Grilled halloumi burger recipe

Halloumi burgers at home

Beef burgers, chicken burgers, bean burgers. We like them all as much as the next person. But swap your beef burger for halloumi and you’ve got a surprisingly healthy vegetarian alternative. Here’s how we serve our grilled halloumi burger in The Beach Hut.

Halloumi burger on a plate taken from above

For the love of halloumi

Whether wrapped, coated or marinated. Grilled, baked, BBQ’d or deep-fried. We have found the best way to cook is simply under the grill on an oiled tray until golden and slightly melted. This way it can be the main ingredient in a burger bun with your favourite ingredients, grilled mushrooms, rocket, spicy mayo, pesto, avocado, the list is endless. Our love of halloumi comes from its versatility, texture and flavour which lends itself to be a satisfying meat alternative be it for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Ingredients

Serves 3
Vegetarian

3 large flat mushrooms
1 clove of garlic
Pinch of fresh thyme
Olive oil
Salt and black pepper to season
1 pack of Greek halloumi – 250g
3 brioche burger buns or your favourite choice of bread
Houmous
Smoked red pepper relish
1 packet wild rocket – 70g
Lemon dressing (good olive oil and lemon juice) to dress the rocket

Total prep/cook time: 20 mins

Method

Set the oven to 180oC
Peel the mushrooms and place on a tray.
Grate the garlic, pick the thyme leave and mix both with a little oil. Pour this over the mushrooms and season.
Place in the oven and roast for about 8 minutes until the mushrooms are soft and are starting to colour.
Cut the halloumi cheese into 3 slabs length ways to get a larger cooking surface, place in an already hot, lightly oiled pan on a medium heat. The trick is to soften the cheese without burning the outside; you do not want a crisp grilled cheese with a hard rubbery centre.
Cut the buns and grill the middles.
Spread houmous on both sides, place mushrooms on top, then halloumi and relish.
Dress the rocket in lemon dressing and fill, replacing the bun.
Enjoy!

Halloumi can be cut into fingers coated in flour and deep-fried to create a rich indulgent starter or sharing dish, with dipping sauces such as black garlic mayo, gochujang ketchup or pesto. Simply grilled it makes a great breakfast with, avocado and eggs with a few drops of tabasco.

Halloumi

Originally from Cyprus, halloumi has a high melting point which makes it perfect to serve grilled or fried. As a nation, we have fallen in love with halloumi with over ¾ of the production of Cyprus being imported to the UK -approx 12,000 tonnes per year.

Halloumi is made with goat and sheep milk on the island of Cyprus using a traditional method. As halloumi has grown in popularity, cow's milk is becoming more common as a cheaper alternative. If you want a nice bite, along with that trademark halloumi squeakiness, look out for Cypriot halloumi in the cheese aisle.