One Kitchen, Many Cultures

Meat & Poultry

Juicy Caribbean Lamb Burger.

When one think Caribbean Culinary Culture, burgers DON’T usually come to mind .. immediately. However, that is changing rapidly as more and more street food vendors are following on the footsteps of popular North American fast food outlets which now populate the Caribbean horizon. These are not ‘fast food’ but good street food. Seasoned, grilled over local wood (coals) fire and topped with an assortment of condiments. Including a variety of HOT pepper and garlic sauces. That said.. lamb burgers are not that common yet.

You’ll Need…

2 lbs ground lamb
3/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon sea salt (divided)
1-2 lemons (divided)
1 cup yogurt (plain)
1-2 tablespoon honey
1 bird’s eye pepper
1/2 cup goats cheese
2 cloves garlic
1 shallot

Note! Keep the seeds of the bird’s eye pepper if you want the sauce to have a bit of a kick. If you cannot source the bird’s eye pepper, use any you like or can source (in the amount that you can handle). I found the ground lamb (New Zealand) in the freezer section of my grocery store as it’s not easily sourced. Beef, Chicken, Pork or Turkey will work just as well.

Whisk the olive oil, Green Seasoning , juice of 1 1/2 lemons, black pepper and 3/4 tablespoon salt in a bowl, then pour 4 tablespoon of it over the thawed ground lamb. Mix.. BUT try to NOT over work in doing so.

Divide the seasoned lamb into 6 balls and shape into burgers onto parchment paper (on a baking tray). For best results I’d recommending chilling them as they will hold their shape better once we get on the grill. You can also pan fry or broil these in your oven.

Let’s quickly make the sauce for the topping so it can chill in the fridge while we grill the burgers shortly. In a blender (I used my lil magic bullet) put the yogurt, juice of 1 lemon, the remaining salt, bird’s eye pepper, honey, garlic, shallot and goat cheese and blend until smooth. You can give the garlic, bird’s eye and shallot a rough chop to make it easier to puree. Place in a bowl, cover with cling wrap and chill.

It’s now time to grill.. you may use a propane grill, but the flavor from a charcoal grill will excite your taste buds. Clean your grill and spray some cooking spray (or brush on some veg oil) to prevent any sticking. Place the burgers directly over the heat source. Brush on some of the remaining seasoned oil on each burger and place the lid over the grill.

I had a 400 F + heat, so 2-3 minutes later I flipped them, brushed on more of the seasoned oil and lid back on for another 1-2 minutes.

I flipped them again, gave another layer of the seasoned oil and 30 seconds later I removed them off the grill. Lamb (most burgers) is easy to over-cook and go very dry. So timing is important, plus by basting them with the seasoned oil, you’ll add back moisture to them as they grill.

Luckily I had just visited my friend Richard who gave me crispy lettuce from his garden so with a tablespoon of the sauce we made earlier… I was in burger bliss. Juicy, creamy and with a slight kick from the bird’s eye pepper. That addition of the goat’s cheese in the sauce, complimented the lamb beautifully.

Gluten Free Meat & Poultry

The Ultimate Jerk Burger.

Jamaican Jerk Burger (14)

Last weekend I was asked “what’s your specialty?” in reference to what I cook and without hesitation I said it’s not so much a dish or category of food, but technique. As we continue July’s Month Of Grilling, I’m sure you can tell that I quite enjoy working with the raw heat of the grill. The essence of the fire changes the overall dish in such a manner that’s almost impossible to duplicate on a stove or oven. While we’re not using pimento wood to give the burgers that unique “Jamaican Jerk” depth, I assure you that you’ll be amazed by what a simple jerk marinade can do to basic ground beef.

If you follow me on twitter, the ‘I just had the best burger” tweet was this!

You’ll Need…

1 lb ground beef
3 small scallions
1 scotch bonnet pepper
1 lemon (juice + zest)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1/3 teaspoon ground allspice
1/3 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/3 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/5 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 sprigs thyme
1 tablespoon brown sugar

1/2 Pineapple sliced.

NOTE: If doing these jerk burgers gluten free, do pay close attention to the list of ingredients… especially the Soy Sauce to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Jamaican Jerk Burger (1)

Grate the ginger and finely chop the thyme, scallions and scotch bonnet pepper. Be mindful that you can use less of that scotch bonnet pepper if you’re concerned about the raw heat. While jerk is supposed to be spicy, you can also remove the seeds and white membrane surrounding the seeds to help control that heat. BE sure to wash your hands with soap and water after handling such hot peppers.

Jamaican Jerk Burger (2)

Add all the ingredients in a bowl (except the ground beef) and give it a good mix to combine. You may wonder if you can puree this in a blender or food processor, but I prefer to have it chopped instead, so you gets hits of flavor with each bite.

Jamaican Jerk Burger (3)

Reserve a 1/4 of the marinade and pour the rest over the ground beef and mix well. Allow this to marinate for about 15 minutes before making the individual beef patties (makes 4 burgers). Form the burgers and place in the fridge to firm up a bit so they don’t fall apart on the grill. I do NOT use eggs or bread crumbs in my burgers.

Jamaican Jerk Burger (4)

Jamaican Jerk Burger (5)

Jamaican Jerk Burger (6)

As they firm up in the fridge, peel and slice your pineapple and marinate with the marinade we reserved.

Jamaican Jerk Burger (7)

Jamaican Jerk Burger (8)

All you have to do now is brush your HOT grill with veg oil (so the burgers don’t stick) and grill as you’d normally grill your burgers. I placed them over direct heat and had the pineapple slices gently warm through away from the direct heat. BTW, in the image below you’ll notice that I poured the marinade from the pineapple slices over the burgers so it wouldn’t waste.

Jamaican Jerk Burger (9)

Jamaican Jerk Burger (10)

I grilled the burgers for about 10-15 minutes, flipping them occasionally. After I moved the burgers, I placed the pineapple slices over the direct heat for about -3-5 minutes to help get the sugars out.

Jamaican Jerk Burger (11)

Jamaican Jerk Burger (12)

Jamaican Jerk Burger (13)

That natural smoke from the charcoal fire added some of the elements the pimento wood would bring to the jerk game, but you can certainly grill these on a propane grill with much success. The same cane be said for cooking these off indoors in a frying pan or indoor grill plate. The bold flavors from the spices and herbs will be enough to elevate these burgers no matter where or how they are cooked.

Back to what’s my specialty.. I don’t specialize in BBQ or grilling, but it brings me the most joy. BUT.. I hate that smoke (and sort of greasy feeling) on my face though!