Plump little pork patties pack a punch with ginger and lemon zest, the mixture held firm with egg yolk and moistened by breadcrumbs mixed with crème fraiche. I served them over lentils moistened with stock piled with lightly cooked green beans but they go with anything you fancy or piled into warmed pitta bread with salad.
Serves 2-4
Prep: 20 min
Cook: 25 min
1 large onion
2 tbsp olive oil
10g piece fresh ginger
2 tbsp fresh breadcrumbs
1 tbsp crème fraiche
1 egg yolk
1 small lemon
400g minced pork
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Halve, peel and finely chop the onion. Soften gently in 2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan over a medium-low heat, stirring often while you peel and finely chop or grate the ginger. Now mix the breadcrumbs into the crème fraiche in a mixing bowl and add the egg yolk. Crumble the pork over the top and season lightly with salt and more generously with black pepper. When the onion is slippery soft – at least 15 minutes, maybe longer – microplane grate half the lemon zest over the top and add the ginger. Stir and cook for a few more minutes then scrape the contents of the pan into the mixing bowl. Use a fork to thoroughly mix the ingredients and your hands to form into a ball, having kneaded it into shape. Divide the mix in 4 and form each quarter into 2 little burger shapes between your hands, patting and coaxing them. Place on a plate, cover with clingfilm and chill until you are ready to eat. To cook, heat the vegetable oil in the frying pan over a medium heat and fry in uncrowded batches until firm, resisting the urge to move them until they form a crust – 3-4 minutes before using a palate knife to turn and cook the other side. Serve with a lemon wedge.