Sometimes the best dish is born when two ideas that have nothing to do with each other come together. A burger and a taco sounds like a sum that won't add up - and yet it's one of the tastiest things you can make at home in a few minutes. The whole secret is in a technique the restaurant world has known for ages: the smash.

The principle is simple. You take 65-70 grams of ground beef per tortilla of nixtamalised corn dough, place it on a hot pan and immediately smash it hard while it's still soft - with a burger press, or the bottom of a pot if you don't have one. The pressure spreads the meat thin and creates a caramelised, intensely flavoured crust, exactly the one ordinary frying doesn't give.

Once one side browns, you salt it and flip. A slice of cheddar goes straight on top, melting on the hot meat in seconds into a creamy, even layer. The tortilla is warmed beforehand on a dry pan until it puffs up a little and changes colour - that's the sign it's ready to take the meat.

The freshness comes from the salad that crowns it: thinly sliced crisp lettuce, pickles, fresh coriander, roasted corn, tomato with the soft core removed, and pickled onion. A little lime over all of it, then the sauce - barbecue mixed with chipotle ketchup in the middle - and finally the salad on top.

The result is a meeting of crispy and juicy, hot and fresh, with a sharp Mexican signature. It needs no mastery, no special equipment - just a hot pan, a good tortilla and a little patience at the right moment. Ten minutes of work for something that looks like you slaved over it for hours.