Cheeseburger with triple-cooked beef dripping chips and beef salt

A seriously indulgent cheeseburger made with thick coarsely ground brisket patties, melted homemade Westcombe cheddar cheese, and deeply sweet caramelised onions on a toasted brioche bun. Alongside, golden triple-cooked chips fried in beef dripping deliver an impossibly crisp finish, dusted with savoury beef salt.

By Mike Reid
From Saturday Kitchen Recipes

Nutri-Score E — This cheeseburger with triple-cooked beef dripping chips and beef salt is a rich, indulgent treat. The generous use of beef dripping, Westcombe cheddar cheese, and mayonnaise makes it high in calories and saturated fat, with minimal fibre or fresh vegetables. Enjoy it as an occasional weekend feast rather than an everyday meal.

Method

Stage 1 — Make the Homemade Burger Cheese (start 4+ hours ahead, or the day before)

1. Warm the milk and sodium citrate. Pop the sodium citrate and whole milk into a heavy-based saucepan and whisk over a medium heat. You want the sodium citrate to dissolve fully and the milk to start gently steaming — whatever you do, don’t let it boil or the texture will suffer.
2. Melt in the cheddar in batches. Add the finely grated Westcombe cheddar in three batches, whisking constantly and keeping the temperature between 70–75°C. The mixture should turn beautifully smooth and glossy as the cheese melts. If it starts to look greasy or like it’s splitting, simply turn the heat down and keep whisking — it will come back together.
3. Season and pour into a tin. Stir in the fine sea salt and a pinch of white pepper. Immediately pour the cheese mixture into a cling film-lined terrine or loaf tin, smooth the surface with a spatula, fold over the cling film, and press out any air bubbles. Pop it in the fridge for at least 4 hours, or overnight, until completely set. Making the cheese a day ahead is a great time-saver.
4. Slice the burger cheese. Once set, turn the cheese out of the tin, peel away the cling film, and cut into slices about 5mm thick. These are your gorgeous homemade burger cheese slices — they’ll melt like a dream over the hot brisket patties.

Stage 2 — Triple-Cook the Beef Dripping Chips (start 2 hours before serving)

1. Cut and rinse the potatoes. Cut the Maris Piper potatoes into roughly 1.5cm-thick chips, leaving the skins on for extra texture and flavour. Rinse them under cold running water for a couple of minutes to wash off the excess starch — this helps the triple-cooked chips get wonderfully crisp. Drain them well.
2. Simmer until just tender. Bring a large pan of water to a gentle simmer with 1½ teaspoons of table salt. Add the chips and simmer gently until they’re almost cooked through. They should feel soft when you press one between your fingers, with the edges just beginning to crack, but still holding their shape. Carefully lift them out with a slotted spoon.
3. Steam-dry and chill. Spread the chips in a single layer on a cooling rack set over a baking tray and leave them to steam-dry. Then pop the whole tray in the fridge or freezer, uncovered, until the chips are cold and dry to the touch. This drying step is the secret to achieving that legendary crisp crust later on.
4. First fry at low temperature. While the chips chill, heat the beef dripping to 130°C in a large deep pan — use your kitchen thermometer to check. Fry the chips in batches until a pale, dry crust forms but they haven’t taken on any real colour. Drain them back on the rack, leave to cool, then chill them uncovered again until completely cold. This double chill is what gives triple-cooked chips their incredible texture.
5. Make the beef salt. Crush the beef stock cube to a fine powder using a pestle and mortar or the back of a spoon, then mix it with the remaining 1 teaspoon of table salt. Set the beef salt aside — it’s going to transform your triple-cooked chips into something truly special.

Tip: Stage 1 and the early part of Stage 2 can be done well in advance. The chips need unattended chilling time in between active steps, so plan accordingly.

Stage 3 — Caramelise the Onions (30 minutes before serving, can overlap with the final chip fry)

1. Cook the onions low and slow. Melt 2 tablespoons of beef dripping in a pan over a gentle heat and add the finely sliced onions with a pinch of salt. Cook them patiently, stirring now and then, until they’re very soft and deeply caramelised. This takes a good 20–25 minutes, so resist the urge to rush it. If the onions start to catch on the bottom, add a small splash of water and scrape up those gorgeous browned bits — that’s where the flavour lives.

Stage 4 — Final Fry, Cook the Patties, and Build the Cheeseburgers (15 minutes before serving)

1. Give the chips their final fry. Heat the beef dripping to 190°C. Fry the chips in batches until they’re a deep golden colour and beautifully crisp on the outside. Drain them briefly, then tip them into your large mixing bowl and immediately toss them with the beef salt while they’re still piping hot — the salt sticks perfectly to the fresh-from-the-fryer surface of these triple-cooked chips.
2. Shape and season the brisket patties. While the chips are frying, shape the coarsely ground brisket into two loose rounds, roughly 2cm thick — don’t pack them too tightly or the patties will be dense. Season the outside generously with salt just before cooking. Salting too early draws moisture out, so timing matters here.
3. Sear the patties in beef dripping. Heat a plancha or cast iron griddle pan and add enough beef dripping to coat the surface. Cook the brisket patties on both sides until they’ve developed a deep brown crust and are cooked through. The beef dripping gives them an incredible, rich savoury flavour that you just can’t get from oil alone.
4. Melt the homemade burger cheese. Place a slice of your homemade Westcombe cheddar burger cheese on each patty towards the end of cooking. Cover the pan briefly so the cheese melts beautifully over the top. Rest the patties for a minute while you prep the buns.
5. Toast the buns and assemble. Cut the brioche buns in half and toast them cut-side down in a little butter or beef dripping until golden. Spread a tablespoon of mayonnaise over each bottom half. Set a cheese-topped brisket patty on each bun, pile on the caramelised onions, and add the bun lids. Serve the cheeseburgers straightaway with those glorious triple-cooked beef dripping chips and enjoy every single bite.

Tips for the Best Cheeseburger with Triple-Cooked Chips

• Season the brisket patties with salt immediately before cooking, not before — early seasoning draws out moisture and prevents a good crust forming.
• If the homemade burger cheese sauce starts to look greasy or splits, reduce the heat and keep whisking. It will come back together as the temperature drops.
• Don’t skip the chilling and drying steps for the triple-cooked chips. The drier the surface, the crispier the final result in the beef dripping.
• Add a splash of water to the caramelised onions if they start to catch — the browned bits on the pan base are packed with flavour.
• Caution: Hot beef dripping is dangerous. Never leave it unattended while frying, and keep a close eye on the temperature with your thermometer.

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Cheeseburger with triple-cooked beef dripping chips and beef salt