New Zealand Spring Ground Lamb
3 Medium Poblanos
1 Red Onion
1 Yellow Onion
1 bunch of Arugula
1 Carrot, shaved
¼ cup chopped Green Cabbage
~14oz or 1 container of Dairy Free sour cream
1 tablespoon of White Truffle oil
1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard
Grapeseed & olive oil
1 tbs granulated garlic
1 pinch of salt, and 1 tablespoon of salt
Sesame brioche bun
2 Tablespoons Sweet Heat Rub of choice
Dash of liquid smoke or worcestershire sauce
1.5 tablespoons of Apple Cider Vinegar or acid of choice
RECIPE
- Prepare your Ground Lamb in a wide bowl or a half-size pan, and add salt and pepper to taste, and about 2 tablespoons of the Sweet Heat Rub of choice. (add a dash of liquid smoke or worcestershire sauce for an extra smoky kick). Mix, ensuring not to overwork the meat.
- Form the patties. This recipe calls for a thick, juicy patty. If you choose to go bigger or smaller, adjust your cooking time accordingly. With slightly wet hands, portion out 1/3 lb. of the meat, roll and form it while moving & pinching the meat to cover cracks. Using an open hand, gently press down on the ball to expand the meat, and gently use your thumb to imprint a dimple in the middle of the patty.
- Preparing the Arugula Slaw. Rough chop the cabbage, cilantro, arugula, and carrot shavings. Splash 1.5 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or acid of choice, with a pinch of salt and mix thoroughly. Set aside.
- Prepare your heating elements. Using a grill or live fire, pre-heat your elements to roughly 425-450°F, with a two-zone grilling for direct and indirect heat.
- Grilling the poblanos for sauce. Once your grill is hot, before you grill the patties, place the Poblano peppers directly over the flame and let them char & soften. Timing will depend on how hot your unit is, but roughly 5-8 minutes on each side. Let them cool, or put them in a container with plastic wrap to let “steam”, and come back to them for chopping & peeling for the sauce. (If you can multitask, have adequate grilling space, or have a grill rack extender, cook the poblanos and the patties at the same time, ensuring the flame can be utilized equally.)
- Making the poblano sauce. Take the cooled-off peppers and chop off the seed pod and stem, slit open, and remove seeds if desired. With the slit open poblano, using your hands or a butter knife, gently scrape off any charred skin. You can remove the rest of the skin but it’s not mandatory. Give them a rough chop into thirds to help your food processor. Place the peppers in the processor with the sour cream, garlic, a pinch of pepper, and a tablespoon of water, and let it process on chop mode. Add in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a teaspoon of salt, and continue processing; use puree mode if you have it. Let it go until you have a smooth (enough) sauce. For a thinner consistency, add small amounts of water until the desired consistency is reached. For thicker, add more sour cream. Set aside for the burger.
- Peel and crosswise cut the red onion into 5/16 of an inch thickness (or just a little more than half an inch) into rings, and place in the middle of direct/indirect heat. Take off once charred & softened, but not translucent and flimsy. Keep a slight crunch.
- Grilling the burgers. Over a high heat grill, place all patties over the direct flame. Be careful for flare-ups that occur from the drippings. Let the flame kiss the meat, and cook each side for about 5 minutes, 10 minutes total. Flip only once, and on the final flip, raise the grates or transfer to the indirect heat side for its final minutes. With a thermometer, cook until desired doneness or roughly 150°F internal temperature. Take off all food from grill.
- Truffle aioli & Buns. While your meat is resting for a few minutes, in a small bowl, quickly mix 1 tablespoon of white truffle oil into 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard into 8 oz of egg-less mayo, 1 finely minced garlic clove, a pinch of black pepper, then mix. Spread the aioli onto the insides of each bun, and aioli-face down on the indirect heat side of the grill (if there’s no more flame, placing on direct heat would suffice. Let heat until desired doneness.
- Plate & serve! Grab your buns, put the slaw first, then the patty, a spoonful of poblano sauce, and the desired amount of onion rings. Enjoy!
