Good to grill
It’s time to rethink the barbecue and embrace some plant-based options with the help of vegetarian recipes from Rukmini Iyer
Barbecues are traditionally associated with carnivorous cooking – until now. Half a million copy-selling Rukmini Iyer is turning barbecuing on its head this year with her ingenious new book, The Green Barbecue. It is a collection of 75 flavour-packed, mouth-watering recipes all completely meat-free, with over half the recipes entirely plantbased and suitable for vegans.
“I'm not sure there's anything nicer than cooking and eating outside. With good company, perhaps a dog or two, or even just contemplatively cooking a dish for yourself, it’s incredibly satisfying to break cooking down into its simplest components – one heat source, and a bit of food,” says Rukmini.
Extracted from: The Green Barbecue (Vegan & Vegetarian Recipes to Cook Outdoors & In) by Rukmini Iyer (Square Peg) out now, £17.99. Photography by David Loftus
Crispy gnocchi – on a stick – with charred peppers and basil pesto
Forget about threading just plain old vegetables on a stick – here, you intersperse veg of your choice on skewers with just-blanched gnocchi. The result is crisp perfection like you wouldn’t believe.
Serves three to four
1 x 500g packet of gnocchi
3 mixed peppers, chopped into gnocchi-size pieces (don’t use green peppers)
2 tablespoons vegan basil pesto
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for brushing a pinch of sea salt flakes a good amount of freshly ground black peppercorns
8-12 skewers, soaked if wooden
For the dressing
½ lemon, juice only
4 tablespoons vegan basil pesto
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil a pinch of sea salt flakes
1 Tip the gnocchi into a bowl of justboiled water, and leave to blanch for 2 minutes, then drain and run under cold water to cool.
2 Put the gnocchi into a large bowl with the chopped peppers, vegan pesto, olive oil, sea salt flakes and freshly ground black peppercorns, and mix well to coat. At this point you could refrigerate the gnocchi until you're ready to barbecue.
3 Thread the gnocchi and pepper alternately onto the skewers. Once your barbecue is good and hot, brush one side of the skewers with oil, then lay them over the barbecue at a slight angle (this stops them falling through) and cook for 4-5 minutes, until the gnocchi are crisp and brown. Brush the tops with oil, then turn over and repeat with the other side.
4 Meanwhile, mix the lemon juice, pesto and extra virgin olive oil with a pinch of sea salt flakes to taste. Once the skewers are cooked through, serve immediately, with the basil dressing alongside.
Chipotle mushroom and black bean burgers with peanuts and lime
These burgers are ridiculously moreish. Make life easier for yourself by cooking them in the oven first, then finishing them off on the barbecue before serving.
Serves four
50g smooth peanut butter
1 x 400g tin of black beans, drained, but not rinsed
2 small cloves of garlic, peeled
2 teaspoons chipotle chilli flakes
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 heaped tablespoon rye flour
1 lime, zest only
1 teaspoon sea salt flakes
250g chestnut mushrooms
To serve
1 lime, cut into 4 wedges a handful of chopped salted peanuts a handful of chopped fresh coriander
4 burger buns
1 Put the peanut butter into a food processor with 60g of the black beans, the garlic, chilli flakes, cumin, olive oil, rye flour, lime zest and sea salt flakes, and blitz until you have a very thick paste.
2 Tip it into a large bowl and stir in the rest of the black beans.
3 Tip the mushrooms into the processor – no need to wash it – and pulse until you have a dry mushroom mince. Stir this into the black bean mixture. With damp hands, form it into four thick burgers and arrange them on a lined baking sheet.
4 Bake in the oven at 180C fan/200c/ gas 6 for 25-30 minutes. When they’ve got 10 minutes left, flip them over so they can crisp up on the other side.
5 They’re ready to serve straight from the oven, but for a nice bit of smokiness you can let them cool down, then finish them on a medium barbecue for a couple of minutes per side.
6 Squeeze over the lime wedges
and top with a handful of chopped peanuts and coriander, then sandwich them into lightly grilled burger buns.
Vanilla roasted berries with brioche, mascarpone and almonds
This pudding lets you gently cook your fruit in a packet on the barbecue, and toast your brioche alongside. Serves four
150g blackberries
275g raspberries
225g blueberries or grapes
2 teaspoons caster sugar
1 vanilla pod, split
8 slices of brioche
4 tablespoons chilled mascarpone a handful of toasted almonds and fresh mint leaves, to serve
1 Take a large piece of foil and place the blackberries, raspberries and blueberries or grapes in the middle. Scatter over the caster sugar, lay the vanilla pod on top, then fold the foil into a neat parcel, with the seams at the top.
2 Once your barbecue is medium hot, place the foil packet on one side of the barbecue, and let the berries cook for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, toast your sliced brioche in batches on the other side of the barbecue, cutting them into triangles once toasted.
3 Divide the lightly cooked fruit between four plates, with the toasted brioche. Add a tablespoon of mascarpone, scatter over the toasted almonds and mint leaves, and serve hot.