Meliz Berg’s firecracker burrito wraps
Get your bonfire night off to a cracking start with Meliz’s tasty firecracker burritos! She’s putting her signature twist on the burrito filling by adding Cypriot flavours to the cheesy mince and potato filling and serving them with a spicy chilli sauce perfect for those weekend celebrations.
Firecracker burrito
Serves: 6
Ingredients
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, large, very finely diced
¾ tsp sea salt flakes
1 tsp pul biber
1 tsp cumin
2 tbsp Turkish sweet red pepper paste (you can use tomato puree as an alternative)
500g beef mince
¾ tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp dried mint
100ml cold water
25g, parsley leaves, finely chopped
6 large tortilla wraps
For the sour cream sauce:
125g hellim / halloumi cheese, finely grated
250ml sour cream
½ tsp dried mint
Additional fillings:
150g mozzarella cheese, grated
Salted tortilla chips / nachos
Ezme (chilli sauce)
Cos lettuce, finely shredded
Cucumber, finely sliced on the diagonal
Method
1. Heat up the olive in a large pan on a medium heat. Add the onions, stir, then sprinkle in the salt, stirring well again and let the onions soften and caramelise for 3-4 minutes.
2. Add the pul biber and cumin, stir well again so that the spices release their aroma, stir through the Turkish sweet red pepper paste (or tomato puree), then add the mince to the pan, ensuring to break it down into the onions and spices, stirring well and allowing the meat to brown for 4-5 minutes.
3. Once the mince has browned, stir through the black pepper and dried mint, add the cold water to the pan, turn up the heat and cook for a few minutes until all the water has evaporated. Stir through the parsley, then pour the spiced mince into a large dish, for it to cool down a little; once the pan has also cooled down, give it a wipe.
4. Make the sour cream sauce by mixing together the sour cream, grated hellim and dried mint.
5. Heat up the clean pan on a low-medium heat while you prep the burritos. Place a tortilla wrap on a large plate, and spread over a 1/6 of the sour cream hellim sauce. Sprinkle over some of the mozzarella, then 1/6 of the mince, followed by a few tortilla chips, some of the ezme (see below for recipe), the cucumber, shredded lettuce and a little more mozzarella.
6. Wrap up the burrito tightly by rolling the closest edge over and away from you, then tucking in the sides and continuing to roll away until you have a tightly-wrapped and enveloped, burrito parcel. Repeat with the remaining 5 burritos.
7. Now to cook the burritos. Place the burrito, folded-edge down, into the pan (so that the seam seals first and is not susceptible to spill open), gently pushing down with the back of a spatula. Ensure that the heat is not too high otherwise the wraps will burn too quickly and the cheese inside will not melt. Once the underside has browned and is sealed, flip over and repeat on the other side. Once both sides have browned, repeat with the remaining burritos.
8. Serve the remaining tortilla chips with the ezme, using the ezme as a dipping sauce for the burritos too.
9. Note: Place the pan-cooked burritos on a non-stick baking sheet and into a preheated oven at 170c fan / 190c to keep warm for 5-10 minutes while you cook the remaining burritos. If you are not serving them straight away, then wrap each one tightly in foil until you are ready to eat
Ezme sauce chilli dipping sauce
Serves: 6
Ingredients
1-2 red or green chillies
1 large onion, quartered
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
25 g (1 oz) fresh flat leaf parsley
Leaves and stalks, roughly chopped
400 g (14 oz) can chopped
Tomatoes
2 tbsp Turkish sweet red pepper
Paste (you can use tomato puree as an alternative)
1 tsp pomegranate molasses
1 tsp dried mint
2 tsp pul biber
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp sea salt flakes
Pinch of caster sugar
Method
1. Remove the stalk from one of the chillies, and finely chop the flesh, including the seeds.
2. Add the chilli and the rest of the ingredients to a food processor and pulse to a consistency of your liking. Taste the mixture and, if necessary, feel free to add some more chilli and an extra pinch of salt.