Nanny Bills – Hot Box Burger DIY

Instagram served as the inspiration to order the DIY kit from Nanny Bills. The content on their page is a mouthwatering collage of colourful burger variation undisturbed by business advertisement on their DIY kit, a breath of fresh air on social media profiles at the moment. The Hot Box Kit is one of many at Nanny Bills but this one had one of my favourite sauces in Chipotle Sauce, combine that with the smoked bacon and we had a deal!

The Bun: 18/20

I have no complaints about this seeded bun. It held well and had a nice soft texture. I would assume they have used a sort of brioche but the seeds definitely gave it the ‘burger look’.

The Toppings: 9/10

The Smoked Bacon was outstanding. Period. I love to have bacon in a burger and sometimes it can render itself obsolete, especially in amongst strong seasoning and sauces but this bacon stood out of the crowd. The jalapeños were a little incongruous in this burger, unfortunately. The flavour of the jalapeño is a familiar one for me, being one of my standard requests for my Five Guys burger. I cannot score Nanny Bills down too far in this category because the bacon was excellent but the jalapeños were neither flavourful nor did they have enough heat to make a difference.

The Condiments: 9/10

Make no mistake, this Onion Jam, is like having Lionel Messi in your side. It is, quite frankly, one of the most exceptional condiments I have tasted this year. Fresh, twangy and had a sweetness that just elevated your senses to another dimension. All being told the Chipotle was just pointless. I am a huge fan of Chipotle Sauce and I was looking forward to having a burger with my favourite sauce in it. If I knew the power of this Onion Jam I would have thrown the chipotle in the trash. It had no business being alongside this jam other than to bring a pretty cool textural balance to the tongue. If that was the goal, so be it. Either way, I cannot score a 10 and the chipotle is the only reason.

The Cheese: 16/20

Cheddar rarely goes far wrong with me. The cheddar was nice and melted well. The most important thing for me, there was tons of it! It gave the Hot Box Burger the visual sexiness that you look for. For me, it was not a cheese that could counterbalance the intense flavour of the onion jam but it had its place and was not disappointing by any stretch. If you could have added the cheese from the Big Matt into this burger we would have had a serious proposition for a DIY kit here!

The Patty: 10/20

Unfortunately this was an area that The Hot Box did not continue its great form. The patties shrunk by a huge amount and the beef tasted pretty average. The accompanying Burger Salt that Nanny Bills had supplied, even with a generous serving, did not manage to affect the beef in a positive way. It tasted pretty bland. I have had worse patties during the course of this year and so I have scored this bang in the middle with a very average meat I cannot grumble about but had expected more given the look of great marbling inside the vacuum pack.

The Taste: 17/20

This burger had some great components inside. The Hot Box had a good bun, exceptional bacon and a marvellous onion jam that has left me wondering whether I should actually research creating one of my own for home burgers! It was let down a little by an average patty but the taste, nonetheless, was a competitor in the top rankings at the moment.

Our Verdict: 79/100

Nanny Bills have a variety of Burgers available for DIY Kit online and I am going to be trying them all. This Hot Box Kit was a fantastic offering and with all the competition out there it is definitely one that stands above some of the more recognised brands. I cannot stress enough how amazing the onion jam was and the level of the bacon, if you are a bacon lover, separates this burger from many others. If you have not had a Nanny Bills burger, schedule one in!