I am so in love with nut salsas at the moment. The idea of a chunky crunchy sauce that works to both flavour and provide substance is so useful to have in your repertoire.
It’s amazing for turning a humble burger patty into a truly special meal. But also works equally well with fish, chicken or even an omelette.
And I should mention I’m also in love with this method for baking burgers in a hot oven.
It takes a little more time than the frying pan. And you don’t get the same brown crust.
But it’s so much easier to pop it in the oven and set your timer without keeping a watchful eye on a sizzling pan.
Burgers with Mint & Almond Salsa
Ingredients
- 450 g ground (minced) beef or lamb
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 100 g flaked (sliced) almonds 2 large handfuls
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 bunch mint chopped
- 1 bag salad leaves to serve
Instructions
- Turn your oven to 250C (480F).
- Add the salt to the meat. Using your hands form into 4 burger patties about 1.5cm (1/2 in thick).
- Place patties on a rimmed baking sheet or tray. Drizzle with a little oil and bake for 10-15 minutes or until burgers are browned and no longer pink in the middle.
- While the burgers are cooking, fry almonds in a pan on a medium high heat with a little oil until golden brown. Place on paper towel to cool for a few minutes.
- Place toasted almonds in a medium bowl with lemon juice, chopped mint, 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and pinch of salt. Stir. Taste and season with more salt and/or lemon juice as needed.
- When the burgers are cooked, divide between 2 plates. Top with salsa and serve salad leaves on the side.
Nutrition
Substitutions
pantry-friendly – skip the mint or use 1/2 teaspoon dried mint. Serve with steamed frozen greens.
short on time – pan fry burgers on a medium high heat for 3-5 minutes on each side.
vegetarian – serve salsa with an omelette, pan fried halloumi or eggplant ‘steaks’ or zucchini burgers.
nut-free – use sourdough bread crumbs instead. Or sunflower or pumpkin seeds (pepitas).
garlicky – add a minced (finely chopped) clove of garlic to the salsa.
more substantial (carb lovers) – burger buns or fries.
more substantial (low carb) – extra almonds, macadamias, crumbled feta, avocado or mayonnaise or almond burger buns or almond hummus.
Low FODMAP – replace almonds with macadamias.
different protein – any ground minced meat will work. Or serve salsa with roast chicken, steak, pan fried fish (it’s amazing with salmon)
lighter – this is quite a bit of meat. I generally serve 2 patties for my Irishman and 1 for me. And keep the other for lunch.
different herbs – parsley, basil, oregano or coriander (cilantro). Or a combo.
different nuts – whole almonds (chop after toasting), macadamias, walnuts, or pistachios.
more fancy / for entertaining – serve with a fancier side like my Best-Ever Broccoli Salad, Zucchini ‘Noodle’ & Pesto Salad, Hasselback Potatoes or Kale Caesar Salad.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
ground lamb or beef (mince) – freeze it.
flaked almonds – keep them in the pantry.
lemon – whole lemon will keep wrapped in a plastic bag in the fridge for months.
mint – best to use for another meal. leaves can be frozen but will wilt when defrosted so not ideal. Alternatively make a mint oil by packing washed and dried leaves in a clean dry glass jar and covering with extra virgin olive oil.
salad leaves – are highly perishable. My first path would be to use them for another meal (salad for breakfast!) but if that isn’t possible you can pop them in the freezer. They will wilt down but can then be used anywhere you’d use wilted greens.
Problem Solving Guide
bland – Add more salt and possibly more lemon.
too dry – Either overcooked meat or your meat was too lean. Next time check earlier in the cooking process. Or add a few tablespoons olive oil to the meat before forming into patties. For now a dollop of mayo or more olive oil can help.
no oven – pan fry the burger patties on a medium high heat for 4-5 minutes on each side or until cooked through and browned.
Prepare Ahead
Best when freshly made. The salsa loses its crunch after an hour or so. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or can be frozen. To serve, warm burgers in the pan with a little oil.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
yeah i’m obsessed with nut salsa too
and i prefer to make burger etc in the oven
but often i skipped it because the time of preheat or two little patties in the big oven
and therefore i love my airfryer
i didn’t want to buy one but now i’m convinced
lg birgit
Yay for Nut Salsas Birgit!
And glad to hear you’re happy with your air fryer 🙂
This was such a quick and easy recipe. Tasty and filling!
So glad you enjoyed Theresa!
My mint is growing like crazy so I’ll have to make the salsa soon. Thanks for the reminder.
I’m looking forward to trying this, especially with the salsa. Last week I did two of your salmon recipes with salsas, and really enjoyed both of them.
GReat Susan!
I’ve really been getting into salsas lately – love that they’re a sauce but also give good texture as well. Actually you’ve inspired me to make this Mint & Almond Salsa with my roast lamb on Saturday – thank you 🙂
I’ve been having a meat-heavy week, so made the zucchini burgers again, still grating the zucchinis by hand, but this time wringing them out in a tea towel. I seasoned the mix with dried herbs and Massel stock powder, but it could have done with even more. They seemed to cook fine in the oven.
I made the salsa with oregano, because I have that growing in my garden, and didn’t mind the almonds getting a bit soft in the lemon juice, and had the burgers, salsa and salad leaves with home-roasted capsicum from a few nights ago, mayo and buns.
Yum Mark!
And glad to hear the zucchini burgers went well in the oven 🙂
You’ve reminded me I need to try a broccoli burger version
Thank you!
Made the salsa with parsley. Good.
Nice one Paul!
Delicious! Previously I have always used an outdoor grill or a frying pan on the stove top for burgers but using an oven-safe pan and your temperature settings produced wonderful results. No flipping or rotating the patties were needed – so easy. I used crushed pistachios in the patties and in the salsa.
Yes it’s much easier isn’t it Murray!
And fab idea to add pistachios to the patties. Yum!