Weekend food with Darina Allen
The top of the range gas grill doubles as an outdoor kitchen and can be used from January to December. I’m a big fan of the kettle grill with domed lid — some can double up as a smoker.
Before you go shopping, you’ve got to consider your lifestyle and what you want from your barbecue — does it need to be portable or can it be a fixture? Do you want to cook for large parties or just a few family and friends? Will it be charcoal or gas? I like to have both options, depending on the occasion.
One of the more important elements of a barbecue is the facility to control the height of the food over the source of heat. This is vital.
Charcoal is a whole lot trickier. It’s vital to light the barbecue well in advance. A good trick is to line the base of the barbecue with tin foil.
Don’t use firelighters and certainly don’t resort to petrol — screwed up paper, kindling and long matches are fine. Pile the charcoal into a pyramid and once lit leave it alone.
Meanwhile, prepare the food. Lay it out in manageable size portions on trays. Make lots of sauces, relishes and salads. Trim excess fat off the meat or it will catch fire and create lots of flame.
There are masses of easy and delicious marinades that can be made in minutes but a very good bottle of extra virgin olive oil, Maldon or Halen Mon sea salt, and freshly cracked pepper are the essentials. Add fresh herbs, particularly rosemary, thyme and sage. Yoghurt tenderises but drain well before cooking, otherwise it will burn.
When the coals are ready they should have burned down to a grey ash with glowing red coals underneath. Spread them out a bit at one side to create a cooler area if it is needed. Use long-handled tongs and have a mister close by to douse flames if necessary.
Best of all, enjoy the thrill of the grill, practice makes perfect. Sausages are all fine but here are a few deliciously simply suggestions.
Serves 4
Mightn’t occur to one but quesadillas can also be made on the barbecue and are delicious.
8 x 20cm (8 inch) flour tortillas
100g (3½oz) Gruyere cheese, grated
200g (7oz) feta cheese, crumbled or Mozzarella
4 Spring onions, chopped
Tomato salsa – see recipe
Guacamole – see recipe
Spread the tortilla with a quarter of the Gruyere cheese. Put a layer of tomato salsa on top and sprinkle with some chopped spring onion. Sprinkle with a quarter of the Feta or Mozzarella. Lightly place a second tortilla on top. Assemble the remaining tortillas in the same way. (This could be done up to four hours beforehand — cover with cling film and keep at room temperature).
Grill over medium-hot coals until lightly browned and the Gruyere is melted; this should take about two minutes on each side.
Cut into wedges with a sharp serrated knife. Serve hot with tomato salsa and guacamole.
Serves 4-6
Salsas of all kinds, both fresh and cooked, have now become a favourite accompaniment to everything from pangrilled meat to a piece of sizzling fish.
4 very ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 tbsp red onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
½-1 chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
1-2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
Squeeze of fresh lime juice
Salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar
Mix all the ingredients together. Season with salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar.
Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
Serves 2-4
1 ripe avocado, preferably Mexican
1 clove garlic, crushed
1-2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice (as a last resort)
1 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh coriander
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Scoop out the flesh from the avocado. Mash with a fork or in a pestle and mortar with the garlic, add the freshly squeezed lime juice, a little olive oil, chopped coriander, salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
Serves 4
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 fresh red chilli, seeded and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
4 tbsp runny Irish honey
2 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp lime juice
1 spring onion, diagonally sliced
1 fresh red chilli, seeded and finely sliced
1 tbsp fresh mint leaves
1 tbsp fresh coriander leaves
4 x 35cm (14inch) flat metal skewers
Cut each breast lengthwise into three strips. Combine chilli, garlic, ginger, honey, soy sauce and lime juice. Reserve four tbsp of the mixture. Add chicken to remaining mixture and toss to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Thread three chicken strips on to each skewer. Grill over a medium-hot coals, turning every two minutes, until cooked through (eight-10 minutes).
Drizzle over reserved sweet chilli mixture. Sprinkle with spring onion, chilli, mint and coriander leaves. Serve hot.
Serves 4-6
900g (2lb) small new potatoes
Salt
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, approximately
1 tbsp rosemary, finely chopped
Sea salt
Metal skewer or pre-soaked bamboo skewers
Scrub the potatoes and cook in boiling salted water for 15-20 minutes. Cool. (the potatoes may be cooked ahead). Cut in half, toss in olive oil and sprinkle with finely chopped rosemary and sea salt.
Thread the potato halves onto the skewers. Cook potato halves over a barbecue until crisp and slightly charred on both sides.
Alternatively, roast in a hot oven 230C/450F/gas mark 8 for 10-15 minutes, or until cooked and nicely brown — you may need to turn half way through.
This is a good way of cooking for a large number of guests or indeed the recipe can be modified for a smaller group. The salmon can be wrapped in the foil with its seasonings, early in the day, and cooked later. The thyme in the recipe can be replaced with fennel or dill if you wish. The pepper salsa will keep for several days and is also good served with mackerel, pork or chicken.
Serves 6-8
2.2lbs / 1 kg of fresh salmon fillet, skin attached (preferably organic)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Sprig of thyme
Olive oil
Lay out a large sheet of tin foil on your work top. Brush a little olive oil on the foil and then place the salmon, skin side down on top. Brush the surface of the fish with a little more oil. There should not be pools of olive oil, just a glaze on the surface of the fish. Season the salmon with salt and pepper. Grate the zest of the lemon over the fish and pop on a sprig or two of thyme. Fold over the foil and fold the edges several times to make a neat and well sealed rectangular parcel.
Preheat the oven to 250C/475F/gas 9
Place the parcel on a roasting tray and then in the preheated oven and bake for 10 – 15 minutes or until cooked and tender.
Alternatively, place on the preheated barbecue and close the lid and cook for 10 – 15 minutes.
Place the cooked salmon, still in the foil, on a large, hot, serving dish. Open the foil and neatly roll back to expose the cooked fish. Garnish with sprigs of fennel or thyme, lemon wedges and serve the salsa separately.
1 red pepper, roasted, peeled, deseeded and cut into 5mm/¼-inch dice
1 ripe, firm tomato, peeled, deseeded and 5mm/¼-inch dice
2 tbsp of coarsely chopped black olives
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed
10 basil leaves, chopped or torn
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Mix all of the ingredients together. Taste and correct seasoning.
- Una’s Handmade Gourmet Pies: Thai Green Curry Pie, Chicken, Leek and Bacon Pie, Mince and Onion Pie, Steak and Guinness Pie, Goats Cheese and Roasted Vegetable Pie … how delicious does that sound and they are. Available at Mahon Point Farmers Market every Thursday and Douglas Farmers Market every Saturday. Contact 087-2859957.
- Ovencrafter Hendrik Lepel will teach a two-day workshop on how to build your own outdoor wood fired bread / pizza oven on Saturday, July 9, and Sunday, July 10, from 10am to 4.30pm at Coolibah, Belgooly, Kinsale. Cost €150 per person, including lunch. Call Hendrik on 086-8838400 or kirdnehl@hotmail.com
- Canapes, Finger Food and Tasty Bites — half day course at Ballymaloe Cookery School on Thursday, July 28, 2011 — 9.30am to 1.30pm — lunch included. tel: 021-4646785.
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