This recipe is from Hot Fat by Patrick Hanlon and Russell Alford
Ingredients
Born in the 1950s, the spice burger fast became a Dublin chipper classic that is now available in many parts of the east of Ireland and has become a frequent addition to lunchtime tables and dinner plates for the last few generations.
We have such vivid, fond memories of this deep-fried delicacy that's heavily herbed and spiced with its meat-meets-breadcrumb bouncy texture and hockey puck heft. Name aside, this bears no sibling synchronicity with a 'spice bag’, another staple across Ireland’s Chinese takeaways which takes the form of spiced crispy chicken and chips.
A note on the equipment: the food processor is your friend here – in fact, it’s essential to achieve the correct texture.
Makes 4
- sunflower or vegetable oil, for deep-frying
- 350g beef mince
- 1 small white onion, peeled and roughly chopped
- 60g fresh breadcrumbs
- 1.5 tbsp Herbes de Provence or dried mixed herbs
- 2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1.5 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1.5 tsp ground white pepper
- drizzle of olive oil
- 30g plain flour
- 1 egg, beaten
- 50g dried breadcrumbs
To serve
- flaky sea salt & malt vinegar
Method
1. Heat the oil in your deep-fryer to 170°C.
2. Place the beef mince and onion in a food processor and continuously pulse until choppily combined. Add the fresh breadcrumbs, Herbes de Provence or dried mixed herbs, salt, cayenne and white pepper and continue to pulse until everything is evenly incorporated. With the motor running, drizzle in a little olive oil just until the mixture forms into a ball, then stop.
3. Remove from the food processor and form into a flat round, akin to making a traditional Irish soda bread, and eyeball it into four equal quadrants (roughly 120g each). Shape into neat hockey puck shapes about 4cm thick that fit cosily in the palm of your hand.
4. Prepare your pané station with three separate wide, shallow dishes: one for the flour (stir through a little seasoning), another for the beaten egg and the third for the dried breadcrumbs. Cover each burger with flour on all sides, shaking off any excess, then submerge into the beaten egg before covering entirely in an even layer of dried breadcrumbs.
5. Working in batches if necessary, fry the burgers in the hot oil for 5 minutes, flipping halfway through, especially if they peek over the oil line. Place on a wire rack set over a baking tray lined with kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil. Adorn with a final seasoning of flaky sea salt and chip shop (malt) vinegar.
This recipe is from Hot Fat by Patrick Hanlon and Russell Alford (@gastrogays, gastrogays.com), the second in the award-winning Blasta Books series of little cookbooks with big personalities. Available in all leading bookshops and a wide range of independent stockists around Ireland or order directly from blastabooks.com (€17).
