Danish Hamburger - Dansk Hakkebøf

Danish hamburger or Hakkebøf med bløde løg, is a traditional danish dish. Normally it is served with a brown gravy made with the dripping from the frying of the hamburger and onions. I rarely make brown gravy, but my mom always made it, she put the onions in the gravy, making it extra yummy. But if you want to indulge you can serve the hamburger with béarnaise sauce.

A hamburger/hakkebøf is a cheaper take on a steak dinner, great for a weeknight.

Serves 3-4.

Ingredients:

• 1 Ib (450 g) ground beef (7-10% fat)
• salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 2 large onions
• oil for frying

Directions:

Form 3-4 round hamburgers season with salt freshly ground pepper. Fry them in a little oil or butter on a large frying pan for 5-7 minutes on each side.

Peel the onion and slices them thinly. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat, Fry the onions until they get soft, translucent and get some golden caramelizing. Season with salt. Add a splash of water to prevent to much browning.

Serve the hamburgers with boiled potatoes, the soft onions and petit green peas. 

Enjoy!

How to Cook the Perfect Steak

The Perfect Steak

In my family we like a good steak. We have been trying to find the best technique to get the perfect prepared steak every time. We have been sous vide-ing steaks, the nerdy way to getting a  steak with the same color and temperature all the way trough the steak. But not all people have the equipment to cook sous vide, even though it's become more affordable the last couple of years.

I think it's a lot of work and effort, making a water bath and vacuuming the steak, for just ONE steak. The time aspect is another thing. Sous vide 2 hours at 131℉/55℃, or 8 minutes in a skillet at high heat. If we were having company, I would make it sous vide for making more than 3 steaks.

A few years ago we started to slice up the cooked steak, and sharing just one steak. Somehow I think a steak is more enjoyable thinly sliced. I know some people likes a large steak for themselves, go ahead and indulge. But I find less is more, when you get a good quality meat.

I alway buy grass-fed boneless ribeye steaks at Whole Foods Market. They are about an inch (3 cm) thick, with a good marbling. 

After a lot of trials, I perfected my steak-cooking-skills, and this is how I cook the perfect steak.

Serves 1-2.

Ingredients:

• 1 ribeye steak
• olive oil
• salt & pepper
• 1-2 teaspoons butter, cold and salted
• 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
• 1-2 sprigs of thyme

Directions:

Let the Steak get to room temperature. 

Pad the steak dry with a paper towel, and season it with a good amount of salt and some cracked pepper.

Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Sear the steak on both sides, and keep turning the steak every 20-30 second, still over high heat. This will cook the steak faster than just flipping the steak just once. 

By flipping just once, the steak won't cook faster or more evenly, it's just easier. Generally you can say, that the more you turn the steak, the faster and more uniformly it will cook. Of cause within limits. When you sear food the surface touching the skillet, will quickly get hot, dehydrate, caramelize and get well done and overcooked. The overcooked part will act as an insulation layer between the heat source and the rest of the food. Resulting in longer cooking time and sometimes even burn food. By flipping the steak more often, you get a cooling of the searing surface, helping to heat up the center of the steak, and getting less of an insulating layer. 

Keep cooking and turning until just under the preferred doneness. (Rare: 130℉/54℃, Medium-Rare: 135℉/57℃, Medium:  146℉/63℃, Well done:  155℉/68℃.)  Generally I cook the steak until it has a dark sear, and the steak has some give to it, about 8 minutes in total, this will result in a medium to medium rare steak.

Turn off the heat, add butter, thyme and garlic. Baste or turn the steak in the now seasoned butter, and let it rest for a few minutes.

Slice the steak in thin slices, and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Lemon Marinated Skirt Steak

Lemon Marinated Skirt Steak

I love grilling skirt steak. You can marinate the meat to make it fit the cuisine you are aiming for. The beef flavors are pretty intense and the it is not as pricy as regular steaks. Here I marinated the skirt steak in a soy-lemon marinate, giving the meat a clean bright flavor. 

Serves 3-4.

Ingredients:

• 700 g (1 ½  pounds) skirt steak
• coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 lemon, for serving
• fresh coriander, for serving

Marinade:

• 60 ml (¼  cup) extra-virgin olive oil
• 60 ml (¼  cup) soy sauce 
• 2 lemons, the juice from 
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed

Directions:

Place the skirt steak in a ziplock bag, and add the ingredients for the marinade. Rub the marinade into the meat. Let the meat marinate for at least 1 hour at room temperature, or up to 6 hours in refrigerator.

Heat grill to medium-high. Remove meat from marinade and pat off excess juices with some paper towel. Grill the meat, just turning once, until  medium/medium rare about 5 minutes on each side. Transfer the meat to a cutting board, cover with some aluminum foil and let stand to rest for about 5 minutes.

Thinly slice meat against the grain (muscle fibers) and serve it with some cilantro on top, and lemon slices on the side. I served the warm Asian-style slaw on the side, but you can easily serve the meat in tacos.

Enjoy!