Octopus smashed burger in a chocolate brioche bun with fermented pepper berries

➊ First, put the ground beef in a bowl, add salt and knead gently. Don't knead too much, just knead until the salt is well mixed with the meat. The ground meat should not bind, as you don't want it to turn into meatballs.
Then divide the minced meat into 4 equal portions, form them into balls and place them in the refrigerator while you prepare the other ingredients.

➋ Halve or slice the tomatoes depending on their size and set aside the lettuce leaves.

➌ Marinate the cooked octopus arms with a little salt and olive oil and heat a plancha or cast iron grill plate to about 250 °C.
First, grill the octopus arms on the hot grill plate. Flatten the arms within the first 20-30 seconds. You can use a spatula or a special cast iron burger press for this. It is important to have a really hot grill plate so that the octopus gets a nice roasted aroma. Grill the arms for around two minutes on each side.
Then place the minced meat balls on the grill plate and press them down as well. As soon as the patties become slightly moist on the surface, they must be turned. Important: The meat is only smashed once and not again after turning, otherwise the meat juices will be squeezed out and the burgers will become dry!

➍ Then slide the patties and octopus arms onto the indirect zone.
Cut the chocolate brioche buns open, spread a little butter on the cut surfaces and press lightly onto the grill plate to toast them. As soon as the cut surfaces are golden brown, remove from the grill plate.
Assemble: Spread a dollop of cheddar-chili-cheese sauce on the bottom half of the buns and arrange a few lettuce leaves. Place the beef patties and then the octopus arms on top. Now place the fermented pepper berries, a dollop of cheddar-chili-cheese sauce and the tomatoes on top and cover with the bun lids. Serve the burgers with a few chips.

Stefan's BBQ tip: "Here, smashing provides the special
taste experience!”