So what's this DIY burger kit business?
Soon after the lockdown started, Patty & Bun (among London's best burger purveyors) closed down for the duration. But soon after, they worked out a way to make sure that everyone in London could still get a Patty & Bun fix. They've teamed up with butchers HG Walter, who provides the meat for their burgers to deliver everything you need to create two of Patty & Bun's most popular burgers at home.
Frankly, we loved the idea of that, so we had to give it a try.
What burgers will I be able to make?
The two key Patty & Bun burgers you can make at home are the Ari Gold cheeseburger and the Smokey Robinson bacon burger. You can buy a box that just concentrates on one type of burger, or get a mix of both. You'll have enough in the box to make four burgers in total.
So what comes in the box?
We've laid that all out below:
This was the combo box, for both the Smokey Robinson and the Ari Gold. So you'll get four burgers (in packs of two), four buns (also sealed in packs of two, four pieces of streaky bacon, pickled onions, caramelised onions, cheese and Patty & Bun's smoky mayo.
Is that all we need to recreate the burger?
Not quite - you'll also need a tomato, some lettuce (ideally baby gem) and tomato sauce. If you're missing the first two, it's not the end of the world - you'll still be able to pull together a pretty great burger.
To start with, we'd suggest that you have everything laid out and ready before you cook the burger. Here's what goes into each version:
The Ari Gold features the bun, burger, tomato, pickled onions, cheese, gem lettuce and burger mayo (plus tomato sauce)
The Smokey Robinson is the burger, bun, cheese, lettuce, tomato (not pictured), caramelised onions, burger mayo, ketchup and crispy streaky bacon. Word of advice - get that bacon cooked first as we have above (i.e. before you start making the burger).
And then it's just a case of cooking the burger?
More or less (but remember to season the burger first). They recommend frying 4 minutes per side to create a juicy burger - but for our tastes, we did cut that back a bit. Our own method starts with 5-6 mins frying over a high heat (turning every 30 seconds). Then we placed the cheese on the burger and covered with a cloche out for a further two minutes, over a low heat (see below) while also toasting the bun during those final two minutes (a muffin rack over a toaster is perfect for this).
Yes, you can grill the cheese (or even use a blowtorch) but this is by far our preferred method. For the last two minutes, pop the cheese on the burger and then cover the whole thing with a cloche (in this case, a stainless steel mixing bowl). Nothing melts the cheese better while also maintaining a juicy burger, in our opinion.
And how were the results?
We were very pleased with how our two burgers turned out
First up, the Ari Gold. Note in this (and the below) how well the cheese melts under the cloche - you'll never go back after trying it. Yes, we forgot the lettuce in this one (had to shove it in after the pic).
Here's the Smokey Robinson. We put everything in the recipe into this one - but in future may leave out the tomato - just added a little too much height. Amazing bacon from HG Walter rounded things off very nicely.
Overall thoughts?
We absolutely loved this burger kit and were extremely pleased with the results. It's also handy that it's essentially packed in pairs, so you could always consider freezing a pair of burgers and buns for later use. Highly recommended - we'll definitely be getting this again and we really hope it's something that they continue with post lockdown.
Now we'd like to see similar burger kits from the rest of London's burger elite. Please?
The Patty & Bun Lockdown Kit was sent to us, courtesy of Patty & Bun and HG Walter.
More about The Patty & Bun Lockdown kit
When do they deliver? Inside the M25
How much? £25 per pack of four burgers.
Where can I order it? Either on the Patty & Bun shop website or via HG Walter's website.
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