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Lamb Burgers with Harissa Tzatziki on Sourdough Buns
Background info: The earliest recorded “hamburger” recipe, called isicia omentata, appears in the 4th century Roman cookbook, ‘Apicius.’ It consisted of a minced meat patty mixed with pine kernels, black and green peppercorns, white wine, and a fish sauce, called garum. Although the type of meat isn’t specified, it was more likely game than lamb, as sheep were considered more valuable for their wool and cheese than for consumption.
Today, lamb remains popular in cuisines across the Mediterranean basin and has experienced a new resurgence in American restaurants and home kitchens. Rightfully so: Lamb, especially grass-fed, is rich in nutrients such as glutathione (also called the “master antioxidant”) and is abundant in saturated fats, whose satiating qualities can help rein in carbohydrate cravings.
—Price-Pottenger
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No summer party is complete without the requisite BBQ burgers. Why not wow your guests with these flavorful grassfed lamb burgers?
The secret to taking any burger from mediocre to extraordinary is the sauce. This recipe puts a Greek spin on a traditional Moroccan condiment with a delicious harissa tzatziki sauce made from grassfed yogurt. Harissa is a spicy chili paste that is used traditionally in Moroccan and North African cooking. The heat and aroma of the harissa is balanced perfectly with the coolness of yogurt and cucumbers, making this sauce a zesty, fresh compliment to the lamb, especially on a hot summer’s day.
And why not take your burgers to the next level with homemade sourdough buns? These buns are surprisingly easy to make – you’ll just need to factor in the time needed to ferment them overnight. The extra bit of effort will really pay off. The buns will be packed with extra flavor and the delicious tang that sourdough is known for.
The best part about this recipe? It is a great way to combine fantastic flavor with the health benefits of traditional foods. Both the yogurt and the fermented sourdough provide beneficial bacteria that can bolster your microbiome, improving digestion and immunity. At the same time, the grassfed lamb and yogurt offer high-quality animal proteins and fats, including conjugated linolenic acid (CLA), as well as fat-soluble vitamins.
Don’t worry if you aren’t in the mood to grill (or your party gets rained out). These burgers can just as easily be cooked inside – just follow the directions on the next page.
Serves 4
Active Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 15 hours
Lamb Burger
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon harissa
- ¾ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1⅓ pounds grassfed ground lamb
- 1½ cups pea greens or arugula
- 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 4 quarter-inch-thick red onion slices
- 1 cup grassfed sheep’s milk yogurt or Greek yogurt
- 1 cucumber, diced small, plus some additional cucumber, sliced thin
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced
- 1 tablespoon butter
Directions
- Mix lamb, paprika, cumin, and salt together. Shape into four ¾-inch-thick patties.
- Heat olive oil in large skillet. Add patties and cook over medium-high heat, 4 minutes per side for medium.
- Mix together the yogurt, salt, lemon zest, cucumber, and harissa. Set aside.
- Spread a thin layer of butter on four buns. Broil buns until golden, about 2 minutes.
- Top each bun bottom with tzatziki, onion and cucumber slices, and burger.
- Place greens and feta cheese atop burgers.
Sourdough Buns
- 1 cup fresh sourdough starter
- 1½ tablespoons butter, room temperature
- ¼ cup lukewarm milk
- 1 egg, beaten
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1½ cups sprouted white wheat flour
Directions
- Mix together sourdough starter, butter, milk, egg, and salt. Mixture may be chunky.
- Add flour gradually, mixing with a spoon until it comes together enough to turn out onto a breadboard.
- Knead the dough until it is smooth, about 10-20 minutes.
- Place dough in a cool spot overnight to ferment or in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
- Let it rest at room temperature for 15-20 minutes, then roll it out to ½-inch thick.
- Use a biscuit cutter to cut bun shapes and transfer them to an ungreased baking sheet.
- Cover the buns lightly with a cloth and let rise until doubled in bulk -between 1 and 4 hours depending on the temperature of the room.
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Bake buns for 18-20 minutes.
- Let cool completely before slicing in half horizontally.
Chef Taylor Allen attended San Diego Culinary Institute where she acquired knowledge of traditional French cooking techniques. Taylor is available for personal, in-home ancestral food preparation and real-food kitchen retrofits throughout San Diego and Los Angeles Counties. She specializes in GAPS protocol as well as paleo and gluten- and casein-free meals. Contact her at [email protected] for more information.
Check out other Chef Taylor Allen recipes:
Salmon with Roasted Poblano & Caper Salsa and Fingerling Potatoes
Published in the Price-Pottenger Journal of Health & Healing
Spring – Summer 2019 | Volume 43, Number 1
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