Recipe – Hamburger de Mole and Grilled Potatoes

Yesterday morning, before we left for the tianguis, we were discussing what we would eat for supper. We had returned late the night before from some errands and only picked up some essentials for the week, and we had no real plans for the food for the day. Normita was thinking something along the line of a simple fish dish, but alas the fish merchant was not there so we could not get that. We looked at one of the many butchers and we finally decided for making some hamburgers as I had not made any for many many months, and it would give me a chance to test the mini-BBQ for which we had finally found the propane bottles for.

As I was walking through the tianguis thinking about how to prepare the hamburgers, inspiration struck and I thought of seasoning the meat with mole paste. Mole is an interesting Mexican specially, normally in paste form, and that is used as a pungent sauce with a variety of dishes. There are tons of recipes for it and Normita published one for Mole Poblano last fall. At the tianguis there are always a few booths, normally from San Pedro Actopan, a village outside of the city that is famous for his various moles and its mole paste industry. We stopped and tasted a few varieties and we settled for some mole almendrado, a spicy concoction with an almond base, and we found out it was also available in a dried format that keep much longer.

We also picked up about a pound of nice beef from the leg that we had ground twice for a nice smooth texture. After we finished our chores and we were ready for lunch, I setup the BBQ and made those nice juicy hamburgers that turned up stunning. I normally prepare my hamburger patties a few hours before and store them on a plate in the refrigerator, so that the condiments in them have time to mix well and marinate the meat a bit. We will certainly make some again in the coming weeks as we both enjoyed them tremendously.

Ingredients

Hamburgers
1 pound lean double ground beef
4 tbs mole almendrado powder
2 tbs soy sauce
2 tbs Worcestershire sauce
2 tbs brandy
2 tbs sesame oil
Salt & pepper to taste
4 Hamburger buns
2 tbs margarine or butter mixed with garlic and onion paste

Potatoes
3 medium potatoes
3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp herbes de Provence
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

1. In a large bowl break up the meat in a thick layer.
2. Add mole powder, soy sauce, Worcestershire, brandy, sesame oil, and salt and pepper to the top of it.
3. With a fork mix the seasoning with the meat until well incorporated.
4. With your hands create 4 large thick patties and put on a plate to rest. Refrigerate for a few hours.
5. Cut the potatoes in 1/4" slices and place on a large plate.
6. Add half of the herbes de Provence and olive oil as well as salt and pepper to taste.
7. Turn the potatoes and repeat the procedure.
8. Mix the margarine with a bit of garlic and onion paste and spread some inside the buns and on the top and bottom of them.
8. Heat up you BBQ grill and when hot, cook the potatoes on it until well browned.
9. Put the potatoes on an ovenproof platter and into a low oven to keep warm.
10. Cook the hamburger patties until your preferred doneness is reach and reserve in the warm oven.
11. Warm up the bunds on both sides and then assemble the dish. Serve with your favorite condiments.

Lucito