Beetroot and fried eggs

There are a number of food combinations and twists that are plain genius - simple, tasty, unique and instantly identifiable. Perhaps one of the more simple ones - but no less clever and tasty for that - is the inclusion of beetroot, and perhaps a fried egg, in Australasian burgers. The beetroot is essential, and non-negotiable, while the fried egg is a luxury, a special touch if you will.

Did I say the beetroot was essential? Maybe not - last week on 15 November, the Sydney Morning Herald reported that McDonalds doesn't serve beetroot in burgers ("McOzzes") in South Australia and Western Australia due to lack of demand. You can see the shock and horror in the article.

It's a shame that this is dying out in its native land. For making a good burger great, you can't beat adding beetroot. The sweet beetroot melds perfectly with the mayonnaise and ketchup in the burger, and the fried egg (yolk has to be soft and runny) oozes velvety goodness into the mix. It's all sopped up by the bun, allowing one to bite into soft soggy bread replete with salty sweet tangy eggy flavour. The meat is almost an afterthought (although it can add some oomph if it's good meat). The Kiwis add pineapple to this mixture, which is nice, but unnecessary.

According to the same Sydney Morning Herald article, beetroot was already present in burgers in milk-bars (Aussie versions of diners) in the 1960s. There's no information on who the genius who first thought of combining beetroot and burgers was. The seeds (boom boom) of the idea were probably there though - Queensland produces 90% of Australia's crop of beetroot, which mostly goes to supplying domestic consumption. And Australia has acres of dairy farms, which means that there are lots of eggs around. The only mystery is why Aussies didn't invent the beetroot cheese steak sandwich (leaving it instead to Philadelphia, who left out the beetroot).