10 Mouth-watering veggie barbecue recipes
1st Jan 2015 Recipes
Barbecues don't have to be all about the meat and burgers. These creative recipes offer some delicious vegetarian alternatives for mains, sides and dessert.
Barbecue leeks with mushroom vinaigrette
Image via Smarter Fitter
Leeks on the barbecue. Yes, it’s a genius idea! This needs a bit of preparation, place them on the grill for a few minutes until they have those wonderful ridge marks.
Serve them with a tangy vinaigrette that compliments the sweetness of the leeks over quinoa or wild rice.
Summer salad with grilled vegetables
Image via Family Friends Food
Lots of vegetables benefit from the smoky flavour of the barbecue and this sunny salad is packed with grilled vegetables.
A colourful mixture of bell peppers and aubergines are sliced, coated in dressing and grilled, then added to some freshly dressed salad for this substantial yet summery dish.
Falafel and halloumi kebabs, with spicy peanut butter marinade
Image via Tinned Tomatoes
Falafel makes a great bite-sized addition to kebabs as a vegetarian alternative to meat. In this recipe, they are teamed with halloumi and vegetables and coated in a spicy sauce before they’re grilled.
Once cooked the halloumi takes on a crisp outer layer with a soft chewy centre. It’s so moreish! Just remember to soak wooden skewers in water for half an hour before making up the kebabs. This prevents the wood from burning.
Chipotle barbecued tofu
Image via Fat Free Vegan
These mouthwatering slices of tofu are pressed, then cooked on the barbecue until they have a nice crisp coating.
Once grilled they are covered in the most wonderfully indulgent and sticky homemade barbecue sauce.
Serve the tofu over fresh couscous. If the weather is against you, you can cook these in the oven instead of the barbecue.
Olive barbecue flatbreads with marinated artichokes
Image via The Veg Space
Thought about making your own bread but not confident enough to try? These flatbreads are a great place to start.
They are easy to make and don’t have the same rise as bread so they are easy for beginners. They are cooked on the barbecue, then brushed with garlic butter and served with artichokes that are also cooked on the grill. Delicious!
Puy lentil and mushroom sausages
Image via Tinned Tomatoes
These homemade sausages made with mushroom, puy lentils and spices are nothing like bought burgers or sausages. They’re easy to make and so tasty.
You can grill them plain as they have a wonderful mushroom flavour or you can brush them in a marinade first. Serve them with grilled vegetables, in a bun or roll them in balls and add them to a kebab.
Grilled herb potatoes with a trio of dips
Image via Veggie Desserts
Potatoes usually featurely merely as a barbecue afterthought, but it's time to make them part of the main dish.
These small roasted potatoes have a smoky herb flavour. They're so simple to make but so utterly delicious and everyone loves potatoes. This recipe also comes with three tasty dip ideas.
Dijon grilled gem lettuce
Image via Food to Glow
Grilling lettuce? Yes, you must. All the top chefs are doing it and adding it as a side or to a salad.
It changes the texture and flavour of salad completely and works particularly well with bitter lettuce like radicchio or friseline but also works well with lettuce heads like baby gem.
In this recipe, the lettuce is brushed with a mustard dressing and they are grilled on the BBQ.
Barbecue apricots with goats cheese
Image via Tinned Tomatoes
I usually grill peaches or apricots as a dessert. I cut in them half, sprinkle them with brown sugar and wrapped in foil before popping them on the BBQ.
I serve them with cream or ice cream and they’re utterly divine, but peaches and apricots are also wonderful as a savoury dish.
I bake them on the BBQ with goat’s cheese and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.
Chocolate orange campfire cake
Image via Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary
I couldn’t leave you without a dessert and this one is rather special. A chocolate cake flavoured with orange (in fact it’s cooked in an orange) and baked on the barbecue.
It’s a bit like one of those microwave cakes you whip up in minutes. It will wow your family and friends. Just use your long tongs to push the coals away from one edge towards the end of the barbecue then pop your foil wrapped cakes in that corner to bake.
Jacqueline Meldrum is a freelance food writer and recipe developer. Jacqueline blogs at Tinned Tomatoes.
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more food lists