would also work well in bringing out different flavours. Last night I fancied some spice, however, so flaked, dried chillies it was.

Now for the fun (or digusting, depending on your viewpoint) bit: get your hands in the bowl and mix all the ingredients together! I divided my mixture in half and then set about patting it into some round, flat burger shapes, making sure I used every last scrap of mince.

Once I was happy with my burger shapes, I heated a non-stick pan and carefully placed them in, adding just a tiny drop of olive oil to ensure that there was no charring. I then gently fried the burgers, turning them periodically until they were cooked right through. Because of the density, this took around 20 minutes. It helps to stand by with a fish slice in the early stages, just to prod things back into shape if any cracks appear. After ten minutes or so of cooking, however, they seem to hold themselves together without any help. While they’re finishing cooking, slice and butter some rolls, and have them to hand. Pop your burgers in, and garnish with whatever you like. I added a mixture of mustard and mayonnaise to the top, some sliced tomato, a little cheese and a small handful of rocket. Delicious, and perfect for some goal scoring action!