The big double cheeseburger & secret sauce

I was really surprised by the things I drew comfort from over lockdown. Burger and fries was high on my list, and with no restaurants open and a bit of time on my hands, I gave myself a bit of a project, deconstructing and making my own version of arguably the most famous burger there is.

SERVES 2 PREP 25 mins plus soaking COOK 15 mins EASY

1 small onion, inely chopped

4 sesame-topped burger buns 300g steak mince

1 tbsp sun lower oil small wedge of iceberg lettuce, inely shredded

2 slices of mild cheddar or burger cheese

1 gherkin sliced lengthways oven fries, to serve

For the secret sauce

100g mayonnaise

1 tbsp American mustard large pinch of garlic granules large pinch of onion granules 1/4 tsp smoked paprika

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

1 tsp pickle relish or inely chopped gherkin

1 Tip the onion into a small bowl and pour over boiling water from the kettle until just covered. Leave to cool. Put all the sauce ingredients in another small bowl, then add 1 tbsp of the cooled onion water and mix until everything is evenly combined. Set aside.

2 Halve two of the burger buns, then cut a thick slice from the middles of the other two buns (use the o cuts to make breadcrumbs – use them up in our chicken parmigiana recipe on page 50). Toast or grill the middle slices on both sides and the other buns only on the cut sides, then set aside. Heat the oven to 100C/80C fan/gas 2.

3 Divide the mince into four loose piles and season. Heat 1/4 of the oil in a heavy frying pan or skillet over a high heat and put one of the piles of beef in the pan. Working quickly, cover with a square of baking parchment and carefully use a second pan to press the beef patties down – be careful of the heat and rising steam as you do this. Keep the patties pressed down for about 10 seconds, then remove the weight and the paper, and leave the burger to cook for 2 mins more. Turn the patties and press down using a spatula, cooking for another 1 min. Transfer to a tray and keep warm in the oven while you cook the other burgers in the same way.

4 When all the patties are cooked, it’s time to assemble the burgers. Spread some sauce over the bun bases, scatter with onions, then add lettuce, followed by a cheese slice, then a patty, a few gherkin slices and a middle slice of toasted bun. Spread over more sauce, then add more onions, lettuce, another patty and the bun tops. Serve with the oven fries and extra sauce on the side, if you like.

GOOD TO KNOW calcium • iron • 1 of 5-a-day

PER SERVING 893 kcals • fat 37g • saturates 11g • carbs 82g • sugars 6g • ibre 5g • protein 56g • salt 3.3g