Perfect hamburger – your step by step guide

All right… Hamburger. The quintessence of junk food, well, besides hotdog, of course… But really, to make a really good burger is very much not a trivial job, mind you! Nailing that perfect balance of taste in the patty, ensuring the texture is just right, using just the amount of sauce required (and creating that sauce too!) – that’s a never ending journey… I’ve spent over 10 years perfecting my burger patty recipe and yet, after a trip down to Tasmania, it got a new twist!

Curious? Great! I’ve got a true step by step guide for you, so let’s go!

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Coconut Curry with Prawns

This recipe is a bit different from what I usually cook, and I indeed am stepping out of my comfort zone! I’ll be honest – I don’t like coconuts, and this is quite the only way I actually enjoy them – when it’s coconut cream and it’s used in a sauce or a caramel.

Now this quick dish goes wonderful with steamed rice, fried rice or even pasta sauce!

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No-dough ricotta cheesecake

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Hi mates,

Today’s recipe is for a dish I remember since I was about 4 years old. Something very similar was an all times favorite of all the school and kindergarden kitchens in ex-USSR – yeah, I happened to be born in Moldova, one of the republics. This is one of those things you are either crazy about, or consider it your worst culinary nightmare, and I admit, I belong to the former. Yesterday I got 2 kg of fresh ricotta from my local deli – the DeliHub in St Ives, NSW (big shoutout to these guys – there’s no week I am not there!), hence this old times relic was brought back to life by my wife and here we go!

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Pork fillet & bacon roll

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Hi mates!

It’s been a long while, as I’ve been busy with my other projects, which I will be delighted to share with you quite soon. My wood workshop has been made fully operational and I am trying my luck as a hobbyist woodworker.

However, my barbie was not given any days off! So here is a quick and very easy to make pork fillet roll, grilled, needless to mention. And with some extra bacon reinforcement it really is a treat!

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Chicken pilaf (plov) – when you want your rice in style

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Despite its simplicity, this dish has a history of thousands of years. Pilaf, or palov, osh-palov, biryani, pulão… It has known countless variations in India, Balkan, Caucasian, central and south Asian countries, and it’s basis is rice, cooked in a seasoned broth. The usual meat of choice is lamb, but here’s a version of the same dish, but with chicken.

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Quick’n’Easy marinated mushrooms – Russian classics

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It is quite an interesting fact that marinated mushrooms are most known as classic Russian dish, regardless of the fact many world kitchens make an extensive use of this wonderful ingredient. Marinated mushrooms – be it champignons or any other – were mostly considered either as pickles or, more popular, as the bite following a shot of an ice chilled vodka. So, as a tribute to this wonderful dish, here’s my version of it – quick, easy and very tasty!

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Mpiftekia (Greek burgers) and souvlaki – simple pleasures

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Hi there!

When I posted this photo on my Facebook page I wrote “burgers and kabobs”. However, since I got quite a few complaints from my Greek speaking friends (and working in a company with a big branch in Cyprus, I have a bunch of those 🙂 ), I decided to give this post a Greek spirit. So, today we are grilling mpiftekia – Greek burgers, and souvlaki – chicken thigh fillet skewers. And yeah, you’ll get extra points if you’re able to actually pronounce those names 🙂 🙂 🙂

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