Biftekia

Greek burgers with the flavour baked in. Also known as Burgers.

Rating: (1)Serves: 4Serve With: PotatoesCooking Method: BakeReady In: 2 hours Prep Time: 1 hours 30 mins Cook Time: 30 mins
MED
Energy Density
1.9kcal/g
MED
Fat
59g / serving
MED
Saturates
19g / serving
LOW
Sugars
1.6g / serving
MED
Salt
2.7g / serving
LOW
Fibre
4.3g / serving
Free-from:
Suitable for:FreezerLong-lifePartyPregnancy

I've had biftekia in Greece many times and am always struck by how tender they are and how much flavour they have. The secret is to bake the flavour in rather than add sauces etc afterward.

Preparation

  1. Grate the tomato and red onion, or blitz them in a food processor - you want them reasonably fine but not a full paste - thre should be some texture still there
  2. Blitz the bread into breadcrumbs
  3. Mix all the ingredients together. Mix well and knead for around 10 minutes. Alternatively if you have a mixer with a dough hook then use this on low speed for around 10 mins. The mix shouldn't be very sticky, if it is add more breadcrumbs. Equally it shouldn't be dry - if it is add a little water.
  4. Place the mix in a bowl in the fridge for at least 10 minutes but ideally around an hour
  5. Remove from the fridge for 5-10 mins before cooking
  6. Use you hands to grab lumps of mixture that are large palm sized - bigger than a pool ball but smaller than a tennis ball - and roll. Then squash into a pattie sharp leaving the edges thicker than the middle (create a little concave shape on both sides in the middle). You should get approx 15 patties
  7. Place the patties on an oiled grill tray and place in a 200°C oven for 15 minutes
  8. Turn the patties after 15 mins and cook for a further 10-15 mins on the other side
  9. If you like a grill char on your burgers you can give them around 1 minute on each side on a hot griddle pan (pre-oiled)
  10. Remove and allow to rest for 4-5 minutes
  11. Serve with a slice of lemon

Notes

  • You can freeze the raw mix. I recommend separating it into burger size pieces and wrapping in clingfilm. The recipe makes approx 1.8kg of mix, which can be formed into 12 burgers of 150g where each burger is 1/3 of a pound and contains a similar amount of *meat* to a quarter-pounder

Ingredients

  • 500g pork mince
  • 500g beef mince
  • 1 large whole tomato
  • 1 large red onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 8 slices bread
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 tbsp fresh parsley
  • 1 tbsp dried oregano
  • 1.5 tbsp dried mint
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp ground black pepper
  • 0.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Equipment

  • Large grill pan
  • Bowl
  • Knife
  • Grater

Nutritional Facts

  • Serving size: 484.8g
  • (36% / 46%)   Calories: 912kcal
  • (107%)Total fat: 59g
  • (95%)   Saturated fat: 19g
  • (89%)   Unsaturated fat: 31.1g
  •     Mono: 25g
  •     Poly: 6.1g
  • (99%)   Cholesterol: 297mg
  •   Trans Fat: 1g
  • (13%)Total carbohydrates: 39g
  •   Starch: 0g
  • (5%)   Sugars: 1.6g
  •     Sucrose: 1g
  •     Glucose: 2.2g
  •     Maltose: 0.9g
  •     Lactose: 0g
  •     Fructose: 2.3g
  •     Galactose: 0g
  • (17%)   Fibre: 4.3g
  • (110%)Protein: 55g
  • Salts
  • (54%)   Sodium: 1.1g
  • (34%)   Potassium: 1.2g
  • Minerals
  • Calcium: 20%
  • Iron: 76%
  • Zinc: 88%
  • Magnesium: 25%
  • Phosphorus: 80%
  • Copper: 33%
  • Manganese: 5%
  • Selenium: 230%
  • Fluoride: 0%
  • Cryptoxanthin: 7mg
  • Lycopene: 16%
  • Lutein: 0.7g
  • Vitamins
  • Vitamin A: 123µg
  • Thiamin (B1): 25%
  • Riboflavin (B2): 25%
  • Niacin (B3): 21%
  • Vitamin B5: 8%
  • Vitamin B6: 8%
  • Folate (B9): 13%
  • Vitamin B12: 13%
  • Choline: 21%
  • Vitamin C: 48%
  • Vitamin D: 14%
  • Vitamin E: 13%
  • Vitamin K: 194%
  •  
  • Arginine: 0.3g
  • Aspartic Acid: 0.4g
  • Glutamate: 0.5g
  • Glycine: 0.2g
  • Proline: 0.2g
  • Serine: 0.3g
  • Tyrosine: 0.2g
  • Alanine: 0.2g
  • Cystine: 4mg
  • Amino Acids
  • Histidine: 96mg
  • Isoleucine: 0.2g
  • Leucine: 0.4g
  • Methionine: 0.1g
  • Phenylalanine: 0.2g
  • Threonine: 0.2g
  • Tryptophan: 58mg
  • Valine: 0.3g
  • Lysine: 0.3g
  • Betaine: 0mg

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