[net.cooks] Roqueburgers

emmyl (05/04/83)

A marvelous recipe from "The Fast Gourmet Cookbook".  BUT, obey
the suggestion to use only the best ground beef or they turn out
tough.

"ROQUEBURGERS . . . At the London Chop House they use the trimmings
of prime aged beef to make their burgers.  Moral: Get good meat and
have it freshly ground.  To make 6 Roqueburgers, you will need 2-1/2
pounds chopped beef.  Stir in 2 eggs, 2 tablespoons finely chopped
onion, 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4
teaspoon pepper.  Form into 12 patties 1/2-inch thick.  For the
filling: blend together 1/4 pound Roquefort cheese or any other good
sharp blue cheese, 4 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon Cognac.  Stir
until smooth, form into 6 balls.  Chill until needed.  Please each
ball between 2 patties.  Press edges firmly together.  Broil quickly
3 to 5 minutes on each side or to the doneness of your desire.

emmyl@crimson.UUCP (06/16/83)

Recently tried my Roqueburger recipe (just after posting it to
the net).  On advice from my butcher used *less lean* hamburger
and they turned out very dry.  Read recently that the *coarser*
the hamburger is, the less dry it becomes while cooking.  Next
time I am going to try coarsely ground chuck that isn't too lean
and see what happens.

As for knife sharpening.  I used to think I couldn't learn to use
a steel (like butchers use) for sharpening until a friend made me
try it.  It was awkward at first, but I kept practising until now
I just whip it out and give the knife a few swipes and have an
instantly sharp knife - much faster than any other method after
you get the hang of it and no little metal filings to wipe off.
Think it is much easier on the knife blade, too.