The chimichurri is a Dominican hamburger, and should not be
confused with the Argentinian sauce of the same name, which is used in the
Lomito. This “chimi,” as
the Dominicans call it, is basically a seasoned beef patty (or burger) served
with fried onions and cabbage, tomato, and cocktail sauce.
The
chimi has one very important accompaniment: ice-cold beer. The Dominicans
appear to take their beer extremely seriously, which is more than all right by
me. The glass should arrive at the table practically glacial and one should be
worried about touching it with bare hands for fear they will stick and you
won’t be able to pick up your chimi.
Makes 2
INGREDIENTS
FOR
THE BURGERS:
1 small onion
½ green bell pepper, seeded
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
14oz (400g) ground beef (fresh beef
mince)
Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
FOR
THE SAUCE:
1 tbsp
mayonnaise
2 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp yellow (American-style) mustard
Pinch of dried oregano
Dash of hot chili sauce
FOR
THE GARNISHES:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
¼ green (white) cabbage, shredded
1 onion, sliced
2 burger buns,
cut in half, to serve
2 ripe tomato slices, to serve
To make the burgers, whizz the onion, bell
pepper, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce together in a food processor until you
have a paste. Mix this with the meat, and season with some salt and pepper.
Shape the meat mixture into 2 patties or burgers. Heat a frying pan or ridged
griddle pan and cook the burgers to your liking.
Meanwhile, to make the sauce, simply mix
everything together and adjust the taste to your liking.
In the meantime, prepare the garnishes. Heat the
vegetable oil in a frying pan and cook the cabbage until softened and beginning
to color. Remove to a plate and keep hot. Do the same with the onion.
To assemble the sandwiches, toast the burger
buns. Place a hot burger in each bun, top with a tomato slice, then some fried
onions and cabbage, and finally drizzle with the sauce. Serve at once.
