Froga tat-Tarja is one of the most iconic Maltese dishes. It’s an omelette traditionally made with vermicelli, but there’s a myriad of different versions using all styles of pasta. And guess what, someone has ingeniously turned the pasta omelette into a burger meal! Can you get more Maltese than that? #MALTAburgers is ready to investigate into this very Maltese burger-matter.
Christian Cutajar is a very hardworking young man, and the brains and brawns behind Temptations in Gzira. Originally opened as a confectionery of all sorts, Christian renovated the premises 1 year ago and rebuilt it around a more creative food concept. Yes, he actually built the kitchen, wooden tables and shelves with his own hands! Patrons can customise almost anything on the varied menu to their liking, order takeaway or dine in, or buy drinks at retail prices from the confectionery section! These are the kind of kickass concepts we would love to see more over here. Christian is backed up by a long family history in the catering business (his grandfather was a renown pastry chef) and many years working for a multinational burger franchise. So he knows a thing or two about burger making!
Around 2012, the idea of sandwiching a beef patty between two fried ramen buns started to gain worldwide popularity. But Christian says he was not inspired by this phenomenon. His killer Froga tat-Tarja is a fast seller at his shop, so one day he thought of upping the notch and started to pile extra ingredients until it took the form of a burger! We’ve tasted a few feeble attempts at ramen burgers in the past, but this version from Christian is mammoth in size, just like a fitting Maltese burger should be!
The froga omelette is made from 125gr of quality Italian spaghetti, chopped collar bacon, Grana cheese, sauteed mushrooms, eggs and mixed herbs. And there are 2 of these spaghetti buns! The spaghetti is fried until it’s super crispy and crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside. The crust helps hold the spaghetti bun together and has a commendable texture to it. You can clearly see the individual spaghetties that were used to make this makeshift bun. The bacon is a very wise addition as it provides a tasty layer of smokiness. The 200gr beef patty is made from knuckle meat, mixed with eggs, onion, garlic & mixed herbs. A slice of cheddar cheese goes on top, together with a big portion of chunky red sauce made from kunserva (tomato concentrate), fresh tomatoes, garlic and olive oil. For the connoisseurs, this sauce looks and tastes totally Maltese and it’s actually one of the flavour highlights of the whole burger. The Froga creation is tied up with rucola, sprinkled with grated cheese and seasoned with olive oil, so there’s a fun blend of textures and flavours here. This is one big mega burger that is best consumed with utensils, as it gets totally messy once the structural integrity of the spaghetti bun is gone. Yet, we know that there will be those competitive bearded musclemen that will try to tackle this one bare handed! If that’s the case, you better come prepared with an appetite of a dinosaur! This burger is XXL! This is also due to the fact that the Froga buns are way oversized, especially when compared to the beef patty. Maybe Christian could create a mini Froga version, 1/3 of the size, for mere mortals!
There’s a very lengthy preparation process to build this burger from scratch, so it’s no wonder it’s a limited edition menu item, the kind that is preferably preordered. This is definitely one of those burgers made with higher quality ingredients, yet it doesn’t break the bank, and stands out on its own merit, thanks to a bucketload of Maltese simplicity. So far, this looks to be the King of all Maltese-themed burgers for 2018. Christian breaks no sweat, and says that his burger creation is very at heart, so he’s ready to take on anyone who’s aiming at eating it all! But wait… there’s more! As if all this dosage of Froga was not enough for today, Christian has another variant of the Froga Burger, made with chicken! Our minds are blown and blasted!
