BBQ season is upon us, and while classics like hamburgers, sausages and chicken drumsticks always go over well with a crowd, today we're upping the ante for your next cookout. These Greek-inspired lamb burgers are perfectly charred on the outside, tender on the inside and stuffed with creamy feta cheese. If you're not quite ready to fire up the grill yet, we'll show you how to make them on a griddle too. Serve them on lightly toasted brioche with baby spinach and crunchy red onion. Then top it all off with some homemade tzatziki, which can be made ahead of time. Keep the tzatziki in the fridge until you're ready to serve. Just make sure you make enough, because your guests will be coming back for seconds and maybe even thirds.
Ingredients:
Makes 4 burgers
Tzatziki:
— ½ of a large cucumber, peeled, sliced in half lengthways and deseeded
— 1 cup full-fat Greek yogurt
— 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
— 1 teaspoon dried dill (or 1 tbsp chopped fresh dill)
— 1 small clove of garlic, peeled and minced
— ½ teaspoon sugar
— pinch of salt
Lamb Burgers:
— 5 ounces crumbled feta
— 1 heaped tablespoon chopped parsley
— 1 pound lamb mince
— 1 red onion — slice a few rings for topping off your burgers, finely chop the rest
— 2 heaped tablespoons panko breadcrumbs
— 1 egg
— 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
— ½ teaspoon cumin
— ½ tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
— 1 ½ tablespoon olive oil
— pinch of salt and pepper
To Serve:
— 4 burger rolls
— large handful of baby spinach
— reserved onions rings (from above)
Directions:
1. To make the tzatziki, coarsely grate your cucumber. Take the grated cucumber in clean hands, and squeeze out the juice into a bowl or over the sink.
2. Place the cucumber in a medium bowl. Mix in the remaining tzatziki ingredients. Add in more sugar and/or salt to taste. Cover and place in the fridge until it's time to serve.
3. For the lamb burgers, mix feta and chopped parsley in a small bowl and set aside. Place the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and combine using your hands. Don't over-mix, as this will make the burgers less tender.
4. Split into 4 equal portions and roll each portion into a ball. Use your thumb to make a large hole in the center of each ball.
5. Stuff the hole with a heaped tablespoon of the feta/parsley mix.
6. Seal the hole with your hands.
7. Gently pat the burger into a patty. Repeat with the remaining 3 burgers.
8. Grill each patty for 7-8 minutes, turning once during cooking. If cooking on a griddle, brush olive oil on the hot griddle and onto your burgers. Cook on medium-high for 8-10 minutes, turning once.
9. Let the patties rest for a minute or two. Serve on warm burger rolls with tzatziki, baby spinach and red onion.
Did you run out of ideas for your next summer barbecue? Check out our list of BBQ food and recipes!This article has been updated from an original post in May 2015.
