Barbecue Red-Bean Burger with smoky corn relish and chimichurri peppers

• 150g cooked red kidney beans (canned are fine)
• 650g well trimmed, coarsely minced beef
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 60ml English Style Barbecue Sauce
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Vegetable or sunflower oil for cooking
• 4 wooden skewers

Toppings:

• 4  burger buns, split
• Chimichurri Peppers
• Smoky Corn Relish
• Spicy Red-Chili Onion Rings

To Make:

1. Place the beans in a bowl and crush them with a fork.

2. Add the remaining ingredients, except the oil, and work together to form a paste; do not overwork. Chill for 1 hour in the refrigerator.

3. Divide the mix into 4 evenly sized burgers and brush liberally with the oil on both sides.

4. Heat a chargrill or pan grill until hot, add the burgers and cook for 4-5 minutes until cooked.

5. Toast the buns. Place the Chimichurri Peppers on the base buns, top each with a burger and add a dollop of  Smoky Corn Relish on top. Close with the top of the buns.

6. Plunge a wooden skewer down through the center of each burger, place the onion rings draped over the sticks and serve.

English Style Barbecue Sauce

• 25g lard or 25ml vegetable oil
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tsp paprika
• 200ml Simple Tomato Ketchup
• 150ml tomato juice
• 45ml Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tsp black treacle*
• 1 tbsp cider or white wine vinegar
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp hot pepper sauce

To Make:

1. Heat the lard or oil in a pan and, when hot, add the onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes until soft and tender.

2. Add the paprika and cook for a further 2 minutes.

3. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil; reduce the heat and cook for 30 minutes until reduced and thickened in consistency.

4. remove and allow to cool ready for use.


* Treacle is any uncrystallised syrup made during the refining of sugar. The most common forms of treacle are golden syrup, a pale variety, and a darker variety known as black treacle. Black treacle, or molasses, has a distinctively strong, slightly bitter flavor, and a richer colour than golden syrup. Golden syrup treacle is a common sweetener and condiment in British cookery, found in such dishes as treacle tart and treacle sponge pudding.