The Cali burger

Serves 4

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Chilling time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 20 minutes 

Ingredients
4 burger patties
2 tbsp oil
8 slices of streaky bacon
4 burger buns
Lettuce leaves (optional)

Ingredients for the bbq sauce
2 tbsps apple cider vinegar
2 tbsps apple juice
2 tbsps ketchup
2 tbsps brown sauce or bbq sauce
1 small onion, very finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp ancho chilli powder
½ tbsp chipotle chilli paste
½ tsp tajin
2 tbsps brown sugar

Ingredients for the Guacamole
Juice of 1 lime
Salt
2 tbsps sour cream (or crème fraiche or yoghurt)
1 green chilli, deseeded and very finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp sugar
2 ripe avocados

Red Pickled onions
4 tbsps apple cider vinegar
4 tbsps water
4 tbsps sugar
1 small red onion, cut into ½ cm slices

Method
Start with the bbq sauce.  Put all of the ingredients into a saucepan over a medium heat and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat slightly so it is just simmering and cook, stirring often for 10 to 15 minutes.  Reduce the heat a little and cook for a further 45 minutes, stirring from time to time.

Turn to your pickled onions.  Put the onions into a small heatproof bowl and the vinegar water and sugar into a small saucepan and heat over medium until the liquid starts to bubble.  Pour the pickling liquor over the onions and put to one side.

Carefully pour your bbq sauce into a blender and blitz until smooth.

Fire up your braai (bbq) and while you are waiting for the flames to die down, make your guacamole.  Put all of the ingredients into a little blender and blitz until smooth.  Scrape down the sides and blitz again. Check the seasoning. Cover and put to one side.

Once the coals have turned white hot and the flames have died down, oil your grate and put your 4 burgers on.  Cook over direct heat for around 2 minutes then turn.  Liberally brush the glaze over the cooked side of the burger.  After 2 minutes, turn the burger and glaze.  Turn and glaze every 30 seconds 3 more times.  Remove from the fire, cover and put to one side with a little more bbq sauce over.  Put the bacon on to the fire and cook until golden and crispy.

Toast your bun on the fire, this will take a very short amount of time.

To build your burger, put the lettuce if you are using on the bottom part of the bun then put on the pickled onions and then top with the burger.  Put the guacamole on top of the burger followed by 2 slices of bacon and then put the lid on.