Montenegrin Burger

Posted on September 5, 2024 by linda

Lamb Burger with Prosciutto, Mozzarella, and Pickled Root Veggies

My great grandparents were Croatian, so I was very excited to embark on developing a Montenegro recipe. Grammy was an amazing cook, so the food of the region holds a special place in my heart. For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, Montenegro is a small country on the Balkan Peninsula.

Courtesy of CIA World Factbook

It is bordered by Bosnia Herzegovina, Serbia, Albania, Kosovo, Croatia, and the Adriatic Sea. The coastline of Montenegro was ranked by the National Graphic Traveler among “one of the 50 Places of a Lifetime”. It is a popular tourist destination for people from the region and from Russia. If you like gorgeous beaches and historic sites, add Montenegro to your list for vacation getaways.

The name Montenegro dates back to the 13th century – Crna Gora in Montenegrin, it literally means “Black Mountain” (after the evergreen covered Mount Lovcen). There’s a rich history of kingdoms and warlords, but I’ll save the details of ancient history and skip forward to the 20th century. In 1929 Montenegro was absorbed into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. We’ve covered the dissolution of the Kingdom in previous posts, so fast forward again to 2006 when Montenegro achieved full independence. A candidate for EU membership since 2010 and a member of NATO since 2017, Montenegro is an upper middle income country with a service based economy and concentration of population near the coast.

Milica Buha, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

What does one eat as you’re sitting sea side and enjoy the gorgeous Mediterranean air? Montenegrins love fresh salads made from fresh vegetables that are easily grown in the region, but what they really love is meat. There’s a Montenegrin saying that I came across several times in my research, “meat is the best salad”. Beef, lamb, chicken, pork, prosciutto, and seafood near the coast – dinner is a time for meat – perfect for a burger blog!

Brav u Mlijeku (Lamb in Milk), is a classic dish that I decided to use as my inspiration for this burger. It’s basically lamb and root vegetables braised in milk until you get a fabulous stew. A perfect dish for a cool autumn evening (those are coming soon!).

With a love of meat comes a love of cheese and Montenegrins are no exception. Kolansinski sir is one of the more popular cheeses, it’s similar to fresh mozzarella. So great, we have a lamb burger with fresh mozzarella, add an Ajvar sauce (roasted eggplant and red pepper base), some pickled fresh root veggies, a bit of prosciutto and life is good!

The smokiness of the Ajvar sauce compliments the gaminess of the lamb and the creamy cheese pulls it all together. Pickled veggies provide a little crunch and range that breaks up the richness of the burger and keeps it from being too heavy. If I weren’t allergic to beer, I’d serve this with a nice hefeweizen, but since I am allergic to beer, we had the burger with a crisp Pinot Gris from Alsace. Because it’s summer and the tomatoes are in season, I recommend throwing some tomatoes and cucumbers in a bowl with fresh herbs, a vinaigrette and perhaps a little feta as a side dish.

If you like this burger, try the Bosnia Herzegovina sliders. They are delicious too!

©Copyright 2024 Linda Monach

Montenegro Burger

Lamb Burger with Prosciutto, Ajvar, and Mozzarella. Smokey, meaty and delicious!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine European, Montenegrin
Servings 4 burgers

Ingredients
  

Pickled Root Vegetables

  • 1/3 Fennel Bulb Sliced Thin (I use a mandoline)
  • 1/2 Carrot Sliced Thing (I use a mandoline)
  • 1 Small Sprig Fresh Rosemary
  • 3/4 cup White Wine Vinegar

Ajvar Sauce

  • 1 Small Eggplant
  • 1 Red Pepper
  • 2 Garlic Cloves
  • 1/2 teas Fresh Rosemary (chopped)
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

Montenegro Burger

  • 4 Hamburger Buns
  • 1 lb Ground Lamb
  • 1 teas Kosher Salt
  • 1 teas Smoked Paprika
  • Olive Oil
  • 4 ounces Fresh Mozzarella (sliced)

Instructions
 

Pickled Root Vegetables

  • Place the sliced vegetable and rosemary in a glass bowl and cover with white wine vinegar. Let sit at room temperature while you prepare the rest of the burger.
  • Drain excess vinegar and discard rosemary sprig.

Ajvar Sauce

  • Wrap whole eggplant in aluminum foil. Place directly on hot coals of a BBQ and add wood for extra smokiness. Alternatively, you can place in 425 degrees oven and roast that way. Roast the eggplant until it is soft and collapses.
  • Roast the red pepper over the open flame of gas stove. The skin will blister and turn black. Make sure all of the skin is blistered. Place warm pepper in a glass bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the pepper sit for about 10 minutes, then use a sharp knife and peel the skin off of the pepper. Scoop out the seeds and cut off the stem and discard.
  • Place eggplant, garlic, and rosemary in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Chop the pepper into chunks then add those to food processor and pulse until peppers are mixed in (small chunks are fine).
  • Salt & pepper to taste.

Montenegro Burger

  • Grill buns in oil or butter until lightly golden.
  • Divide the ground lamb into four portions and form patties. Combine the salt and smoked paprika and sprinkle evenly on all four patties.
  • Cook the lamb patties in olive oil over medium high heat until desired temperature. Add mozzarella slices to the burgers and cover the pan for a minute or so until cheese is melted. Place the patties on the grilled buns and top with Ajvar and Pickled Root Vegetables.
Keyword Lamb, Meat, Meat Lovers
Posted in burger recipes, european recipes, lamb burgers | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Mongolian Burger

Posted on November 17, 2023 by linda

Bison Burger with Onions and Mushrooms on Fried Flatbread

Courtesy CIA World Factbook

For most of us, Mongolia brings to mind nomadic tribes and of course, the great TEMÜÜJIN – (Genghis Khan). Mongolia’s know history goes back to the 4th century BC, even the name Mongol dates back to at least the 11th century BC. Genghis Khan became the ruler of all Mongols in the early 1200s. His rule began the age of conquest for Mongols – at the height of the empire, Genghis’s relatives reigned over Eastern Europe, the Middle East and China. The empire fell apart in the 14th century and in the 17th century, Mongolia fell under the rule of the Manchus of the Chinese Qing Dynasty.

After the collapse of the Manchu dynasty, Mongolia allied with the Soviet Union and declared independence in 1911. They were a Soviet satellite state until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989. By 1991 Mongolia had transitioned to an independent democracy with a free market economy. Today Mongolia still has close cultural and political ties with Russia and strong economic ties to China.

T.Voekler, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Historically, Mongols have been nomadic people and even today 25-30% of the population live outside the cities in a relatively nomadic fashion. Mongolia is the one of the least densely populated countries in the world with only 2 people per sq/km, so the nomadic groups have lots of land to herd animals. This animal herding tradition is so important to the food culture of Mongolia. The traditional Mongolian diet very meat and dairy focused. With tribes on the move, the primary cooking techniques are grilling, boiling and steaming.

I’ve got to admit, as I started reading about the food traditions, I became alarmed. First, Mongolian food is centered around the “5 snouts” – horse, yaks, camels, goats, and sheep. Yes, I said horses. Aaruul is a favorite snack – its cheese curds dried out until they are hard as a rock. There’s, of course, lots of dried meat. Then there’s the traditional dish that is cooked inside the carcass of a goat, or maybe it was a sheep, I can’t remember.

It’s been a while since I mentioned my upbringing, but I grew up in the midwest – growing up we ate very basic food, meat and potatoes. My father didn’t like “weird” food or spicy food. His favorite dish is a plain hamburger with sweet relish and ketchup, no cheese. He was the inspiration for this journey. Obviously, I’ve moved on from my roots quite a bit, but I’m not really at the horse meat stage yet – pretty sure I won’t ever be. Also, horse, yak, and camel are not readily available in the Boston area.

He-ba-mue, CC BY-SA 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons

And even when you get past the meat question, there’s the “what else” question. The climate is largely desert and, according to the CIA Worldfactbook, 0% of the land is permanent crops (while 72% is permanent pasture land). So vegetables are extremely scarce in traditional cooking, as are herbs and spices. Cheese and milk based products are common, but horse, camel, and yak are the primary dairy sources and those flavors are a bit different than the cow centric dairy we typically consume in the US. Flatbreads and dumplings are the main carb source in traditional cooking because they can be made and cooked in camp like settings.

So yes, modern Mongolian cuisine has more variety. The Soviets brought baked, leavened bread to the country and today, bakeries are common in the urban areas. And vegetables and spices are available today, but they are still not part of authentic Mongolian culinary traditions – and they aren’t specific to Mongolia. Since I’m trying to bring the flavors that are traditional to life in burger form, I was a bit stuck, and nervous, and pretty sure whatever I did was not going to be particularly yummy. But, when in doubt, stick to your guns and see what happens.

First I checked with Google, “what does yak taste like?” – no way I was going near horse, I’ve heard camel is vile, goat is very tough and usually braised so didn’t seem a good choice for burger, and sheep seemed like a cop out. Luckily, according to Google, yak tastes most like bison or venison (but venison is a little gamier). I’ve never had a bison burger, but now seemed like a good time to try something new. Luckily our local Whole Foods carries ground bison, so meat choice, done.

I decided not to go down the cheese route and instead go with yogurt – Whole Foods to the rescue again! They had a sheep’s milk yogurt! Sheep’s milk yogurt is less viscous than traditional American yogurt, but similarly flavored with just a hint of goat cheese-like flavor. If you can’t find it, you can use regular yogurt (not Greek yogurt which is much sharper).

Onions grow wild in Mongolia and are used frequently in Mongolian cooking, so yay, we have onions. Mushrooms can also be found in the forests, so some yummy mushrooms add a nice touch. And for the bread, I made a homemade flatbread a lot like naan – store bought naan would definitely work.

But now the real challenge. Traditional Mongolian cooking doesn’t use olive or even vegetable oil (makes sense), instead food is cooked in animal fat. Sheep fat is the most mentioned that I saw. I don’t have a handy supply of sheep fat, or yak fat, or any animal fat (ok, I have a little bit of bacon fat in the freezer, but not enough to cook burgers, bread, onions and mushrooms. Fortunately Whole Foods had a solution. Frozen duck fat. Duck isn’t really traditional, but at this point, I had to make some compromise.

Cooking bread, meat, onions and mushrooms in animal fat and toping it with yogurt, filled me with dread. Fat upon fat, heavy upon heavy, no spices, no herbs, it just sounded like a lot. But when in doubt, stick to your guns. So, I mixed the bread, fried it in duck fat. Sliced the onions, fried them in duck fat. Sliced the mushrooms, fried them in duck fat. Made some bison patties and fried them in duck fat. My house stank of duck fat (I know, it could be worse).

My husband and I were dubious, but we dove in. And lo and behold, this burger was absolutely delicious! Yes, it was very meaty, and fatty, but in such a yummy way. Bison tastes a lot like beef but has more meaty flavor – it’s like beef concentrate. The bread just absorbed the duck flavor and the onions and mushrooms gave a sweet umami accent to the dish. The yogurt provided a sweet and slightly tart note that finished the dish perfectly. Maybe it was our low expectations, but this burger really sings, and somehow didn’t feel overly heavy. It is a celebration of meat to be sure, but one we enjoyed thoroughly. We served it with a big American Zinfandel – it is not a dish for a subtle wine.

If you like this burger, you will almost definitely like the Monegasque Burger. They are both richly flavored and meaty burgers.

©Copyright 2023 Linda Monach

Mongolian Burger

Bison burger on fried flatbread with onions, mushrooms and yogurt. This burger is richly flavored with lots of meaty, umami notes.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian, Mongolian
Servings 4 burgers

Ingredients
  

Mongolian Flatbread

  • 1 1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
  • 1 Cup Boiling Water
  • 4 Tbsp Chopped Scallions white and light green parts
  • 2 Tbsp Duck Fat

Fried Onions & Mushrooms

  • 2 Tbsp Duck Fat
  • 1 Large Onion Sliced Thinly
  • 8 Ounces Cremini Mushrooms Sliced Thinly

Mongolian Burger

  • 1 Pound Ground Bison venison or beef could be used as substitute
  • Kosher Salt
  • Mongolian Flatbread recipe above
  • Fried Onions & Mushrooms recipe above
  • 4 Tbsp Sheep Yogurt (Plain) plain yogurt (not Greek) could be used as substitute
  • 4 teas Chopped Scallions optional garnish

Instructions
 

Mongolian Flatbread

  • Put the flour in a large bowl and add half the water. Mix well. Continue to add water until a dough sticks together. Let the dough sit for 20 minutes. Divide the dough into two balls. Divide the two balls in two again (so you have four total) then add scallions to each ball. Flatten the balls into disks.
  • Heat the duck fat in a cast iron skillet until shimmering. Add the disks to the hot oil and fry until golden, then turn and brown the other side. When bread is done, place the bread on wire rack until you're ready to use.

Fried Onions & Mushrooms

  • Heat 1 Tablespoon of the duck fat over medium high heat until shimmering. Add the onions and brown until soft (turn down the heat if they start browning too fast). Remove the onions and add the last Tablespoon of duck fat. Turn the heat up again to medium high. Add the sliced mushrooms and toss until fat is absorbed. Let the mushrooms cook tossing occasionally until the liquid is released again and then cook until liquid evaporates and mushrooms brown. Remove from heat and keep in separate bowl from onions for serving.

Mongolian Burger

  • Form four patties from the ground bison and salt generously on each side.
  • Heat duck fat over medium heat in a cast iron skillet and add the patties. Brown each side and cook to desired temperature. Bison is a little redder than beef, we enjoyed it at same temperature as beef burgers (medium well for us).
  • Put a generous scoop of fried onions on each flatbread disk. Add the burger patties, then a scoop of fried mushrooms. Spoon yogurt over the mushrooms and sprinkle chopped scallions over the top (if desired).
Keyword Asian, Bison, Flatbread, Meat, Meat Lovers, Mongolia
Posted in asian recipes, bison burgers, burger recipes | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Monegasque Burger

Posted on October 11, 2023 by linda

Lamb Burger with Caramelized Onions, Herbed Mayonnaise, and Goat Cheese on Herbed Fougasse

Courtesy CIA World Factbook

Next stop is the Principality of Monaco. This tiny country is the smallest in the UN. The total area of Monaco is 2 km2 – that’s .77 miles2 – to give you a sense of how small that is, the Vegas strip is 4.2 miles2, so you could fit approximately 5.5 Monacos on the Vegas strip. Fortunately for the 31, 597 Monegasque people, this tiny piece of land is located at the southern end of France on the Mediterranean Sea. Location, location, location!

If I had a choice of places to be born and raised, Monaco is pretty high on my list. Importantly, I’d like to be born to a Monegasque man so that I could be a citizen of Monaco. Monegasque people enjoy the longest life expectancy in the world 89.6 years. The real GDP per capita is the second highest in the world, which is good, because in such a tiny place, real estate is extremely expensive. Fortunately (pun intended), there is zero poverty in Monaco.

Tobi 87, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

I had a sense of the wealth and size of the country before I started, but still the details are impressive. My question was, how the heck did this small city become a country? Well, it started as a Genoese fortress built in 1215. Then the Grimaldi family tried to seize control in 1297, but weren’t fully successful at gaining permanent control until 1419. Since that time the Grimaldis have ruled Monaco. Today Prince Albert II is the ruling monarch of this constitutional monarchy.

As an old movie buff, I can’t really do this article without talking (briefly, I promise) about Princess Grace. Grace Kelly was a beautiful American actress in the 1950s. When Cary Grant was asked who his favorite co-star was, he said “Well, with all due respect to dear Ingrid Bergman, I much preferred Grace. She had serenity.” Grace was in the Riviera in May of 1955 and was invited to meet Prince Rainier III of Monaco. She went to the palace, they met, corresponded and announced their engagement in January 1956. Their wedding was in April 1956 and the fairy tale created a princess out of an American girl. My favorite part of the story is that during the filming of High Society, Grace sported her actual engagement ring from Prince Rainier rather than use one of the prop rings that were offered to her. There’s a wonderful scene in the moving where she lounges and admires her ring.

kajikawa, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Ok, that’s enough about Princess Grace, back to the country. Monaco is famous for its casinos and is one of the premier luxury tourism destinations in the world. Casinos on cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, can it get any better? As a matter of fact, it can. Located adjacent to Provence and close to Northern Italy, food is an important facet of the hospitality experience in Monaco. Five star dining is a must for the luxury traveller.

As a coastal country, all kinds of seafood are central to Monegasque cuisine. Bouillabaisse is a staple that can be found in the finest restaurants and in most every home. Fresh ingredients are important to the cuisine, lemons, olives, herbs, saffron, fresh cheese and of course wine are common ingredients. All of the finest ingredients from Provence and Northern Italy are available and incorporated into the dishes of Monaco.

Clear Flour Bread, Brookline, MA

With so much to choose from, how to decide what to do for a burger? Despite the importance of seafood, we’ve just done too much seafood lately, so I chose lamb which is one of the more common meats enjoyed by Monegasques. There is a bread that’s considered a Monegasque staple, it’s called Fougasse. Fougasse is, by all accounts, similar to focaccia, but is made in a classic leaf shape. I wanted to include this bread (cause I love focaccia), so I looked for a local bakery. Luckily I live in a town with, Clear Flour Bread, a fantastic Italian bakery that carries both focaccia and fougasse – but I didn’t know that at first.

So, I actually MADE MY OWN fougasse. It’s been a while, but just to remind y’all, I hate baking. Especially when it involves yeast. It never works right, never tastes right, never the right texture. I used Paul Hollywood’s recipe, and it turned out absolutely delicious. And, because I made it myself, I was able to eliminate the holes that are traditional, which made it a better bread for a burger bun. If you don’t want to try baking, you can just buy an herbed focaccia bread and it will work well.

Bread settled, now to tackle the toppings. Caramelized onions seemed an obvious choice, using a little wine to flavor them and cooking low and slow until the sweet goodness came out. I added some Swiss chard because it’s an ingredient I saw in many Monegasque dishes, but once the onions cooked down, the flavor of the Swiss chard was lost. For an extra zing, I added red grapes to the onions in the last 20 minutes, this was critical as it added a brightness that balanced the richness of the onions and lamb.

The last touch was the cheese. I read somewhere that goat cheese was more common than cow’s cheese in Monaco, so I went with it. And, when it comes to goat cheese, my favorite is Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog (by the way, I am not sponsored by anyone, I pay for all of my ingredients and any links or specific brands I give you are because I love them, not because I’m being paid). Humboldt Fog is hard to describe, if you married a chèvre and a triple creme, you’d be close, but you’d need just a touch of cave ripened brie to get it perfect. If you have the chance try it, you will fall in love.

The final burger was divine. The herbs in the bread and mayonnaise sing and make you think of Provence. The cheese and lamb meld into a single creation of buttery umami yumminess, and the onion grape mixture lifts the entire burger and keeps it out of the “too heavy” category and firmly in “oh my God, I must have this again”. In fact, when I made the photo version the next day, I was tempted to devour it myself, but because love conquers all, I let my husband devour it instead – I did sneak one bite for “research” purposes 😉 Since I used a Sancerre in the onions, we finished it with the burger, but it would also pair well with an Alsace Pinot Gris or a California Pinot Noir.

If you like this burger, you might enjoy my Albanian Burger. It has some similar flavors with caramelized onions and lamb, but a more garlic forward flavor overall and the feta gives it a brininess that you don’t get from Humboldt Fog.

©Copyright 2023 Linda Monach

Monegasque Burger

A scrumptious lamb burger with herbed mayonnaise, caramelized onions, and goat cheese served on homemade fougasse (or focaccia).
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Homemade Fougasse Recipe 2 hours
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine French, Italian, Monacan, Monaco, Monegasque, Provence
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

Herbed Mayonnaise

  • 1 teas Fresh Rosemary (chopped fine)
  • 1 teas Fresh Sage (chopped fine)
  • 1 teas Fresh Thyme (chopped fine)
  • 1/2 cup Mayonnaise
  • 1/2 teas Lemon Zest
  • 1/4 teas Dried Oregano
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

Caramelized Onions

  • 1 Large Onion Sliced ~ 3 cups
  • 1 1/2 cup Swiss Chard (chopped) optional
  • 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • 3/4 cup White Wine (I used Sancerre)
  • 1 cup Seedless Red Grapes (quartered)
  • Salt to taste

Monegasque Burger

  • 4 Pieces of Focaccia (or homemade fougasse – see notes below)
  • Herbed Mayonnaise (recipe above)
  • Caramelized Onions (recipe above)
  • 1 1/4 lbs Ground Lamb
  • Salt & Pepper
  • 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • 4-8 oz Humboldt Fog or other Goat Cheese
  • Microgreens optional

Instructions
 

Herbed Mayonnaise

  • Combine the mayonnaise and the herbs. Salt & pepper to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Caramelized Onions

  • Heat the olive oil in a 13" non-stick skillet over medium heat until just warm. Add onions and Swiss chard (if using) and cook, stirring, until onions are beginning to soften (keep heat low enough so that onions don't brown)
  • Add wine and cover. Reduce heat once wine starts simmering. Cook over low heat stirring occasionally for about an hour until onions are soft and sweet and liquid is cooked off. Add the grapes and cook for 20-30 minutes until soft. Salt & pepper to taste. Onion mixture should be served warm.

Monegasque Burger

  • Cut the bread into four pieces that are burger sized. Slice the bread in half horizontally. Spread mayonnaise on the four bottom pieces. This will be your bottom bun.
  • Form four patties from the lamb. Liberally salt and pepper each patty. Heat the olive oil in a 13" non-stick pan until shimmering. Add the lamb and reduce heat to medium. Cook lamb until desire doneness (I like mine medium). Watch the heat as lamb takes a a bit longer than beef to get to same temp and you don't want to burn patties.
  • Add the cheese to the patties, cover and cook a minute more until cheese is soft (most goat cheeses won't melt in the same way that cow's milk cheese do, they just get soft).
  • Add a scoop of Caramelized Onions (be generous), to the four bottom buns. Place cooked patties on top of the onions. If you want to be fancy, add some micro greens. Top with the rest of the bread and serve.

Notes

For the bread I used Paul Hollywood’s recipe but just didn’t cut all the way through with the pizza cutter. https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/fresh_herb_fougasse_70351 
Here’s what it looked like
Keyword Focaccia, Fougasse, Goat Cheese, Lamb, Monaco
Posted in burger recipes, european recipes, lamb burgers | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Micronesian Burger

Posted on September 14, 2023 by linda

Soy & Ginger Marinated Fish Burger with Coconut Rice and Pineapple Salsa

Courtesy CIA World Factbook

And now we’re headed back to the islands. Specifically the Federated States of Micronesia. Not to be confused with Micronesia, the region that includes 2100 islands, the Federated States of Micronesia is comprised of 4 states and 607 islands. To make my life easier, just assume I mean Federated States of Micronesia whenever I say Micronesia going forward.

Micronesia is located in Oceana north of Australia and east of the Philippines. The four states of Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei & Yap are home to just over one hundred thousand citizens. The total land mass across the 607 islands is approximately equal to four times the size of Washington DC.

Courtesy of CIA World Factbook

Being a country of islands means that Micronesia enjoys over six thousand kilometers of coastline. And the coasts is where the majority of the population lives. Humans first settled the islands in the second millennium BC. Each of the states developed with its own unique cultural traditions and history.

Spanish and Portuguese explorers “discovered” the islands in the 1500s and the Spanish claimed the islands and exerted nominal control in the 1600s. Christian missionaries arrived in the 1800s, in particular to Chuuk & Kosrae. Christianity still plays an important role in Kosraean culture. In 1899 Spain sold the islands to Germany. In 1914, Japan seized the islands and built naval bases. After World War II, Micronesia came under US administration. In 1982, full independence was achieved with the signing of the Compact of Free Association. As part of that agreement, qualified citizens of Micronesia can work or study in the US without a visa and Micronesians can serve in the US Armed Forces.

There are too many stories about the states to tell in the small a space, and we have to get to the food, but here are a few tidbits before we move on. The Yap have a deep cultural connection to dance and the children learn dances that tell the history of their people. Chuck men carve matching “love sticks” as part of the ritual of choosing a mate. Pohnpei is home to the Nan Madol Ruins, a man-made city with ocean filled channels which once housed a thriving civilization. Kosrae is home to some of the healthiest coral reefs in the world.

Ok, now on to the food. Yes, they eat pork and chicken in Micronesia, but let’s be serious, fish is, and always has been, central to Micronesian cuisine. Fish is often consumed raw or ceviche, because of course, citrus is plentiful on the islands. Coconut is found in almost everything from sweet to savory. Yams, taro, breadfruit, pineapple – Micronesia is a cornucopia of wonderful produce.

So for our burger, I decided to start with a nice white fish. Because I live in New England and halibut is in season, and I love halibut, that’s what I used. Any flaky white fish would work for this dish. There is a dish called Chicken Micronesia that has a soy, ginger and pineapple marinade, so I took that idea and marinaded the fish with those flavors. The fish was so delicious on it’s own (before I made it into a fish cake), that I’ll definitely be making it again – just the right blend of salty, sweet, and spicy complimented the sweetness of the halibut perfectly. Because the marinade was so good, I used it to make a sauce to enhance the flavor of the cake.

I was intrigued by taro and wanted to try it for the starch, but I wasn’t sure it would be right for this dish, and I wasn’t sure what it would taste like. So I tried making a taro cake, but also wanted a back up plan. Since rice is a mainstay of Micronesia, it felt like a good idea to have a rice backup. Cooking rice with coconut milk instead of water results in a stickier rice with just a touch of sweet coconut flavor. It does take a little longer to cook and you have to watch it more closely, you may even need to add a little water as the liquid can be absorbed without the rice fully cooking, but it’s worth the effort, especially if your dish has strong salt or acid notes (like this burger). We tried both starches, and although we loved the fried taro root cake, it overpowered the fish and felt heavier than we wanted with the other ingredients, so for the final burger we have the coconut rice as our starch.

Lastly, pineapple salsa – obvious choice, and luckily the pineapple is great right now. Acidic with a touch of sweetness, what’s not to like? Overall the burger was light and fresh tasting, a true island experience. We cleaned our plates and my husband devoured the photo version that I made the next day, even my 13 year old daughter loved hers!

This is burger paired well with a light Pinot Grigio (a margarita would probably compliment it well if you prefer something more adventurous.

If you like this burger, you might enjoy my Fijian Burger. It has some of the same flavors with a curry overlay that works well with the tropical notes.

©Copyright 2023 Linda Monach

Micronesian Burger

Soy & Ginger marinated fish cake on coconut rice with pineapple salsa. A light tasty fork-and-knife burger with tropical flavors balanced by soy, ginger and a hint of spice.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Marinating Time 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian, Fish, Micronesian, Oceana, Pacific Islands
Servings 4 burgers

Ingredients
  

Pineapple Salsa

  • 1/2 cup White onion – chopped fine
  • 2 cups Fresh pineapple – chopped fine
  • 1 Tbsp Jalapeno – chopped fine
  • 1 Tbsp Cilantro – chopped

Soy & Ginger Marinated Fish

  • 1 Tbsp Grated fresh ginger
  • 1/3 cup Soy sauce
  • 1/3 cup Pineapple juice
  • 1/2 teas Sambal Oelek (chili paste)
  • 1 lb White fish – skin removed
  • 2 Tbsp Mayonnaise

Coconut Rice

  • 3/4 cup Long grained white rice
  • 14 ounces Coconut milk

Micronesian Burger

  • Cooked Fish
  • 1/4 cup Flour
  • 1/2 cup Panko
  • 1 Large egg (beaten)
  • Coconut oil
  • Coconut rice
  • Watercress (optional)
  • Pineapple salsa
  • Marinade sauce

Instructions
 

Pineapple Salsa

  • Try to chop the pineapple, onions, and jalapeños evenly (about 1/4"). Mix all ingredients and set aside.

Soy & Ginger Marinade

  • Combine first four ingredients to make marinade.
  • Cut fish into cubes and place in a zip lock bag with marinade. Let fish marinate for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
  • Preheat oven to 350℉. Place fish and marinade in an oven proof dish. Cook fish until cooked through (about 10 minutes).
  • Pour marinade into a saucepan and heat just to boiling, then remove and cool. Once marinade is cool, add mayonnaise and whisk to create sauce.

Coconut Rice

  • Place rice and coconut milk in a covered pot and heat to just boiling. Turn heat down immediately and simmer covered until rice is cooked through (about 20 minutes). Check rice at 10-15 minutes and add hot water if needed.

Micronesian Burger

  • Use a fork to break up the cooked fish in a mixing bowl. Add the flour and panko and mix well. Add the egg to the fish mixture and mix until combined. Form four patties from the mixture.
  • Spoon enough coconut oil in a non-stick pan to coat the bottom. Heat over medium high heat. Cook the fish patties until golden.
  • To plate – spoon coconut rice on each plate. Add watercress, then the cooked fish patties. Spoon a bit of the marinade sauce on top of the fish cake.
  • Top with pineapple salsa and serve!
Keyword Asian, Seafood, Swordfish, Tropical
Posted in australian and oceania recipes, burger recipes, fish burgers | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Mexican Burger

Posted on August 22, 2023 by linda

Burger with Roasted Tomato Salsa, Avocado, Mexican Crema, and Huitlacoche

Full disclosure, I’m a huge fan of Mexican food. I love it all, from the uber authentic food you can get in some neighborhoods in large cities in America, to the home-made menudo that an ex-boyfriend’s mom made for us, and even including all of the pseudo Mexican food we have in the US – yes, “Yo quiero Taco Bell!” So I was very excited to find our next stop on this alphabetical journey around the world is Mexico.

Courtesy CIA World Factbook

The history of Mexican food is the history of the people who have lived and ruled over this beautiful country. Let’s start around 10,000 BC – archeologists have found evidence of nomadic people inhabiting Mexico as far back as 10,000 BC. The Olmecs, circa 1500 BC, were the first complex civilization in Mexico. Evidence suggest that they enjoyed beans and corn as staples in their cuisine.

ProtoplasmaKid, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The rise of the Maya culture (circa 250 AD), brought larger cities and cultivated fields. Corn was the major crop along with beans, tomatoes and chilis. Most of the sources I found credit the Maya with the creation of the tortilla. Tortillas are still a huge part of Mexican food and the stereotypical Americanized version of Mexican food is basically a celebration of the tortilla in many forms.

The Aztecs brought a greater focus on chilis, particularly chipotle (smoke jalapeño), salt, and chocolate (note: chocolate use dates back to Olmecs). Then the Spanish came in and added sheep, cows, pigs, wheat, and dairy. Cheese, glorious cheese! Despite the desire of the Spanish to have their food dominate over indigenous flavors, the Mexican people just added the ingredients brought by the Spanish to their already rich culinary traditions. And always, at the core, corn, chilis, and beans.

In addition to the core, Mexico is also blessed with and abundance of indigenous and imported produce that are featured heavily the cuisine. Tomatoes are used in most dishes and avocados are loved across the country. Mexico produces almost 30% of the world’s avocados. Squash and Vanilla are also important staples. Traditional Mexican cuisine has such a rich history and complexity that it is included on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list (it was the only full cuisine I could find on the list).

With so much to choose from, how to make a burger that can live up to that kind of cultural gravitas? If we could represent France and Italy, we can do justice to Mexican cuisine (I hope). And don’t worry, we’re leaving Taco Bell at the mall.

Americans tend to think the only authentic dish in Mexican cuisine is molé. There are as many recipes for molé as there are families in Mexico, most include chocolate as the signature ingredient in this smokey savory sauce. The sauce also includes chilies and a variety of spices. Mexican chocolate is dark and bitter and compliments the spicy smokey chilis. Most of the molé recipes I’ve seen have over a dozen ingredients, and most chefs will tell you that the sauce needs time to develop the complexity of flavor it deserves. I’ve tried to make a molé before and I think it’s better left to the professionals and the people who have been making it for years. It certainly isn’t worth the effort unless it’s going to be the absolute star of the dish.

We are fortunate enough to have a really good authentic Mexican restaurant not too far from us, and one dish I’ve had there was really memorable because it had an ingredient I have never tasted before and that tastes like nothing I’ve ever tasted.

Amada44, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Huitlacoche (weet·luh·kow·chay), also known as Cuitlacoche, Corn Smut, or Corn Truffle (if you want to sound fancy) is this amazing ingredient that is earthy, sweet, and absolutely unique. The problem is, it’s ugly, really ugly, and when you find out what it is, that doesn’t increase the appeal. Huilacoche is an invasive fungus that grows on corn cobs before the cobs are ripe. How anyone thought, “gee, that grey gook looks yummy”, I have no clue. Fresh Huilacoche is very difficult to find, but canned or jarred is easier to find. I ordered it online because it wasn’t in my local grocery store. When it’s canned, it gets very dark – and ends up looking like black slime with chunks of corn. Are you sold yet?

I promise, it is worth the effort to find a can and try this out. It is also delicious with fish – the restaurant I first had it at served it with a panned seared halibut and fresh lime – it was divine.

Once I settled on huitaloche as the unique flavor, I knew I needed to layer in classic flavors. Since huitaloche does have a corn flavor, corn was covered. Avocado was a must, of course. Some kind of salsa seemed natural to add – I chose a chiltomate salsa which is a traditional Yucatan roasted vegetable salsa. The smokiness added just the right element to balance the other flavors.

For the patty, I decided to stick with beef – since our last two were chicken and fish, beef seemed like a nice change of pace. Thank you to the Spanish for bringing cows to Mexico!

I took some inspiration from a traditional sandwich, Cemita Poblano. The cemita bun sounds close to the American sesame seed bun that we love for our burgers, so thankfully I didn’t have wrap a burger in a tortilla (I really didn’t want to do that). The cemita poblano also uses queso oaxaca – this is a white cheese similar to mozzarella but with a little more salt and flavor. It pulls apart like mozzarella. When I made this burger for my family, I pulled it apart before melting it on the burger – that kind of made a mess of my pan, so for the final version, I sliced it – this resulted in a thicker coating of melted cheese – either way it’s yummy.

The resulting burger was easily one of my favorite dishes so far, also one of the messiest. These flavors blended together perfectly. A touch of spice, a hint of smoke, lovely acid, rich fattiness, and earthy sweetness. No one flavor dominated, instead they combined and made the whole greater than the sum of its parts. I’ve eaten a lot of burgers over the course of this project, and this is the best balance I’ve achieved. It just tasted GOOD! I suggest serving with several napkins for each guest – and stick with paper napkins, no need to get corn smut or salsa on grandma’s linens.

This is a great burger to have with beer, I’d go with an amber ale if I could drink it. Since I can’t (allergic), I paired it with a Shiraz (on the lighter side vs a big bold one).

If you like this burger, you might enjoy my Columbian Burger. It’s equally messy and filled with surprising and wonderful flavors.

©Copyright 2023 Linda Monach

Mexican Burger

Burger with Roasted Tomato Salsa, Avocado, Mexican Crema, and Huitlacoche – A perfect balance of smokey, sweet, earthy, spicy, and creamy goodness. All on a sesame seed bun! You can make the toppings ahead of time and store in refrigerator until you're ready to use.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Servings 4 burgers

Ingredients
  

Chiltomate – Roasted Tomato Salsa

  • 1 Medium Yellow Onion
  • 4 Cloves of Garlic (smashed)
  • 2 Hot Peppers (halved and seeded) The pepper you choose will drive the spiciness of this dish
  • 36 Cherry Tomatoes
  • Kosher Salt (to taste)

Chipotle Crema

  • 1/2 cup Crema Mexicana
  • 3/4 Tbsp Chipotle Adobo Sauce For more spice, you can add the chipotle peppers and add to taste
  • Kosher Salt (to taste)

Mexican Burger

  • Olive Oil
  • 4 Sesame Seed Buns
  • 1 Ripe Avocado (mashed roughly)
  • Fresh Lime Juice
  • 7 oz Huitlacoche
  • 1 lb Ground Beef (80% lean)
  • Salt & Pepper
  • 6 oz Oaxaca Cheese (sliced thin)
  • Chopped Fresh Cilantro (optional)

Instructions
 

Chiltomate – Roasted Tomato Salsa

  • Cut the onion into wedges approx 1/2" thick. Place all ingredients on a foil lined baking sheet. Broil for 5-10 minutes then turn over and broil for another 5 minutes until everything is lightly charred. Keep an eye on this as broiler temps vary and you don't want to burn the veggies.
  • Once the vegetables are charred and soft, put them in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Salt to taste.
    Salsa can be made ahead and refrigerated. It's best on the burger if you warm it to room temperature.

Chipotle Crema

  • Mix the crema and adobo sauce and add salt to taste. Add chopped chipotle peppers if you want more heat. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Mexican Burger

  • Brush a non-stick pan with olive oil and heat until shimmering. Add the buns to the pan, cut side down, and cook until lightly browned. Set aside until you're ready to assemble the burgers.
  • Slice avocado in half and remove pit. NOTE: never try to dig the pit out with the point of your knife, just use knife to lightly chop into pit, twist and remove.
  • Slice the avocado then scoop with a spoon. Smash the avocado roughly and sprinkle with fresh lime juice.
  • Heat the huitlacoche in a small pan until just warmed through.
  • Form four balls from the ground beef. Flatten the balls and generously salt and pepper each patty. Heat 1-2T olive oil in the non-stick skillet. Cook the burger patties to desired doneness. Just before burgers are cooked through, add cheese slices and cover to melt the cheese. (If the cheese isn't melting, add a small amount of water to pan and cover to speed melting).
  • To assemble the burgers. Spread crema on each top bun. Spoon avocado onto each bottom bun, then add huitlacoche.
  • Place burger patties on top of huitlachoche. Now add a scoop of chiltomate (salsa) and some chopped cilantro (optional). Top with top bun and serve with lots of napkins. We also put the extra salsa on the table so those who wanted could add more (and we did!).
Keyword Beef, Cheese, Mexican, Spicy
Posted in african recipes, burger recipes, chicken burgers | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Mauritian Burger

Posted on August 5, 2023 by linda

Swordfish & Red Pepper Burger on Dholl Flat Bread with Vindaye Curry

Leaving the desert behind, we travel southeast to the island country of Mauritius. Just east of Madagascar, Mauritius is home to 1.3 million people on an island smaller than Luxembourg and just twice the size of Hong Kong. It is one of the most densely populated countries in the world.

Courtesy of CIA World Facebook

There are no indigenous people of Mauritius, it was uninhabited when it was settled by the Dutch in 1630 with the goal of harvesting ebony, and keeping the French and British from settling the island.

The Dutch brought slaves over from Madagascar to help harvest the ebony trees. But all of their efforts were unsuccessful. Cyclones, droughts, rats, and monkeys made agriculture difficult and the Dutch abandoned the island by 1710.

Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

In the short time they were there, the Dutch did manage to destroy habitats of, introduce animals that killed, and hunt to extinction, the Dodo bird. The Dodo was a forest bird and a relative of pigeons and doves. It was a large flightless bird, approximately 3 feet tall. Since Dodos had been living without natural predators, they had no fear of the humans or the animals the humans brought with them. Estimates vary, but it is clear that the Dodo became extinct by 1690 at the latest and possibly as early as the 1660s. Today the extinction of this silly looking bird is a used as a cautionary tale for school children across the globe.

Ok, that’s a lot of history – just a few more points of history to cover because they relate to the food. After the Dutch left, the French settled the island and brought workers over from India. Even thought the British captured the island in 1810, the French never really left and today Creole is spoken by 87% of the population. Today approximately two thirds of the population is Indo-Mauritian.

So that brings us to the food. The cuisine is multi ethnic with dishes that can be traced back to Dutch, lots of French and Indian influence and a sprinkling of British and Chinese.

Benoît Prieur, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Because I like to find unique flavors for each country, I was drawn to a kind of curry that I’ve never heard of before. Vindaye is a curry made with vinegar and black mustard seeds.Vindaye is usually made with meaty fish that is almost pickled in the sauce. The mustard seeds give a bitterness that when combined with the acid of the vinegar is an explosion of flavor. Add in some spicy chilies and it just sounds too interesting not to try. Now how to translate that into a burger?

Clearly we’re going to start with fish. I played with the idea of cooking the fish in the sauce, but that seemed more like salisbury steak than a burger. I’m ok with fork and knife, open face burgers, but there are limits to how much I’m willing to stretch the definitions.

For the patty, I decided on Swordfish. I used my handy dandy meat grinder and ground the fish along with red bell pepper. The juiciness of the peppers cause the meat grinder to squirt fishy liquid at me, so beware when you’re grinding. The resulting patty looks almost like salmon because of the pepper juice.

For the bun I went with the traditional street food of Dholl Puri. Dholl Puri is a flatbread made with split peas, turmeric and cumin and it’s served stuffed with various fillings and/or with curries, pickles, and chutney. For some reason, I had yellow lentils in my head when the traditional base is yellow split peas. Yellow lentils are actually skinned and split green mung beans. I haven’t had time to remake the bread with split peas, but the lentil version was delicious. It was such a rich flavor and interesting texture – it was my favorite part of the dish.

Then the most important Vindaye. In my first attempt, I, foolishly, used whole seeds then ground them. The resulting sauce was so bitter, it was inedible. I forgot that fenugreek needs to be soaked overnight and/or cooked before using to soften the bitter. Since I was now out of time (fish in the fridge ready to go), I used ground spices instead, except for the mustard seeds which should be left whole. The mustard seeds are bitter, so if you don’t like that sour bite, you can reduce the amount. You can also amp up or down the acid with more or less vinegar. The sauce has a nice amount of heat and I liked the acidic punch of the vinegar. It worked with the curry flavors, but it is weird. I know I’m supposed to have a fancier food vocabulary, but the best way to describe this sauce is that it’s unlike anything I’ve tasted before. It’s bitter, acidic, spicy, and warmly curry flavored. I’m hoping one of you has tasted the authentic dish and can tell me how close this comes.

The final burger came together well, the flatbread had a yummy earthiness and a really cool texture, very silky with just a little bit of grain to it. The swordfish was mild and fresh tasting – a good counterpoint to the strong flavors of the bread and topping. The Vindaye sauce was a blast of flavor. I think this burger is going to be polarizing – if you like the sauce, you’ll like the burger. So for those who like bold flavors on the acidic and spicy side, this could be just the dish for you!

If you like this burger, you might enjoy my Kiribati Burger. It’s got the curry and fish, without the burst of acid and heat. It’s like the gentle cousin of the Mauritian burger.

©Copyright 2023 Linda Monach

Mauritian Burger

Swordfish Burger with Dholl Puri and Vindaye Sauce. A spicy dish with a kick of acidity and lovely warm curry flavors. It is based on the traditional Mauritian Vindaye, an unusual curry dish with black mustard seeds and vinegar.
This recipe can be adapted easily to your tastes, increase the spice by using more or hotter peppers, increase the acid with more vinegar and less cooking down of the vinegar. I used swordfish, but it would work with any meaty white fish. 
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Main Course
Cuisine African, Fish, Indian, Mauritian
Servings 4 Burgers

Equipment

  • Meat Grinder If you don't have a meat grinder, you can use food processor or chop the fish finely with a sharp kitchen knife

Ingredients
  

Dholl Puri Inspired Flat Bread

  • 1/2 cup Yellow Lentils (rinsed and drained)
  • 1 1/2 cup Water
  • 1/2 teas Ground Cumin
  • 1/2 teas Ground Turmeric
  • 1/2 cup All purpose flour gluten free all purpose flour can be used
  • 1/4 teas Kosher salt
  • 2 Tbsp Peanut Oil

Vindaye Inspired Curry Topping

  • 2 Tbsp Black mustard seed
  • 1 Tbsp Ground cumin
  • 1 Tbsp Ground fenugreek seed
  • 1 Tbsp Dried curry Leaves (crushed)
  • 1 Large onion (chopped to 1/2" pieces)
  • 2 Fresh Piri Piri Peppers (chopped to 1/2" pieces) or other hot red pepper
  • 1 Jalapeno Pepper (chopped to 1/2" pieces) or other hot green pepper
  • 2 Tbsp Peanut oil
  • 1/2 cup White wine vinegar can substitute cider vinegar for more punch

Mauritian Burger

  • 1 lb Swordfish (chopped into 2" chunks)
  • 1 Red bell pepper (Chopped into 2" chunks)
  • 1/2 cup All purpose flour gluten free all purpose flour can be used
  • 1 Large pinch of salt
  • Flat Bread from above
  • Vindaye Curry from above
  • Fresh cilantro for garnish optional

Instructions
 

Dholl Puri Inspired Flat Bread

  • Bring lentils in water to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cover tightly. Cook for 5-7 minutes until lentils are soft.
  • Drain lentils and let cool. Place lentils, spices, flour and salt in a food processor. Pulse until a dough like texture forms.
  • If you don't want your fingers to turn yellow, you should put on disposable gloves before the next step.
  • Divide the dough into four equal portions. Roll each portion into a ball. Flatten each ball into a circle on wax paper.
  • Heat oil in a non-stick pan over medium high heat. When oil is shimmering, peel the bread disks off and add them to the hot oil. Cook until lightly browned, flip and brown the other side. Then place the bread disks on a wire rack until ready to use. Retain the oil in the pan.
  • Note: These can be made in advance and are still delicious at room temperature.

Note: These can be made in advance and are still delicious at room temperature.

  • Heat the oil in another non-stick pan. When the oil is shimmering, add the first 7 ingredients (mustard seed through jalapeño pepper). Stir to combine all of the ingredients. Cook covered over medium heat until onions and peppers are soft (about 10 minutes).
  • Add the vinegar. Simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated. Taste as you go along and adjust vinegar and or spice as needed.
  • Note: The curry topping can be made in advance and reheated for serving.

Mauritian Burger

  • Grind the swordfish and red pepper together in a meat grinder. Add the cilantro, flour and salt to the swordfish and peppers and mix to combine ingredients. Form four patties out of the mixture, place on wax paper and refrigerate until ready to use.
  • Using the pan from the flat bread (add more if you need it). Heat oil until shimmering. Add the swordfish patties to the heat and cook over medium heat until nicely browned and cooked through.
  • To plate, place the flatbread disks on each plate, add the cooked burger patty, spoon the curry generously on top and sprinkle with chopped cilantro if you wish. If I weren't allergic to beer, I would have paired this burger with an Allagash White or a Hefeweizen. Since I am allergic, we paired this with a nice Sancerre, but the flavor of the sauce over powered the wine a bit.
Keyword Africa, Curry, Spicy, Swordfish
Posted in african recipes, burger recipes, chicken burgers | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Mauritanian Burger

Posted on July 26, 2023 by linda

Stuffed Chicken Burger with Spicy Tomato & Okra

Courtesy of CIA World Facebook

For anyone new to the site, my mission is to create an original burger recipe inspired by the flavors of each country in the United Nations (193 countries!). Our journey is alphabetical and next stop is Mauritania. Mauritania is on the Northwest coast of Africa. Most of the country is Saharan desert plains. It was originally settled by the Berber & Bafour people.

They were the first nomadic people to convert to an agricultural lifestyle. Today most of the Mauritanian population live near the coastal capital of Nouakchott and along the Southern border. One third of Mauritanians are of Berber or Bafour decent.

Mauritania was a French colony and gained its independence in 1960. There is a strong caste system in the country and slavery continues to be a problem. Slavery was abolished in 1981 and criminalized in 2007, but it’s estimated that 2% of the population is still enslaved. It is a Muslim country and Arabic is the official language..

Because of the rich fishing waters along the coast and in the Senegal River along the Southern border, fish is an important part of Mauritanian cuisine. That being said, there is also a fair amount of meat as part of the nomadic herding tradition. In researching the cuisine, I was inspired by Thieboudiene, which many tout as the “national dish” or Mauritania.

Thieboudiene recipes vary, but most of them have a meaty white fish stuffed with onions and peppers cooked in a tomato veggie sauce and served over rice. Most of the recipes I’ve seen have large chunks of meat/fish and large pieces of various vegetables. Internationalcuisine.com has a pretty typical recipe if you want to try out the original dish. The vegetables vary by recipe and likely vary in practice based on what is available. Netetou is the only ingredient not commonly available in the US.

Netetou is dried fermented locust bean powder. We have the luxury of several international markets in our area, but I was pressed for time this week, so I ordered netetou on Amazon (it arrived the next day). I don’t think it changed the flavor dramatically, so if you don’t want to order on Amazon and can’t find it locally, you can go without it.

Like many African countries, Mauritanian cuisine is often very spicy. In my recipe, I’ve given you options for how spicy you want the sauce. I chose to use fresh habanero pepper to provide the heat. There are two tricks to using habaneros. First, always use gloves when cutting the peppers – the oil from these peppers is HOT and you don’t want it on your fingers, especially if you get something in your eye and forget about the pepper oil – very uncomfortable. The second trick (or hack if you’re into that) is that you can control the heat – keep tasting as you go along and when it gets to the right level of spice, remove the habanero pepper pieces (for this reason, I keep the pieces pretty big so they’re easier to find). The longer the spices remain, the spicier, so just take them out when you’re happy. If you love super hot food, add more and leave them in – you are in control.

My sauce is based on Thieboudienne, but is my own riff. All of my recipes are original – I use source recipes for ingredient ideas – but everything else is my own invention. The spicy tomato & okra sauce is rich and delicious with the sweetness of tomatoes and onions spiked with that lovely habanero and accented nicely with the earthy okra. The rice cake is super crispy (do not try to heat up as a leftover – it becomes too chewy and crispy if microwaved next day). As for the most important meat choice…I tried this with both fish and chicken (because I was indecisive).

Fish is closer to the original inspiration dish, while chicken is a common inexpensive meat used frequently in Mauritanian dishes. The fish I used was tilapia because it’s an inexpensive meaty fish. It handled being put through the meat grinder pretty well. I think it would have worked fine as a regular burger, but as a stuffed burger, it fell apart a bit. Not a big problem as I always knew this would be a fork and knife burger. The chicken held together better and looked more burger like. But what about the taste?

The fish flavor didn’t hold up to the boldness of the sauce. It was good, but we got no taste of fish, it was just a little bland. Chicken had more flavor and integrated into the dish better – so chicken it is! We drank a nice Pinot Gris from Alsace with this and it was perfect – perhaps a South African Sauvignon Blanc would have been more “on the nose”, but we didn’t have one around, and really, mixing cultures and flavors is kind part of this whole project. I hope you enjoy this taste of Mauritania!

©Copyright 2023 Linda Monach

Mauritanian Burger

linda
Chicken burger served on a rice cake with a spicy tomato & okra topping. This recipe can be made using a meaty fish like Tilapia, but you'll need to add a binding agent to the fish, or just deal with it breaking up a bit. This is a fork and knife burger whether made with chicken or fish.
The stuffing, and sauce can be made ahead of time and refrigerated. The rice can be made ahead of time and left at room temp. When you're ready to cook just heat the sauce a bit while you're making the rice cakes and burger patties.
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine African, Mauritanian
Servings 4 Burgers

Ingredients
  

Stuffing

  • 1 Small onion cut in quarters
  • 1 Large clove of garlic
  • 1/2 Red bell pepper cut in large chunks
  • 1/2 Green bell pepper cut in large chunks
  • 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon Black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons Peanut oil
  • 1/2 Habanero pepper – seeds removed & cut in half (more if you like more spice)

Spicy Tomato & Okra Topping

  • 4 Tomatoes chopped
  • 1/2 Red pepper chopped
  • 1/2 Green pepper chopped
  • 1 Small onion chopped
  • 8 Okra sliced
  • 1/2 Habanero pepper sliced
  • 1 Chicken bullion cube (I use Maggi brand)
  • 1 Tablespoon Peanut oil

Rice Cakes

  • 1 Cup Long grained white rice
  • 1/3 Cup Tapioca flour
  • Peanut oil

Mauritanian Burger

  • 1 3/4 lb Chick thighs (skinless, boneless)
  • 4 teaspoons Netetou (dried locus beans) – also called dawadawa or sumbala, available online or at specialty markets
  • Peanut oil
  • Stuffing Mixture from above
  • Spicy Tomato & Okra Sauce from above
  • Fresh Parsley Chopped optional garnish

Instructions
 

Stuffing

  • Place all ingredients except oil and habanero pepper in food processor. Pulse until everything is chopped fine.
  • Heat oil in non-stick pan.
  • Add stuffing mixture and habanero pepper to oil and sauté over medium high heat until liquid is evaporated, stirring regularly.
  • Remove habanero pepper pieces from stuffing.
  • Set aside to cool

Spicy Tomato & Okra Topping

  • Using the same pan from the stuffing, heat oil over medium high heat.
  • Add onion and cook until slightly soft (2-4 minutes). Then add red and green peppers and cook until onions begin to brown (5-7 minutes).
  • Add okra and habanero and cook until okra its slightly browned. Note: habanero can be left in the sauce until the end, or removed at any time – the longer you leave it in, the spicier the sauce will be.
  • Add tomatoes and bouillon cube. Cover and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer for one hour, then remove cover and simmer until most of the liquid is gone.

Rice Cakes

  • While the sauce is simmering, Cook rice using standard cooking instructions, cool enough that you won't burn your hands while handling. Add tapioca flour and mix together using your hands. Form four burger sized patties with the mixture.
  • Add peanut oil 1/8" deep coating to nonstick pan. Heat over high heat until shimmering. Add the rice cakes and fry until lightly browned, turn and cook other side. Remove from oil and keep warm until ready to serve.

Mauritania Burger

  • Cut chicken into chunks and grind using large grind (you can use ground chicken from the grocery store, but it doesn't have as good a flavor as the home grind. You can get a meat grinder attachment for Kitchen Aide mixer for as low as $35).
  • Divide Chicken into 8 portions. Take four portions and flatten out then add 1/4 of the stuffing to each.
  • Use the remaining 4 portions of chicken to seal the stuffing in the burger. Then season each patty generously on both sides with Netetou. (use a thin pancake turner to flip the burgers for seasoning, if any stuffing peeks out, just tuck it back in and seal with chicken.
  • Heat oil in non stick pan. Cook the burgers over medium high heat until chicken is cooked through (a quick read thermometer is helpful when cooking chicken this way). Do not press down on burgers as they are cooking or the stuffing will escape!
  • Plate with Rice Cake on bottom, then burger patty and top with tomato & okra sauce. Garnish with some fresh parsley for a touch of added color. Pairs great with a light summery white wine – Pinot Gris from Alsace is a favorite in our house.

©Copyright 2023 Linda Monach

    Keyword Africa, Chicken, Gluten Free, Spicy
    Posted in african recipes, burger recipes, chicken burgers | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

    Marshallese Burger

    Posted on February 18, 2020 by linda

    Sweet and Smokey Chicken Burger on Coconut Rice
    It’s February so it must be time for some island dreaming! As if February we’re reason enough for some escapism, we had a lovely visit with the flu this month – if it isn’t one thing it’s another! Some how we still managed to fit in a burger – and our tummies were very please with the effort.

    Our journey now takes us to the Marshall Islands. Located about midway between Hawaii and Australia, it isn’t the edge of the world, but you can see it from there 🙂

    Courtesy of CIA World Factbook

    The Marshall Islands is comprised of 29 atolls and 5 islands. Twenty two of the atolls are uninhabited. The total land mass is about the size of Washington D.C.

    Courtesy of CIA World Factbook

    When I started researching Marshall Islands, I realized that I had heard of them primarily because of the nuclear testing done by the US. The islands are home to the US Army Kwajalein Atoll Reagan Missile Test Site. We could spend some time reviewing the controversy over the nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands (specifically Bikini Atoll), but I’d rather talk about the people and the food.

    The Islands are named after John Marshall who visited in 1788. The local name was “joliet jen Anij” or Gifts from God. There are about 58 thousand people living on Marshall Islands most are considered ethnically Marshallese, which is really a subgroup of Micronesian as the Micronesians were the first to discover and settle on the islands around the second millennia BC. The Islands have been claimed by Spain, dominated by England and Germany and then taken over by Japan and finally occupied by the United States. In 1979, the US formally recognized the establishment of the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

    Today, in addition to hosting the US missile base and 4 dedicated ground antennas that are part of the Global Positioning System (that’s right, without Marshall Islands, your GPS wouldn’t work), the islands are a hub for tuna transshipments and a popular tourist destination.

    attribution: Bermuda Mike/flickr

    attribution: HeComes TheSun/flickr

    So now that we have a sense of the place, let’s turn to the food. The flavors of Marshall Islands are typical Micronesian flavors with emphasis on fresh produce that is bountiful on the islands. For proteins, Marshallese eat a lot of fish, chicken and pork. Coconut and coconut milk are part of most dishes and smoked pork products are popular. This was one of the most difficult countries to nail down specific dishes for inspiration.

    Two things stood out – first, the dish most associated with Marshall Islands is Macadamia Nut Pie. Second, chukuchuk (rice balls rolled in coconut) seem to be a staple. Now, when looking for burger inspiration, pie recipes aren’t very helpful. But, because my husband loves pie, I went ahead and made him a macadamia nut pie. It was delicious, so much so that we forgot to take pictures and just gorged ourselves on pie. Imagine a slightly lighter version of pecan pie and you’ll have the idea.

    Pie consumed, I moved on to the savory side. The rice with coconut made a good starch base, so that became my starting point. Add a little chopped kale, and marinated chicken patty and a sauce made with papaya and sweet potatoes then top with a little bacon and we had our island dream.

    If you are new to my blog, or just haven’t read one of my chicken burger recipes in a while, let me be really clear – do not purchase ground chicken at the store! For about $25 you can get a meat grinder attachment for your Kitchen Aid mixer, or you can use your food processor, but please, grind your own chicken. That way your burger will taste like chicken, not mystery meat. It also makes it easier to marinate and get flavor infused throughout.

    The fruity sweetness of the sauce on this burger is balanced by the smokey bacon and the mild spice of the patty. The tomato breaks it all up with a little acid and coconut adds a nice texture and a little extra sweetness. Overall the flavor is sweet and smokey.

    One note – when I went to photograph the burger after our taste test, I neglected to put the bacon bits on top. As with all things, the burger is better with bacon, but it still made a yummy lunch without.

    If want more island flavors and are in the mood for fish, try my Fijian Burger Recipe.

    Marshallese Burger Recipe (click here for printable version)
    4 slices of bacon
    1/4 soy sauce
    1/4 cup brown sugar
    1 teaspoon ground ginger
    1 teaspoon ground cumin
    1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
    1/2 teaspoon ground corriander
    1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
    1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs (you can use breasts if you prefer), trimmed and cubed
    Peanut oil or bacon fat
    4 Chucuchuk Rice Patties (recipe below)
    1 cup Chopped kale
    Sliced Tomato
    Papaya Sauce (recipe below)
    Lime Zest

    Mix together first seven ingredients then pour over chicken in a glass bowl. Stir to coat chicken. Let chicken marinate for one hour. While chicken is marinating, cook the bacon until crispy. Set on paper towel to drain – do not clean pan. Crumble bacon and set aside. Grind chicken and discard marinade. Form four patties with the ground chicken. Cook patties in the bacon fat over medium high heat until cooked through (if you don’t have enough bacon fat, or prefer a lighter flavor, you can use peanut or vegetable oil).

    To plate, place a Chucuchuk Rice Patty on each plate then sprinkle some chopped kale on top. Place the chicken patty next and top with tomato slices, Papaya Sauce, bacon and a little lime zest. Enjoy!

    Chucuchuk Rice Patties
    1 cup rice
    2 cups water
    Pinch of salt
    1 cup fresh, unsweetened, coconut flakes

    In medium pot, combine rice, water and salt, bring to a boil then turn down heat and simmer until water is absorbed (about 15 minutes). Let rice cool then scoop about 1/2 cup of rice and form into a ball. Flatten the rice ball into the flaked coconut then flip it over to coat both sides generously with coconut flakes.

    Papaya Sauce
    1 medium sweet potato diced
    1 medium onion chopped
    1/2 ripe papaya seeded and chopped
    1/4 cup soy sauce
    1/2 cup coconut milk
    Dash of cayenne pepper
    Kosher salt to taste
    1 Tablespoon Peanut Oil

    Heat oil over medium high until shimmering. add sweet potato and a pinch of kosher salt. cook over high heat until browned (about 5 minutes). Add the onions and reduce heat to medium. Sauté, stirring regularly until onions are soft (~5 minutes) add papaya and soy sauce. Stir, cover and reduce to low. Simmer until soft ~20 minutes. Remove lid and add coconut milk, cayenne and salt to taste. Bring back to a simmer and simmer over med low until liquid is mostly evaporated ~10 minutes. Cool slightly then pulse in food processor until smooth. Serve warm or room temperature.

    ©Copyright 2020 Linda Monach

     

     

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    Maltese Burger

    Posted on January 26, 2020 by linda

    Malta Buger – Bragioli Beef Burger with Tomato Sauce and Sheep’s Milk Cheese

    And now, we’re off to Malta. Malta is an archipelago in the Mediterranean off the coast of Italy and South of Sicily.

    It’s another one of those countries that makes me long for vacation time and loads of extra cash. Only the three largest islands are inhabited and there are less than 450k people living full time in Malta. It’s, of course, a tourist destination, but also a financial center and global freight transshipment point.

    By Juliana da Costa José – (selbst fotografiert), CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=798204

    By Frank Vincentz – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33096159

    Malta is also the sight of some of the oldest megalithic sites in the world. Some date from before the Egyptian pyramids and several are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

    The Megalithic Temples of Malta, Hagar Qin © Sacred Sites

    Because of the strategically important location of the Islands, they have been occupied by various governments over time – the Phonecians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Moors, Normans, Sicilians, Spanish, Knights of Saint John, French and most recently the British. In 1964 Malta achieved independence and ten years later declared itself a republic.

    The Maltese people are lively people who love to debate, especially about politics. They are known for speaking in loud voices, vociferously debating politics with friends. For social gatherings, Maltese people join Band Clubs and throw festival celebrations in summer.

    But what about the food? I expected a lot of fish for an island nation, and while fish is definitely part of the cuisine, there are also plenty of meat eaters on the archipelago. Many of the flavors (not surprisingly) are very Italian inspired.

    One of the classic dishes of Malta is Bragioli. Bragioli is traditionally a minced veal mixed with bacon, garlic herbs, onions, cheese, hard boiled eggs and bread crumbs. This mixture is wrapped in thinly sliced beef and cooked in a tomato and herb sauce. the perfect beginning to a burger recipe.

    There’s also a broad bean paste that is a favorite snack in Malta with beans, garlic, herbs and oil.

    I tried making the paste but we didn’t feel like it added anything to the recipe. The tomato sauce is so rich, the bean paste just disappears. I’m into simplicity these days, so no need to add steps that don’t contribute to the flavor.

    There also a traditional Maltese bread that is a favorite (called Flobz tal-Malti). It is apparently similar to sour dough, so I took the shortcut of just using sourdough (since baking is one of my least favorite things to do).

    In the end, I took the Bragioli filling and made it into a burger on it’s own. Then I made a rich and flavorful tomato sauce to top it. Add a little sheep’s milk cheese and grilled sourdough bread and we were in burger heaven. Because it has been so long since we first tasted this, I made it again two weeks ago. The magic here is in the sauce. The pictures don’t do it justice, you want to cook down the sauce until it turns into a deep purply red. The sweet and acidic flavor of the tomatoes along with the rich sharpness of the cheese balance out the smokey meatiness of the patty. I was worried about mixing the bacon with ground beef – but its a great way to bacon flavor throughout.

    If you like the Maltese burger, you might want to try the Hungarian burger – it has similar rich meatiness.

    Maltese Burger (print friendly version, click here)
    8 slices of Sourdough Bread
    1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
    1 small chopped onion
    1 clove of garlic, minced
    1.2 teaspoon kosher salt
    28 ounce can diced tomatoes
    1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
    1 teaspoon chopped fresh marjoram
    1 bay leaf
    1 cup bold red wine
    2 Tablespoons tomato paste
    Salt and Pepper to taste
    Cooked Bragoli Patties (recipe below) 

    Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in medium non-stick pan. Brush evenly across bottom of pan. Grill the sourdough slices on both sides until lightly browned. Remove from heat and set aside. Add remainder of olive oil and heat to shimmering over medium heat. Add the onions , garlic and salt and cook until onions are soft. Add tomatoes, parsley, marjoram, bay leaf, wine and tomato paste. Raise heat until sauce begins to boil, then reduce to a high simmer. Keep lid off and simmer, stirring regularly,  until most of the liquid in the sauce has evaporated (about 1 hour). When Sauce has been cooking for about forty minutes, start making the bragioli patties.

    When patties are done, place them on the grilled sourdough and add a scoop of tomato sauce, then top with second slice of grilled bread.

    Bragioli Patties
    1 pound 85% lean ground beef 
    2 hard boiled eggs chopped
    ¼ pound bacon chopped
    1 egg
    3 Tablespoons panko
    1 Tablespoon olive oil
    Sheep’s milk cheese sliced

    Combine the first five ingredients in a large bowl. Mix with hands until the ingredients are evenly combined. Do not over mix as over mixing will cause the protein to seize up and be too chewy. Form four patties.

    Heat the olive oil in a non stick pan then cook the patties over med-high heat turning regularly until cooked through. Top with the cheese and let it melt, then serve on grilled sourdough with tomato sauce.

    ©Copyright 2019 Linda Monach

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    I need this like I need a hole in my head!

    Posted on January 22, 2020 by linda

    Hello readers (assuming there are any of you left). I wanted to apologize for my long absences. My family has been going through so much the last five years, that it’s been hard to find creative energy. I have promised myself to get back to the kitchen and the keyboard and breathe some life back into this project. (I hope I can keep the promise this time)

    For those who are wondering what derailed me so much (I can’t remember how much I’ve written about, so I’ll touch on everything), here’s the gist. Our oldest daughter has severe autism and is completely non-verbal and 6-7 years ago we found ourselves battling the school district in court to get her placed in a school designed to teach her effectively. We won – but it took a lot out of us all.

    Right around the time that we made it to court (about six months before), my husband discovered that he has a brain tumor. Slow growing, thankfully, but terrifying nonetheless. Surgery then a year of chemo and things have been pretty quiet until last year. Last year (right about the time I started back making burgers), Paul’s quarterly MRI showed activity again in his tumor. So, in October he had proton radiation and now he is in cycle three of eight cycles of chemo (each cycle is six weeks). Chemo sucks, really sucks.

    And here we are. Brain cancer, autism, life is complicated. But we all need creative outlets and my goal for this year is to move forward – one step at a time. You won’t hear from me every week, but let’s shoot for once a month. I’ve got my Maltese Burger made and photographed, so now it’s just a matter of sharing it with you.

    I hope you’ll stick around to see it.
    Cheers,
    Linda

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