Bifteki, the greek cheese hamburger

Greeks are very fond of eating grilled meat. This usually comes from lamb or pork and to a lesser extent from cow or veal. Almost all of us are familiar with souvlakia, probably the most well-known Greek-style meat skewer by tourists. 

Despite their fondness for these preparations, the Greeks do not usually cook meat on the grill at home for reasons of comfort. To taste grilled food - fish, meat or vegetables - they usually always choose the so-called taverns where they are masters in making these recipes prepared on charcoal or wood grills.

 

Unlike the French, in Greece meat is always eaten well done. So in the grill the meat is left until it is well marked, almost burned. The Greeks feel very upset, to the point of stopping eating the meat, if they see blood or the center is just pink.

 

The so-called "bifteki" are hamburgers that are usually filled - not always - with cheese. In fact, I have eaten them with the same name on the island of Rhodes and they did not have any cheese inside.

 

The most perceptive will have realized that "bifteki" sounds like "bistec" or "bife" (in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay), a word that in turn comes from the English "beefsteak". Therefore, the term that for a Latin or American means steak or cut of meat, for a Greek it is a hamburger.

 

It is from Greece, not to mention the Middle East, that the typical cuts of meat in the West practically disappear. We will no longer find steaks with potatoes, filet mignon or ossobucos on restaurant menus.

 

In Arab countries the reason is crystal clear: the cattle are slaughtered removing as much blood as possible and if we tasted the meat with the usual cuts of the West, we would "miss" the taste of blood (that's how vampires we are).

 

In Greece and other former Ottoman rule but non-Muslim countries, there are several reasons for the absence of "real" steak. On the one hand, cattle are quite scarce and cows are eaten, not veal, so the hardness is always greater. On the other hand, the aforementioned Ottoman influence. And finally because the population has become accustomed to eating tender pieces that are easy to chew; If you hand a Greek a somewhat tough steak, he'll probably go to great lengths to swallow every bit.

 

The bifteki is prepared with a mixture of lamb and beef that is kneaded with eggs and spices to make a hamburger in the center of which is placed a slice of cheese. The most common is Kefalograviera, the same one used for saganaki. Unfortunately it is difficult to find, so we can use feta.

 

INGREDIENTS :

 

• 200 grams (7 oz) of minced beef or beef
  
• 200 grams (7 oz) of minced lamb meat (or 400 grams of beef)
  
• 200 grams (7 oz)  of feta cheese cut into relatively thin slices
  
• 1 egg
  
• 1 purple onion
  
• 3 tablespoons minced oregano (oregano is ubiquitous in Greek cooking)
  
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
  
• 1 tablespoon minced thyme (optional)
  
• Breadcrumbs
  
• powdered black pepper
  
• Salt
  
• extra virgin olive oil
  

 

Mix the two types of meat with the egg, the grated onion, the spices and season with salt and pepper (a teaspoon of salt and a half of black pepper). If the dough is too fluid, add breadcrumbs. Once we have a very homogeneous dough, we make balls the size of a tennis ball. Place them on a baking paper and flatten them until they are very thin. In the center we place the cheese sheet and close so that the edges are well sealed. This will prevent the cheese from escaping when placing them on the fire.

 

As I have already said, bifteki are made on the grill, grill or barbecue, whatever you have at your disposal. You paint them with olive oil and direct them to the fire.

 

For the hamburger to be done well inside and out, the meat must be well marked. If it gets too black and that bothers you, it is best to finish it in a hot oven (200 degrees / 390 F, 15 minutes).

 

The grace of this recipe is to eat the meat and that the semi-melted cheese fills our mouths. I usually eat them in an unorthodox way that I recommend: taking them by hand and dipping them in tsatsiki.