Whenever I do a shop, I usually grab one or two kilogram packs of beef mince, split each pack into three and freeze it. This has become such a habit that the freezer has become quite flush with packs of frozen mince.

To reduce the stock levels I made burgers the other night and these are, no lie GI, the best burgers ever…this recipe comes from the book in the picture which is one of those series that you see on bargain bin tables in bookshops – it is part of a series and so far I have the Burger, Mince, Garlic and Chili titles. I haven’t made many verbatim from the text but I find that most of not all the recipes are good foundations for local pattern modification and experimentation.

The Makin’s

1 small onion

350-450 grams of beef mince

(at least) 1 large garlic clove

1 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground coriander or coriander seed (I always prefer the latter)

1 tsp wholegrain mustard

2 tbsp tomato puree or ketchup

1 dash of Worcester sauce

2 tbsp (total) of assorted fresh herbs chopped finely

One small egg

Breadcrumbs to bulk out if too much egg.

The Makin’

Slice’n’dice the onion and garlic and fry until softened.

Mix the onion, garlic and all the other makin’s in a  bowl, adding breadcrumbs if the egg makes the mix too moist.

Form the mix into patties and fry over medium heat.

Serve according to taste or preference…

In this instance I served the burgers with cabbage, and mashed potato and pumpkin. A day or two before I had overhead an item on TV or the radio – unsure of the the source so I can not attribute it – about cooking eggs ‘properly’ and I gave this a shot for this meal too…

Heat water in a small pan ’til it’s boiling; remove it from the heat and turn the hotplate to its lowest setting. Let the water cool a little while you get the eggs from wherever you store them.

Break the eggs into the water and let them cook slowly over the lowest heat. This doesn’t take long and you can see them cook as the egg white changes from clear to white. This process gives you soft whites and runny yolks and is awesome as the yolks runs over and blends with the burger…

I’ve tried this a few times since and every time a coconut: nice soft whites and exquisitely runny yolks…