Better Than Eating Out

'Better than eating out'. That's the compliment my hubby gave the burgers we made the other day!  Having lived in the States where there are burgers on the menu EVERYWHERE, that really was saying something! They were delicious, I have to admit ... and all thanks to Jamie Oliver! 

We've made burgers before but more as a treat than out of necessity, as alternatives were readily available. Here in Dodoma, it is possible in a couple of places to get a burger but they are not worth the few Tanzanian shillings you pay for them. So, homemade (as with so many other things!) really is the only option!

Another quick trawl of the internet and we found a recipe, that when our container finally gets here, will definitely be included in my recipe box! We had to make a few Dodoma-friendly tweaks and only added toppings that are available, including our homemade caramalised onions, then served them in Maria's delicious rolls. The result being ... that they were better than restaurant burgers (and I don't mean McDonalds!), we'll definitely be having them again and we can thoroughly recommend them!

It's such an easy, simple recipe that can be adapted and flavoured according to your own preferences. I will just include the base recipe here ... experiment at will! The mince beef we use isn't the greatest and they're still yummy. Once our container eventually gets here, we'll be grinding our own meat, so I can't wait to see how they turn out then!!

• 500g minced beef
• 12 cream crackers
• 1/2-1 tsp dried parsley
• 1 egg
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• olive oil

1. Wrap the crackers in a tea towel and smash until they are fine
2. Add all the ingredients (except the olive oil) in a bowl, scrunch and mix everything up well
3. Divide into 6 and pat and mould into a roundish shape about 2cm thick
4. Drizzle burgers with olive oil and put on a plate, cover and place in fridge, to firm them up until needed
5. Place on baking tray in the oven for about 20 mins, turning halfway through (add cheese then if you want it!) ... Jamie grills but we found baking was a great alternative and kept them juicy!