We test your meanest meal-in-a-bun offerings, great for eating outdoors or inside.
Homemade burgers are always delicious, though some of these definitely straddle the borders of burger and non-burger. All of them can be cooked indoors if the weather frowns on you.
In the end, it was a traditional version that got the thumbs up at our barbecue - with almost as much bacon as beef, it's an unusual, but welcome twist on a classic bacon cheeseburger.
Beef and bacon burger with homemade salsa
A typical burger with a slight twist: the bacon is in the burger! HomegrownFoodsCo via theguardian.com/witness
Serves 2
70g smoked back bacon
100g minced beef
25g green pepper, very finely diced
30g red onion, finely diced
1 tsp sweet paprika
2 white baps
For the salsa
Extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, roughly chopped
10 cherry tomatoes, halved
A splash of red wine vinegar
2 tsp coriander, roughly chopped
1 For the salsa, heat the oil in the pan, add the onion and fry for 1 minute. Add the remaining ingredients except the coriander, fry for a further minute, season and put in the fridge to chill for a couple of hours. Stir in the coriander.
2 Remove the rind from the bacon and dice in a blender (cook for a minute each side first as this makes both easier). Put all the ingredients into a bowl with a few good twists of black pepper and 3 shakes of sea salt, mix with your hands and shape into two 9cm x 2cm patties. Chill for about 30 minutes.
3 Fry or barbecue for 4 minutes each side over a moderate to high heat and leave to rest for 4 minutes.
4 Toast the buns on both sides; drizzle the insides with the salsa oil.
Vietnamese bun cha
This was the first dish I had from a street hawker when I was in Vietnam: you can smell the pork sizzling on the makeshift barbecues all around Hanoi. The hot caramel pork burger with the salty/sweet dipping sauce is a incredible combination. It's served with "bun" noodles, lettuce and loads of fresh herbs. Jess Waller, Melbourne, Australia
Serves 6
For the pickled veg
100g green papaya, sliced as above
100g carrots, sliced into 10p-sized circles then quartered
4 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
For the caramel sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp water
For the burgers
450g lean pork shoulder, finely minced
30g shallots, finely chopped
1 tsp chicken stock powder
1 tbsp fish sauce
For the dipping sauce
4 tbsp water
1 tbsp sugar
¾ tbsp fish sauce
¾ tbsp rice vinegar
20g garlic, finely chopped
2-3 chillies, finely chopped
1 Dissolve the sugar and salt in the rice vinegar, then add the carrots and papaya and set aside to pickle. Put the burger ingredients in a large bowl.
2 For the caramel, heat the sugar until light brown, then add the water and take off the heat. Mix into the pork and shape into 12 small patties. Grill until cooked through.
3 Gently heat all the dipping sauce ingredients and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Leave to cool slightly before serving with the pickle and patties.
Smoky mushroom burger
Vegetarians get served up some really unexciting veggie burgers, but while "mushroom burger" never sounds very appealing, mushroom is a deep flavour-giver, and goes well with chipotle. Serve with frazzled onions with thyme.
Lucy Parr via theguardian.com/witness
Serves 4
100g chestnut mushrooms, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tsp fresh or ½ tsp dried thyme
400g cooked beans of your choice (eg black-eye, black, kidney etc)
25g fresh breadcrumbs
1 tbsp smoky chipotle sauce
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
3 spring onions, finely sliced
Sunflower oil, to cook
1 Dry-fry the mushrooms until golden, then at the end in the garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant. Drain the beans but do not rinse.
2 Place all the ingredients except the oil in a food processor and pulse until well combined but still with bit of texture. Season to taste, shape into 4 burgers and chill. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.
3 Fry in oil until golden on both sides, then transfer to the oven for 10-15 minutes to heat through. Serve in buns with crispy onions, relish, salad leaves and mustard.
Merguez burgerz
I conjured up these burgers for a barbecue after enjoying the tasty spicy sausages at my local pub. The rich, spicy flavour works brilliantly in a chunky burger, and so much simpler than messing around with sausage casings. For best results bash the spices together in a pestle and mortar rather than buying them ready-ground.
Jean-Paul Dash, London
Makes 8
For the spice mix
1 tbsp sweet paprika
1 tbsp ground fennel
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp black pepper
For the burgers
1 kg steak mince
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
A handful of coriander, chopped
3 tsp harissa
For the garlic yoghurt
250g natural yoghurt
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
A sprinkle of chopped chives
1 Mix the burger ingredients and spice, divide into 8 patties, and refigerate.
2 Sprinkle the garlic with a pinch of salt to help it infuse, then stir into the yoghurt along with the chives.
3 Cook the burgers under the grill or on the barbecue for about 6-8 minutes.
4 Serve on buns with wild rocket and a dollop of the yoghurt.
Baharat-spiced burgers with cacik and smoky pepper pickle
In the light of the recent revelations about the corruption of the food chain, we've definitely been eating a lot less beef. Having said that, Keep it simple and add extra flavour with interesting toppings such as this Turkish cucumber and dill yoghurt dressing and a quick pickle of smoky roasted peppers. Rachel Kelly, London
Serves 4
500g lamb mince
2 tsp baharat spice mix(I used the recipe in Ottolenghi's Jerusalem)
1 tbsp suet (optional - if the meat is lean)
4 soft rolls, halved
A large knob of butter
Toasted sesame seeds, finely ground
Feta cheese, sliced
For the pickle
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp light brown sugar
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 roasted red pepper, peeled and finely chopped (from a jar)
4 pickled cherry peppers(or peppadews), finely chopped
½ small red onion, very finely chopped
6 cherry tomatoes, finely chopped
For the cacik
2 small Turkish cucumbers
450ml natural yoghurt
1 garlic clove, very finely chopped
1-2 tbsp dill, roughly chopped
1 tsp dried mint
1 For the pickle, heat the vinegar in a non-reactive pan and stir in the sugar and paprika. Pour this over the remaining ingredients, season and leave for at least 2 hours.
2 For the cacik, cut the cucumbers in half lengthways, scrape out the seeds and finely chop the flesh. Sprinkle with ½tsp salt and leave to drain for half an hour. Rinse, pat dry and mix with the remaining ingredients. Season.
3 Mix together the mince, baharat and suet if necessary. Divide into 4 patties, and chill for 30 minutes.
4 Fry the rolls in a little butter. Press the chilled burgers into the sesame seeds to coat, and either fry in the same pan, wiped out, or grill on the barbecue for about 4 minutes on each side for medium rare. Rest for about 5 minutes, loosely covered.
5 Put 1 tbsp of pickle on the base of each roll, followed by the burger, feta and cacik. Add the top of the roll.
Crabcakes with fennel and apple slaw and guacamole
Serve with toasted brioche buns and wedges of lime. Natalie and Valerie Wong, London
Serves 4 to 6
340g tinned jumbo crabmeat
4 tbsp onion, chopped
4 tbsp breadcrumbs
2 medium eggs
2 tbsp mustard
1 tsp paprika
A pinch of cayenne pepper
2 large handfuls of coriander, chopped
100g flour
2 egg whites, beaten
100g breadcrumbs
Sunflower oil, for frying
For the guacamole
2 avocados, stoned
3 tomatoes, chopped
1 shallot or ½ a small onion, finely chopped
1 lime, juice only
1 small handful of coriander, chopped
1 small fresh chilli, seeds discarded and finely sliced or a generous pinch of chilli flakes
Salt, to taste
For the slaw
1 medium head of fennel, cleaned and base removed, finely sliced
½ a red onion, finely sliced
A big handful of spinach, finely chopped
2 crunchy apples, finely sliced
1 tbsp Greek yoghurt
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 Combine the first 8 crabcake ingredients in a bowl, breaking up some of the crabmeat chunks slightly. Season with a little salt and white pepper, shape into 4-6 patties and chill.
2 Mash the guacamole ingredients with a little salt to taste.
3 Put the slaw fruit and vegetables in a salad bowl. Whisk together the yogurt, oil, white vinegar, season to taste and use to dress the salad.
4 Put the flour, egg white and remaining breadcrumbs in shallow bowls. Dip each patty into each in turn and shake off any excess.
5 Heat enough oil to come halfway up the burgers in a frying pan, and cook until golden brown (about 3-4 minutes per side). Pat dry with kitchen towel.
6 Serve in brioche buns with guacamole and slaw.
The finished beef and bacon burger with homemade salsa. Photography by Jill Mead for the Guardian