Kefta Burgers

I got out the grill for the first time this year.  Oof, it needed a cleaning.

I did a recipe for keftas way-way back in the early days of the blog, but that was for the traditional version.  This time, I made them burger sized and put them on the grill.  I make them mostly the same as I did 15 years ago, but all recipes evolve.  And I had a super huge green onion from the garden to work with, so this one's onion-heavy.

In the theme of making this a garden meal, I had my burgers with chard and a cucumber-mint soup that used up the rest of the green onion and some cucumbers I had in the fridge.  Not exactly a typical 4th of July barbecue, but it worked for me.

1 lb ground lamb
*1 C finely chopped green onion
*1/4 C finely chopped parsley
*1/4 C finely chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
4 hamburger buns, for serving

1.  In a bowl, combine all ingredients.  Knead well to distribute the seasonings evenly.  Chill for an hour for the flavors to meld while you heat up the grill.

2.  Form meat into four patties.  Set on the grill.  Every grill is different, and uses a different type of heat.  Even two piles of charcoal will produce different results.  With the lid closed, my burgers took ten minutes per side to get to medium doneness.  They're ready to flip when they come off the grate easily.  That's how you know you have char.  You can also temp them to about 160º.  Remember, ground meat should be a higher internal temperature than steaks or roasts.

3.  Serve on the buns, toasted if desired.  I considered a tahini dressing, then decided to have them naked.  I didn't even put any veggies on it.  Dress them as desired.

Difficulty rating  π