Tesco has issued an urgent recall of its vegan 'Melt in the Middle' burgers due to a potential burn risk when consuming the product.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has discovered that the Plant Chef 2 Meat-Free Burgers with Melting Middles can retain an exceptionally high temperature after cooking, posing a risk of burns to customers.

Tesco is advising customers not to eat the burgers and to return them to any Tesco store for a full refund, with no receipt required.

The recall, announced on Friday, stated: "Tesco is taking the precautionary step of recalling the Plant Chef 2 Meat-Free Burgers with Melting Middle because the center of the burgers may maintain a high temperature once cooked." The FSA warned that this could "potentially cause a burn risk to consumers when biting into the burger."

While it is unclear when the product first appeared on shelves, a vegan blog shared a photo of the burgers on Facebook in June, with several online commenters comparing the hot filling to "molten lava."

Tesco described the burger, made from Java bean and pea protein, as "succulent and tangy," with a melting middle of mustard and gherkins.

This recall follows other precautionary measures taken by Tesco earlier this year, including the recall of sandwiches and wraps in June due to an E.coli risk and pastries in May over concerns they might contain metal and plastic fragments. Photo by Martin Bodman, Wikimedia commons.