John Cordeaux spreads his hands wide. "It's big!" he grins, describing the Webber Genesis grill he recently bought for his villa in Khalifa City. As executive chef at the Fairmont Bab al Bahr, Cordeaux - who used to barbecue in the dead of winter on his Toronto terrace - knows more than a few things about grills and what you put on them.
"We make really big, hunking burgers at our Poolside Cafe," he says, moving rapidly between counter and grill in the hotel's Marco Pierre White kitchen. "They're 180 grams of Angus beef, sirloin trimmings and a chain of tenderloin. But obviously, the way you cook a burger at home will be different from what we do in a restaurant."
Still, he points to a few things that can make all the difference. "The main thing is to make hamburgers on a grill." Another is to plan and prep in advance, especially for the fixings. "Cooking is all about organisation," says Cordeaux.
And then there's choosing and buying the meat itself. "Commercial burgers are full of fillers like wheat and other grains. But, on the other hand, 100 per cent ground beef, with no fat, will taste like cardboard." That's why he adds butter to the mix. "People go, 'Oh, no, the fat!' Give me a break: we're on this planet once!" And Cordeaux, a gracious, friendly man who smiles a lot, smiles again.
Hamburger got its name from Hamburg, Germany, where meat was sometimes sliced ultra-thin and eaten raw. But as to who actually "invented" the hamburger, four different scenarios compete for the credit. My favourite is that a 15-year-old boy nicknamed Hamburger Charlie began frying ground meat patties in butter (Cordeaux would approve) and selling them from an ox-drawn cart at a county fair in the summer of 1885 in Seymour, Wisconsin. That's where the Hamburger Hall of Fame stands today.
As Cordeaux continues to build the Poolside's famous "classic" burger - "It's one of our biggest inroom items" - he talks about the various components. There's the chipotle bun, "baked right here", which gets buttered (of course) and grilled before being slathered with Dijonnaise and caramelised onions. A slice of aged Cheddar atop the thick patty, sautéed mushrooms, smoked beef bacon, plus the can't-do-without lettuce, tomato and cucumber - this baby's getting as tall as a house.
"Beautiful," Cordeaux pronounces, spearing the whole with a gherkin-topped cocktail fork. "A hamburger should be a two-hander." And it should never be served alone. "If you're going to have a burger, you've got to have fries with mayo."
Indulgent? Perhaps, but Cordeaux, who came to Abu Dhabi last spring after 13 years in Fairmont Hotels in Montreal and Toronto, believes that "when no one's looking, what we all really want is down-home cooking". Of course, there's always the Poolside Cafe's The Full Monty with foie gras and truffle if you want something a wee bit more sophisticated - and taller.
A home cook would be hard-pressed to duplicate the meat available to hotel kitchens, but Spinneys' meat counter is willing to mix and grind together several kinds of beef, even in small amounts. Portuguese buns from Spinneys' fresh bread baskets provide great tops and bottoms. Makes 3-4 burgers, depending how big you like them.
Ingredients
360g Angus beef, sirloin, tenderloin chain and rib-eye, ground together
¼ large white onion, finely chopped
20g butter
2 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
Salt & pepper to taste
3-4 large, soft buns, such as Portuguese, split and lightly buttered
4 tbsp Dijonnaise (2 tbsp mayonnaise, 2 tbsp Dijon mustard mixed together)
60g button mushrooms, sliced and caramelised in 2 tbsp butter
60g smoked beef bacon, fried
3-4 slices sharp English Cheddar
60g caramelised onions (rest of onion, thinly sliced, cooked in 20g butter & 1 tbsp red vinegar)
1 large tomato, thinly sliced
2 small cucumbers, thinly sliced lengthwise
3-4 iceberg lettuce leaves
Method
Fire up the grill. Place the chilled mix of ground beef in a large bowl. Sauté the chopped onion in butter until the onions are translucent. Thoroughly mix the cooked onions and thyme into the meat, adding salt and pepper to taste. Form into three or four patties. Grill the patties to your liking, using an instant-read thermometer to check the burgers' internal temperature (80°C is what you're aiming for).
Toast the buttered buns on the grill. When toasted, spread them with Dijonnaise. Place the caramelised mushrooms, bacon and cheese on top of each burger. Return to the grill to keep warm and for the cheese to melt.
Now build your burger: caramelised onions on the bottom bun, the dressed patty, then tomato, cucumbers, lettuce and the top bun.
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The Bio
Name: Lynn Davison
Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi
Children: She has one son, Casey, 28
Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite Author: CJ Sansom
Favourite holiday destination: Bali
Favourite food: A Sunday roast
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Have you been targeted?
Tuan Phan of SimplyFI.org lists five signs you have been mis-sold to:
1. Your pension fund has been placed inside an offshore insurance wrapper with a hefty upfront commission.
2. The money has been transferred into a structured note. These products have high upfront, recurring commission and should never be in a pension account.
3. You have also been sold investment funds with an upfront initial charge of around 5 per cent. ETFs, for example, have no upfront charges.
4. The adviser charges a 1 per cent charge for managing your assets. They are being paid for doing nothing. They have already claimed massive amounts in hidden upfront commission.
5. Total annual management cost for your pension account is 2 per cent or more, including platform, underlying fund and advice charges.
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Brief scores:
Toss: Kerala Knights, opted to fielf
Pakhtoons 109-5 (10 ov)
Fletcher 32; Lamichhane 3-17
Kerala Knights 110-2 (7.5 ov)
Morgan 46 not out, Stirling 40
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
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%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3ENever%20click%20on%20links%20provided%20via%20app%20or%20SMS%2C%20even%20if%20they%20seem%20to%20come%20from%20authorised%20senders%20at%20first%20glance%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EAlways%20double-check%20the%20authenticity%20of%20websites%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EEnable%20Two-Factor%20Authentication%20(2FA)%20for%20all%20your%20working%20and%20personal%20services%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EOnly%20use%20official%20links%20published%20by%20the%20respective%20entity%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EDouble-check%20the%20web%20addresses%20to%20reduce%20exposure%20to%20fake%20sites%20created%20with%20domain%20names%20containing%20spelling%20errors%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A
Dark Souls: Remastered
Developer: From Software (remaster by QLOC)
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Price: Dh199
The biog
Born: Kuwait in 1986
Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
Time in the UAE: 10 years
Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball
RESULTS
Men
1 Marius Kipserem (KEN) 2:04:04
2 Abraham Kiptum (KEN) 2:04:16
3 Dejene Debela Gonfra (ETH) 2:07:06
4 Thomas Rono (KEN) 2:07:12
5 Stanley Biwott (KEN) 2:09:18
Women
1 Ababel Yeshaneh (ETH) 2:20:16
2 Eunice Chumba (BRN) 2:20:54
3 Gelete Burka (ETH) 2:24:07
4 Chaltu Tafa (ETH) 2:25:09
5 Caroline Kilel (KEN) 2:29:14
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
Score
New Zealand 266 for 9 in 50 overs
Pakistan 219 all out in 47.2 overs
New Zealand win by 47 runs
New Zealand lead three-match ODI series 1-0
Next match: Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi, Friday
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
Going grey? A stylist's advice
If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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