The ultimate Christmas burger
If you have Christmas leftovers, use them in this recipe and skip some of the prep. Otherwise, cook the lot from scratch for the ultimate Boxing Day treat.
Ingredients
For the turkey meat
- 2 turkey thighs
- 1 tbsp chopped thyme
- 1 tbsp chopped rosemary
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp goose fat
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the bubble and squeak patty
- 1kg/2lb 4oz potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
- 650g/1lb 7oz swede, roughly chopped
- 500g/1lb 2oz carrots, roughly chopped
- 100²µ/3½´Ç³ú kale, roughly chopped
- 150²µ/5½´Ç³ú butter
- 100²µ/3½´Ç³ú panko breadcrumbs, plus 2 tbsp
- 2 tbsp milk
- 60²µ/2¼´Ç³ú flour
- vegetable oil, for frying
For the stuffing patty
- 5 rashers smoked streaky bacon, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp goose fat
- 2 white onions, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely diced
- 1½ tbsp dried sage
- 60²µ/2¼´Ç³ú fresh breadcrumbs
- 125g/4½oz cooked chestnuts, chopped
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú pistachios, chopped
- 2 apples, cored and finely diced
- 750g/1lb 10oz sausage meat
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the gravy
- 120g/4½oz turkey dripping or butter
- 60²µ/2¼´Ç³ú plain flour
- 1 star anise
- 1 litre/1¾ pints good quality chicken stock
To serve
- 1.36kg/2lb 14oz chuck steak mince (to form into 16 balls of 85g/3oz each)
- 16 slices Jack Cheese
- cranberry Sauce
- 8 brioche buns, sliced and toasted
- 8 slices white bread, cut into bun sized circles
- 8 pigs in blankets, cooked
Method
To make the turkey, season the thighs. Add the thyme, rosemary and cinnamon, toss to coat and cover. Put in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours to marinate, ideally overnight.
Preheat the oven to 140C/120C Fan/Gas 1.
Put the turkey on a roasting tray and cover with the goose fat. Place it the oven for 3 hours. Check the turkey thighs have reached an internal temperature of 96C before removing from the oven and allowing to cool in the goose fat. Once cool enough to handle, remove from the fat, reserving the turkey dripping for later. Pull the turkey meat from the bone and keep warm.
To make the bubble and squeak patty, tip all the vegetables into a large pan of salted water. Bring to the boil over a high heat then simmer gently for 10–15 minutes or until they are tender when pierced with a fork.
Drain the vegetables, return them to the pan and add butter. Using a potato masher, mash until smooth. Add 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs and mix to combine.
Form the mixture into 8 patties. Dip the patties into the flour, then the milk and finally the breadcrumbs, making sure they are coated evenly all over. Place in the fridge to chill.
To make the stuffing patties, sauté the bacon in the goose fat over a high heat until caramelised. Add the onion, garlic and sage. Cook for 2–3 minutes until the onions have softened, then add the breadcrumbs, pistachios, chestnuts and apple. Allow the mixture to cool. Once cold, add the sausage meat, season well, and form into 100²µ/3½´Ç³ú patties.
To make the gravy, melt the turkey dripping or butter in a pan. Add the flour and stir for 5 minutes to create a roux. Add the star anise, then slowly add the warm chicken stock, stirring constantly to make a smooth gravy. Season to taste and keep warm.
To cook the bubble and squeak, heat the vegetable oil in a deep fat fryer to 160C. Alternatively, heat the oil in a deep, heavy-based sauté pan until a breadcrumb sizzles and turns brown when dropped into it. (Caution: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.)
Fry the patties (in batches if necessary) in the hot oil for 3 minutes, or until crisp. Remove from the oil using a slotted spoon, then set aside to drain on kitchen paper. Season with a little salt.
In a separate frying pan over a high heat, cook the stuffing patties for 3–5 minutes until crisp.
Once your bubble and squeak and stuffing patties are ready, it's time to smash your burger patties.
Put two balls of minced chuck in a hot frying pan with a lid, over high heat. Using the back of your spatula press down firmly to flatten the patties to just under 1cm/0.4in in thickness. Season and after 1 minute and 45 seconds, flip the patties and cook for a further 1 minute and 45 seconds.
Add Jack cheese to both patties and a teaspoon of cranberry sauce to your bun lids. Place the bun lids on top of one of the patties then place the lid on the pan for 2–3 minutes to help melt the cheese. Repeat this process with all the buger patties.
While the patties are steaming, place a bubble and squeak patty and stuffing patty onto each of the bottom buns.
Take the circular slices of bread and dip them into the gravy. Place this on top of your stuffing patties.
Top each with two beef patties, followed by the pulled turkey and a little gravy.
Put the lid back on and secure the whole thing with a stick topped with a pig in blanket.
Recipe Tips
This recipe is great if you've got lots of Christmas lunch leftovers, making good use of cooked veg, roasties, stuffing, gravy and turkey. If using leftover turkey, reheat with a little gravy until the turkey reaches an internal temperature of 75C.