Review: New John M Munro Butcher savoury doughnuts add fun flavour to burgers
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This week, Dingwall-based John M Munro launched their new savoury doughnuts, which are steak burgers with sweet chilli cheese in the middle and topped with a sweet chilli crumb.
An eye-catching addition that needed to be tried.
The doughnuts were made available in all their shops from Monday, so we went to the new Inverness store (formerly owned by Duncan Fraser & Son) to get some and give them a try.
The shape is quite a nice take on the classic burger, and an interesting combination of flavours.
However, how to cook them in the best way? On a pan? In the oven? When in doubt, and if it comes to food, I always prefer to try both options.
So, the pan method was the first and I used a grill skillet to make the first savoury doughnut. I have to say, it got slightly messy! If you have a grill at home in which you can lock and turn the burgers on both sides, I believe this would be your best option. On a normal pan, being a burger assembled of multiple layers, it's easy to get one of the elements slide, or burn the crumb on top. But with attention and being delicate when flipping the burger, you can definitely get good, crispy results.
I was very pleased with the flavour: it's quite a funky, sweet and savoury one, with the spicyness being there but not overwhelming. So, if you are looking for a chilli bomb, this isn't one, but it's a lovely twist on your classic cheeseburger.
The texture didn't feel amazing, it felt a bit as if it had been pressed and worked a bit too much – adding in that I probably I cooked it slightly longer than it should have been.
So, to see if consistency improved, there we go with the oven trial. The texture definitely improves, the meat stays a bit softer, the process is less messy and the flavour is still very nice, so I would recommend the second method if you don't own a grill.
Definitely they work well with something fresh to cut through the dense burger flavour on the side, or a slightly fresh and acidic sauce.
Vote: 3/5
Try also: Balmoral Chicken pastry
Since I wanted to get the oven going and this pastry caught my eye on its display at the butcher, it had to be given a thorough review.
The Balmoral pastry contains chicken, bacon and haggis with a peppercorn sauce, and it was a really nice surprise to taste.
The pastry was really nice and soft but crunchy, the sauce creamy and the haggis where a very colourful note of flavour in the mix, which is itself quite mild.
Lovely and easy to prepare snack.
Vote:3.5/5
READ MORE: Inverness butcher shop Duncan Fraser & Son sold to fellow Highland company
