Mum's Paneer Burgers & Green Chutney

This recipe has been a recent family favourite! My mum dug it up from her archives a couple of months ago and we have a newfound obsession with this burger!

The burger is served in pitta bread with some tomato, lettuce and finished off with a dollop of homemade green chutney.

It is perfect served alongside a salad or tabbouleh - thanks for this recipe mum!

Makes 5 large burgers.

BURGERS

The burgers are super simple and easy to make.

Begin by peeling, washing and chopping 4 medium red potatoes.

I chopped the potatoes into quarters, but you can chop them however you like, as long as they are all cut into roughly the same size pieces. The potatoes will be boiled and if the potato chunks are different sizes they won't all be cooked at the same time.

Boil the potatoes for about 15 - 20 mins until they are soft.

TIP: To check if the potatoes are cooked, stick a knife through a piece of potato and if the knife glides into the potato easily it is cooked.

Once cooked, drain and mash the potatoes until smooth.

Leave the mashed potatoes aside to completely cool.

Next, put the cooled mashed potato into a large bowl and to the bowl add 1 block of grated paneer cheese (roughly 220 g), 20 g grated ginger, 3 green chillies (diced) and a handful of chopped coriander.

Be careful when chopping the green chillies and wash your hands straight after touching them.

Mix until well combined.

Once mixed, season with salt (to taste) 1 tsp sugar and 2 tbsp lemon juice.

The lemon juice can be either fresh or bottled.

Mix again.

To form the mixture into burger shapes use an upside-down cookie cutter.

First, line a baking tray with some greaseproof paper, then place an upside-down cookie cutter on top of the baking paper. Using a teaspoon fill the cutter with the burger mixture and spread evenly.

The burgers should be quite thick (roughly 3/4").

Once you have your desired shape, pull the cookie cutter away from the burger.

Repeat until all of the burger mixture is used.

Refrigerate the burgers for at least 30 mins.

Preheat the oven to 220°c / 200°c (fan).

Cook the burgers for roughly 40 mins on the middle shelf of the oven. They should come out of the oven crispy and golden brown.

Serve immediately.

GREEN CHUTNEY

To make the green chutney you will need a food processor.

To the food processor add a large handful of chopped coriander, 3 green chillies (cut into thirds), 2 cloves of garlic, salt (to taste), 1/2 tsp cumin powder and 4 tbsp water.

Blend until smooth.

Spread the chutney over the burger just before eating.

INGREDIENTS:

For the burgers:

• 4 medium red potatoes (cut into quarters)

• 1 block of paneer - roughly 220 g (grated)

• 20 g ginger (grated)

• 3 green chillies (diced)

• A handful of coriander (chopped)

• Salt (to taste)

• 1 tsp sugar

• 2 tbsp lemon juice (fresh or bottled)

• Pitta bread/buns

For the green chutney:

• Large handful coriander (chopped)

• 3 green chillies (cut into thirds)

• 2 cloves of garlic

• Salt (to taste)

• 1/2 cumin powder

• 4 tbsp water

METHOD (Burger):

1. Firstly, boil the chopped potatoes for about 15 - 20 mins until cooked through and soft.

2. Once cooked, drain and mash the potatoes until smooth. Leave the mashed potatoes to one side to cool.

3. After the potatoes have completely cooled transfer the mash to a large bowl and add the grated paneer, ginger, green chillies and coriander to the bowl. Mix until well combined.

4. Next, season the burger mixture with salt, sugar and lemon juice.

5. Line a baking tray with greaseproof baking paper and use a cookie cutter to mould the mixture into burger shapes (see above for an in-depth explanation on this step).

6. Refrigerate the burgers for at least 30 mins.

7. To cook the burgers preheat the oven to 220°c / 200°c (fan). Cook for roughly 40 mins on the middle shelf of the oven. They should come out of the oven crispy and golden brown.

8. Serve immediately in either a pitta or burger bun.

METHOD (Green chutney):

1. Add all of the chutney ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth.

2. Spread the green chutney over the paneer burgers just before serving.