fanning the flames

Philippa Davis approves of the current passion for smoked or barbecued food, offering three dishes to ensure your alfresco menu is as delicious as fine dining

I find many of the food trends that take the world by storm puzzling. For instance, I never understood the popularity of kale chips, although from the lack of requests to include them as part of anyone’s shoot lunch, fishing picnic or piece on the hill, I assume neither did you. There have been obsessions with goji berries, quinoa and kimchi, too, but I’ll spare you my thoughts on those.

One trend I am delighted with is the rise to fame of the barbecue and smoking. No longer is a sad scorched sausage acceptable. Instead, we now put as much thought, care and attention into what and how we cook on the coals and wood chips as we would for preparing a lavish, fine-dining feast. These recipes are perfect for a decadent and impressive barbecue, although you may think my enthusiasm for it has gone too far by suggesting you even grill the salad – just trust me, it is delicious.