Not just a late-night snack on the way home from the pub, here kebabs are given the respect they deserve. They come with charred chilli sauce, cooling tahini yoghurt and a bit of crunchy cabbage.
Shawarma chicken wrap
Makes 6
Ingredients 800g skinless, boneless chicken thighs 300g red cabbage Juice of ½ lemon Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Charred chilli sauce 1 whole garlic bulb 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 1 red onion, halved (skin on) 2 red peppers 2 tomatoes 2 long red chillies 2 long green chillies 1 tbsp sherry vinegar Tahini yoghurt 200g natural yoghurt 1–2 tbsp tahini Juice of ½ lemon
To serve Flatbreads Pickled chillies
Method 1. Cut the chicken thighs into 4cm pieces. Mix the marinade ingredients together in a bowl. Add the chicken and season liberally with salt and pepper. Mix well and leave to marinate for 1–2 hours. Finely shred the red cabbage, toss with the lemon juice and set aside to pickle.
2.For the sauce, put the garlic bulb on a piece of foil, drizzle with a little of the olive oil and wrap to seal. Place on the hot barbecue with the onion and peppers. Cook, turning the veg carefully for 10 minutes, then add the tomatoes and chillies and cook all the veg until charred all over. As each item is cooked, transfer to a bowl; keep tightly covered with cling film.
3. Let the charred veg steam in the bowl for 5–10 minutes, then remove and peel away their skins. Halve and deseed the peppers and chillies, then chop all the veg finely and place in a bowl. Squeeze out the flesh from four roasted garlic cloves, finely chop and add to the veg. Mix in the sherry vinegar, olive oil and a little seasoning.
4. For the tahini yoghurt, squeeze the flesh from two roasted garlic cloves and chop finely. Mix with the yoghurt, tahini, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.
5. Thread the chicken onto six metal skewers. Barbecue for 4–5 minutes on each side. Also, heat the flatbreads on the barbecue, for 1–2 minutes on each side.
6. Serve the chicken skewers with the warm flatbreads, chilli sauce, pickled cabbage, tahini yoghurt and pickled chillies.
This no-hassle, no-mess dish is perfect for prepping ahead and sticking on the barbie as everyone arrives. The prawns steam-cook wrapped in foil, which locks in moisture to keep them juicy. Get people round the table as you undo the parcel — to savour the incredible garlicky aroma.
Ingredients 600g large raw tiger prawns 100g butter 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 1 long red chilli, sliced 1 tsp sweet smoked paprika 80ml dry sherry Salt and freshly ground pepper
To finish and serve 2 tbsp roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley Crusty bread
Method 1. First, peel the prawns, removing the heads but leaving the tail shells on. Using a sharp knife, make a small slit along the middle of the back to expose the dark intestinal vein. Prise this out with the tip of your knife and discard it.
2. Tear off a 45cm length of foil and place, shiny side down, on your work surface. Fold the foil in half, then create a pocket by sealing the sides (to do this, fold the foil edges over and over a few times, pressing firmly). Put the prawns into the foil pocket through the opening at the top.
3. Put the butter, olive oil, garlic, chilli, smoked paprika and sherry into a small pan. Place over a high heat and let it bubble away for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and season well with salt and pepper.
4. Pour the butter over the prawns in the foil pocket. Fold the foil edges together along the open side to seal the parcel completely. Place the foil parcel on your hot barbecue and cook for 12–15 minutes, depending on the heat. You’ll be able to tell that it’s nearly ready when the envelope begins to puff up with steam.
5. Remove the foil parcel from the barbecue, open it up carefully and tip the prawns and buttery juices into a serving bowl then sprinkle with chopped parsley — or just rip it open, throw in the parsley and tuck in! Make sure there’s lots of crusty bread around to dunk in the juices.
Tip: Instead of a foil parcel, you can cook the prawns in a sealed rigid foil container for better stability.
These super-juicy mushroom burgers are packed full of big umami flavours. The dried porcini powder in the butter adds an incredible savoury depth, which is enhanced with chilli, garlic and lemon zest. A thick slice of glazed halloumi makes each burger satisfyingly chunky.
Umami butter 160g butter, softened 2 tbsp white miso 1 tbsp light soy sauce 5g dried porcini mushrooms, ground to a powder ½ tsp dried chilli flakes 2 large garlic cloves, finely grated Finely grated zest of ½ lemon Salt and freshly ground black pepper
To assemble 4 brioche burger buns, split 4 tbsp sweet chilli or hot chilli sauce 4 tbsp mayonnaise About 60g rocket leaves
Method 1. Cut each block of halloumi in half horizontally through the middle to create four flat halloumi steaks in total.
2. For the umami butter, put all the ingredients into a bowl and mix until evenly combined, seasoning with a good pinch each of salt and pepper.
3. Brush the portobello mushrooms on one side with the umami butter and place them, buttered side down, on a medium-hot barbecue. Brush the other side thickly with butter while they are cooking. Turn the mushrooms over after 2–3 minutes and add the halloumi to the barbecue. Brush the surface of the halloumi with umami butter too. Keep brushing the mushrooms with the butter as they cook; do the same with the halloumi.
4. Towards the end of the cooking, toast the burger buns on the barbecue. Brush any remaining umami butter onto the toasted buns.
5. To assemble the burgers, place a mushroom, flat side up, on the base of each burger bun. Top with a halloumi steak and add a spoonful of sweet chilli or hot chilli sauce. Pile a big handful of rocket leaves on top. Spread some mayo on the bun lids and sandwich the burgers together. Tuck in straight away.
Tip: Use a coffee grinder to grind any extra dried mushrooms. Keep the mushroom powder in a sealed jar and use it to add flavour to pasta sauces, soups, stews etc.