With good weather forecast for the weekend, many will be dusting off the barbecue for the first time this year. Here's a couple of recipe idea's......
Shish kebabs:
Ingredients: (for 8 kebabs)
500 g good quality minced lamb
1 large red onion, very finely chopped
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lime juice
1 egg beaten
3 tablespoons plain flour
2 tablespoons chopped coriander
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
3/4 teaspoon salt
a little ground white pepper
Marinade:
5 tablespoons natural yogurt
1 tablespoon hot curry powder
1 garlic clove, finely chopped and crushed
Paprika
Lime wedges
Mix the minced lamb, onion, lemon and lime juice, egg plain flour, herbs, salt and white pepper together in a large bowl. Divide the mixture into 8 equally-sized sausage shaped patties. Thread the patties carefully onto oiled metal skewers and set aside.
For the marinade, simply mix the yogurt, curry powder and crushed garlic and pout onto a flat plate. Place the skewered patties in the marinade and leave for up to 4 hours, turning a couple of times.
When ready to cook, firstly ensure the barbecue is medium hot. Remove the skewers from the marinade and brush lightly with a little oil. Place on the barbecue and cook for between 8 and 12 minutes (depending upon the temperature of the barbecue and the thickness of the kebabs).
Serve hot, dusted with a little paprika and a splash of lime juice.
Fantastic - and of course can be served in warm pittas with a salad of choice.
Grilled Mackerel with a lemon fennel salad
Ingredients
6 whole mackerel, gutted, cleansed and de-scaled
3 whole lemons, finely sliced
1 fennel bulb, very finely sliced
1 garlic clove, crushed
3 tablespoons capers
extra virgin olive oil
chopped parsley
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Take each of the fresh mackerel and with a sharp knife make 3 diagonal slashes on each side. Rub a little oil over each fish and season well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Now using, soaked cooking string, tie 3 slices of lemon on each side of each fish. Drizzle on a little more oil and cook immediately over a hot barbecue. The secret of cooking fish over the barbecue is not to move it too early. Only move the fish once, and that's when turning over. Cook on each side for 4 or 5 minutes until lightly charred. Set aside and rest the fish for 5 minutes before serving.
Whilst the fish is resting, very finely slice the fennel and mix with the garlic, capers, oil, parsley, lemon juice and seasoning. Mix well and serve with the mackerel. This is very refreshing, the fennel combines wonderfully with the citrus flavours and the charred meat of the mackerel.
Grilled Pear, rocket and parmesan salad
Ingredients:
6 firm pears, carefully peeled
350 g rocket
5 tablespoons olive oil
a little lemon juice
2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
200 g best quality parmesan cheese
This is a delicious simple salad, the grilled pears taste wonderful with the parmesan and balsamic dressing.
Peel, quarter and core the pears and then slice the quarters in half again. Thread the pears carefully onto skewers and place onto the hot barbecue for 2 minutes on each side.
Place the rocket into a large bowl. Make a simple dressing with the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice and seasonings. Toss the salad well, add the grilled pear and slices of parmesan cheese. Serve immediately and enjoy!
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