' SAUDI SLIDER : HASHI ( CAMEL ) BURGER .'

Ras-El-Hanout spiced Australian Camel mince patty, Caramelised onions, Fresh tomato, Green oak lettuce on an Oven baked Panino Roll. 

          I had overheard one day about a couple of months ago now, some my friends talking about how one our supermarket chains sells Camel meat burgers and my ears pricked and immediately this was on my food foraging list. But as time went by, the stores I had visited didn't stock the meat and thought drifted to the back of the pile with al the others. Until the other day I was out shopping in the neighbouring suburbs shopping centre with my youngest son Levi, looking for Mothers Day gifts. When I came across the camel meat burger patties you see below. Camel is very lean and has 1-2% fat, as opposed to beef which has 7-8% fat. This purchase prompted me to research some North african spice blends that I could flavour the camel meat and reform into mini patties for a Saudi slider or mini camel burger. Ras el hanout, which translates to 'head of the shop' originated in Meghribi villages of North Africa and is a blend of any where between 20 to 27 herbs and spices, with quantities varying with the maker. This is a secret guarded from one spice shop to the next and blending is considered an art. Ras el hanout is used for poultry, red meat, game, rice and couscous. The roll I used was store bought par baked and is a Panino roll which in plural 'panini' is the name given to the Italian bread called ciabatta which has been shaped into small rolls.                                                                        
           This saudi slider was put together by making the Ras el hanout spice mix. To make this I used my own interpretation recipe using the main herbs and spices. I placed black peppercorns, ground ginger, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, cardamom seeds, smoked paprika, whole cloves, ground turmeric, sea salt and allspice into a spice blender and blended until mixed. I then removed the pre-formed camel mince patties and placed the mince into a bowl mixing through the spice mix until all the spices had incorporated. In a medium hot frying pan I added some unsalted butter and sauteed off some thinly sliced white onion rings until soft, sweated and caramelised. I then removed them from the pan and set them aside until serving of which they were reheated gently. Next a placed the panino roll into a 220 degree C. oven and baked the roll for 6 minutes, at 3 minutes I brushed the top of the panino with olive oil to brown the crust and finish the baking. This was then removed and allowed to cool until I was able to slice the the roll in half horizontally with a bread knife and then butter each half with good quality unsalted butter immediately while still warm. I foraged my backyard veggie garden for the lettuce leaf, which I simply broke apart to serving size, washed and drained. I sliced some tommy toe variety tomatoes which are a medium sized tomato. I then formed small patties from the spiced camel mince and fried them off in a little olive oil for about 3 minutes each side before removing from the pan and setting aside to rest for a 1 or 2 while I reheated the onions.
              To plate I simple placed the base of the roll in the centre of the plate, topping with a bed of lettuce for the the Ras el hanout spiced camel burger to sit. The caramelised onions were then placed on top of the patty and then a slice of tomato. The burger was then finished with the top of the roll.This was an extremely tasty burger that I will be having again in big form with a yoghurt/garlic sauce. The meat was similar to lamb but I think probably better and a little bit gamey.