We usually associate barbecues with weekend outdoor activities. Get-togethers with family or friends in a fun atmosphere at the barbecue usually begin in May and end in late September. Barbecue as a form of meal, on average, is usually associated with sausages or pork neck, sometimes with fish. Preparing meat for a barbecue is relatively uncomplicated. It consists of proper seasoning with the appropriate spices, as desired and to taste, sometimes using appropriate marinades. Sausages and meats prepared for grilling in this way can be thrown on the grill. However, are there also other options for prepared meals? Is meat an obligatory part of the barbecue?
Alternatives to meat
Not only does good meat come out of the grill, but other foods are worth trying. You don't have to be on a vegan diet to cook yourself something completely new, but equally tasty. Eggplants come to mind first. It is perhaps the most popular vegetable for grilling. We can grill eggplants only with spices or we can cut them slightly and stuff them. What is suitable for stuffing? In fact, everything - mushrooms, hummus, tomatoes... Stuffed peppers or zucchini are also very tasty. You can also add onions or chopped parsley to any stuffing to enhance the flavor. The advantage of such dishes is their basically endless combinations. Preparing such dishes for the barbecue does not take much time and does not require complex culinary skills. It is worth trying many combinations of combining vegetables and mushrooms, so that everyone will find something perfect for themselves.
How to grill vegetables?
Grilled vegetables do not require as high a temperature as meat, nor as long a cooking time. If you grill vegetables alone, you do not need to use briquette for this purpose, which reaches a higher temperature than ordinary charcoal. Vegetables will roast quietly on charcoal alone. If the grilled vegetables are to be an accompaniment to grilled meat, they should be put on the grate much later than the meat. After the meat is pre-grilled, we can raise the grate with the meat higher, so that the meat only heats up, and the vegetables are grilled. These are easiest to wrap in aluminum foil. When heated, they can easily crack and then the stuffing is at risk of falling out. The temperature circulates differently in the aluminum foil and the vegetables will grill more evenly than on the so-called open fire. If you cook more vegetables, you can put them in a separate dish, as this way they won't get dirty from the usually sooty grate.
Fruit Ideas
Grill is so versatile that we can also grill fruit on it. Here again, it all depends on our imagination. All you need to do is slice apples, sprinkle them lightly with cinnamon and place them on aluminum foil. This way we get a super addition to the dessert after the main course. We can also put a pear or exotic pineapple on the grill.
Hunting grill - an interesting way to grill
The traditional and typical grill we associate with a hearth on legs or wheels. Nowadays, however, so-called hunting grills are available. These are tripods, under which round grates are suspended. The height of the grate is adjusted by a special crank, which is located on one of the legs. In cheaper versions, the height of the grate is adjusted by a chain, the eyelets of which are hooked onto a special hook on the leg, but this is less convenient, especially with larger grates, on which we grill more. Under such a grill, we can light a traditional fire with wood or charcoal or briquette. For a tripod, you can also purchase a special hearth made of thick sheet metal. This is a very convenient solution, which after the season allows us to store all the equipment in the garage for the winter. The hunting grill has the advantage over an ordinary barbecue that it can be placed on uneven pavement. It is much more stable and it is virtually impossible for it to tip over, and it takes up much less space when folded.
Charcoal or briquette?
There is no clear answer to the question of whether to grill with charcoal or briquette. Charcoal is cheaper than briquette, but it burns faster. Charcoal consumes more and does not reach the same temperature as briquette. Charcoal also ignites faster than briquette. So, if you want to grill more food, for more people, it will definitely be easier to light the grill on briquette. If you are doing a small barbecue for a few people or preparing only vegetables, you should consider using charcoal. It is important to remember that when firing up the grill with kindling, whether liquid or cubed, only place the grate over the hearth after the kindling has completely burned out. There are very harmful chemical components in kindling. How about something else? An excellent alternative to briquettes and charcoal is firewood. It is best if the wood comes from deciduous tree species, although branches of spruce or pine also do an excellent job. In the case of lighting under the grate of wood, we must take into account that the flame of the burner will be higher and the grate will have to be raised higher.
Grilling is the easiest way to prepare many dishes outdoors. Everything really depends on our creativity. So if it's the season, it's worth investing in a good hunting barbecue, find a suitable place on the plot and enjoy grilling your favorite dishes, both meat and meatless.
