I know the peas are rather dominant in the above picture, but it’s the burger we’re concentrating on now. You know how to boil peas. Home-made burgers are great because you can put just about anything you want in them – herbs, spices, lamb, beef, pork or even chicken mince. The version I made yesterday was a very simple, basic recipe that works as a base for improvisation. I put breadcrumbs in because otherwise it can actually be a bit too meaty and falls apart easily.
Ingredients
Makes 2. Multiply as necessary.
Minced beef/lamb/pork/chicken. I’m not giving an amount; just use the power of your brain and eyes to work out how much you’ll need.
½ an onion, finely chopped.
Breadcrumbs
1 egg yolk
Salt and pepper
The Cooking
You need to soften the onion first otherwise it will still be quite raw in the burger when the meat is cooked, so fry the finely chopped onion in some butter or a little oil until it is soft but not burnt – this will take about 5 minutes on a low/medium heat. Now mix it with the meat and egg yolk, salt and pepper and add some breadcrumbs – a tablespoonful at first, then more if you think it needs it to bind all the ingredients together. Use your judgement and don’t worry, you can’t go far wrong.
Isn’t the feel of egg yolk and meat in your hands disgusting, and yet satisfying? I can never decide whether I like it or loathe it.
Divide the mixture into two (or more if you’re making more) and roll them into balls. Squash the ball with the palm of your hand to make it into a burger shape.
In the same pan as you fried the onions, on a high heat fry the burgers for about 3 minutes on either side. Again, use your judgement. If you’re using pork or chicken mince, you definitely want it to be cooked all the way through so give it a while longer. Ta dah, they’re done.
Some suggestions as to what else to put in them: chilli, cumin, parsley, thyme, rosemary or mint (both good with lamb), coriander. Don’t go mad and chuck them all in, but just improvise with what you’ve got.
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101 Things Every Cook Should Cook 
May 23, 2007 at 3:21 pm
Worcestershire sauce or onion soup mix are also great in homemade burgers:) i think i know what i’m making for dinne
May 25, 2007 at 5:40 pm
The other reason for softening onions first is that raw onion can impart a distict bitter taste to the meat.
May 26, 2007 at 5:35 pm
Im addicted to your blog, but not too sure about this one… breadcrumbs and egg in a burger just makes it seem cheap… like meatloaf. I really feel that a burger should be just 100% meat and seasoning. Im sure it was nice enough, but i will stick with doing them my way!
Love your blog 🙂
March 31, 2008 at 1:51 pm
The egg and breadcrumbs to help to bind the mixture, but if you press these in the morning and leave them chiling in the fridge all day, by the evening they will be sufficiently set. You can also add suet which gives the burgers a little moisture.
April 19, 2008 at 9:26 pm
I agree…the eggs and breadcrumbs make the burger taste processed and cheap…if you just use some seasonings and some onions you get a nice meaty burger with good flavour. Also…I find the eggs and breadcrumbs make the burger fall apart…a pure beef mixture seems to stay together no problem.
March 4, 2011 at 2:07 pm
What absolute tosh!
Breadcrumbs absorb the juices of the meat making it taste jucier. Particularly good if you like a well done burger rather than risk undercooked mince.
March 19, 2011 at 5:35 am
I agree. I just tried it the other night – no egg! As long as you are careful with how you make the patty, it is MUCH better without egg.
May 23, 2008 at 9:18 pm
this is aswome
October 9, 2008 at 5:32 pm
i rather like finely sliced red chili for something a little different
April 26, 2009 at 12:20 am
Tim H the whole purpose of the egg is so that it doesn’t fall apart…an egg yolk holds the burger together and doesn’t really have any effect on the flavor.
May 1, 2009 at 11:00 pm
Hi there
what could we cook for 4 children and 3 adult’s on a hot sunny day out side
May 11, 2009 at 2:16 pm
Hey great recipie, I used mashed kidney beans instead of breadcrumbs, it came out great!
June 1, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Hey i love it im single ha ha jj
September 10, 2009 at 4:44 am
I the pan cooking method works just fine, but to make a GREAT burger, you really need to grill it. Anything else just isn’t the same.
Might also be worth mentioning that the bun is also really important factor. You’d be surprised how much a nice bun, lightly toasted, adds to the burger taste!
Making myself hungry just typing this… 🙂
December 7, 2009 at 7:32 pm
i made some burgers put in onion,breadcrumbs,cumin,garam masala,coriander. taste ok but something missen could you help please
January 10, 2010 at 7:01 pm
I made this and it gave me the skitters, any advice would be useful, thanks
March 12, 2010 at 7:07 pm
Hey just made this I added Garvey and onion to the fryed burgers and let simmer for 20 min on low heat and had it with creamy mash it was Delish…. It was my first time to use bread crumbs and I put in a full slice of bread I didn’t read the table spoon part ha. Have to say will be doing it again it made the burgers soft and moist
April 3, 2010 at 2:58 pm
looks very dry
July 29, 2010 at 11:48 am
is this the only recipe that you can put with homemade beef burgers? pic looks unproffesional!
April 3, 2011 at 12:07 am
it dose not matter if it looks professional or not it’s to show you how it should look, mine fell apart once it was cooked and looked nothing like yours, i will try again
December 14, 2010 at 2:38 am
What do you think about expiring domains?
April 17, 2011 at 10:39 pm
Can’t really get my head around cooking a burger in a pan as I am a bbq puritan. Have cooked thousands of burgers in my time. However, the best bugers are always really simple, just use the meat and season with garlic granules, crushed black pepper and a little soy sauce while they are cooking. Full recipe is on my bbq-uk.info website if you would like to look.
April 29, 2011 at 12:39 am
thanks for this recipe, dinner was lovely!
May 31, 2011 at 7:02 pm
Hey all. 2nd crack at making burgers but results in the same problem. I’m currently putting finely chopped onions, cumin, Dijon, oregano, 1 egg yolk , and breadcrumbs. First time the patty was way too soft. So it fell apart. So the 2nd time around I put more breadcrumbs and less onion. It held better but the center still tastes mushy. It bothers me because I can’t quite tell if it’s cooked. I’m cooking on grill 5 minutes each side. So I decided to over cook one on purpose. 10 minutes on each side. So it’s practically burnt. But it still is kinda soft. It feels and tastes more like meatloaf than a burger. What am I doing wrong ?
January 13, 2012 at 7:26 pm
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March 7, 2012 at 8:56 am
If you want your patties to stay flat, don’t forget to make a depression in the centre with your thumbs. Otherwise, they tend to swell in the middle. That’s fine if you plan to eat the patty as a single item on a plate, but if you want to assemble a ‘work of art’ in a toasted bun with lettuce, mayo and tomato etc., you’ll find your ‘fixin’s’ falling out all over the place!
March 17, 2012 at 4:13 pm
Just wondering could you put a bit of curry powder to spice it up?