Beef burger with beetroot relish and cheddar

Ah, the burger – Sarny's Summer-lovin', beer-guzzlin' cousin and the staple of any good British BBQ.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 6

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12 Jacob's cream crackers

1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped

1 tbsp fresh thyme, finely chopped

500g quality minced beef

1 large free-range egg

Olive oil

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

6 tbsp beetroot relish

6 slices of strong cheddar

A good handful of spinach

6 giant harvest grain baps

For the burgers, I've adapted a recipe from Jamie Oliver which hasn't failed me yet.

Wrap the crackers in a tea towel and smash up until fine, breaking up any big bits with your hands, and put them into a large bowl.

Add the rosemary, thyme and minced beef to the bowl. Crack in the egg and add a good pinch of salt and pepper.

With clean hands, scrunch and mix everything up well. Divide into 6 and pat and mould each piece into a roundish shape about 2cm thick.

Drizzle the burgers with oil, put on a plate, cover and place in the fridge until needed (this helps them to firm up).

Meanwhile, fire up the barbecue. Once the coals are white hot, take the burgers out of the fridge and whack them on the grill. Sear both sides of each burger for about 10 seconds.

For a medium burger, cook for about 5–7 minutes, flipping half-way through. For rare, 3–5 minutes and well done, 7–10 minutes.

Once cooked, transfer the burgers to a plate and place a slice of cheddar on each patty. Loosely cover with foil and leave to rest for 5 minutes.

Cut your baps in half and place a burger on the bottom half of each. Dollop a tablespoon of beetroot relish on each, topped with a few spinach leaves. Close 'em up and serve.