Nordin - The Green Barbecue Cookbook

I have always loved to barbecue, but only more recently in the last few years I have realised the opportunities I have been missing in terms of textures. For me, the joy of the barbecue lies in the taste, as the charcoal, wood and smoke bring so much to the dish. Ive realised, though, that not only does cooking over fire allow for more complex flavours, but it also allows for a contrast of textures.

This realisation has helped me to create more contrast in the food I make. I use a lot of vegetables in my cooking, and I treat them in different ways in order to create interest in the dish. It could be to mix it for an emulsion sauce, to fry it until it is crispy, or to cook it until it is incredibly soft.

When thinking about grilling burgers, I was struck by how liberating and creative it is to devise, prepare and eat green burgers. A classic meat-based burger is indeed uncompromisingly classic, but what goes into a green burger is far less restrictive. Theres not one classic, so you have free rein! Do what you want, experiment and question what a burger can be. You have the freedom to just go for it. I want to inspire you to have the courage to try out different variants, so you can then start to create your own favourite.

Another thing I love about barbecues is the process of cooking over the fire. It is a more welcoming way to cook like this, rather than standing over a technical induction hub in a cramped kitchen. It allows you to gather around the fire and to invite people to come and cook together.

My friends have inspired me a lot in my cooking. We often do big dinners, where we all cook together. Over time, more and more friends started becoming vegetarian so the food became more plant-based. Gradually, over a couple of years, we turned it from vegetarians bringing their extra protein to the dinners, to the meat eaters having to bring their meat, if they wanted any. Then, with time, I found so many ways of doing great things with vegetables it just felt like there were no boundaries so I could be more creative.

I began to find I had so much inspiration and ideas to try out. Then, with the added push of social media, my cooking went from a hobby to something that took up more of my time and focus. It has got to the point that now most of my professional and personal time revolves around food.

For this book, I want you to initially try following the recipes, with the idea that you can use them to be inspired to create your own dishes. Next time you might combine it with another recipe or even think of another idea inspired by something delicious you ate in your favourite restaurant or something you saw when searching the web. Remember, too, that not everything depends on the food the social dimension of gathering, cooking food together and hanging out around the fire is also a wonderful experience.

But not everything depends on the food the social dimension of gathering, cooking food together and hanging out around the fire is a wonderful experience.

Grilling vegetables

When I began barbecuing vegetables I followed my gut instinct a lot of the time. Did the flames seem hot? Were the vegetables taking on a good colour and did they smell good? Did the grill sound right did the vegetables sizzle when I added them? Thats probably most peoples approach to the process of grilling on the barbecue and you can go far with it. But to ensure a higher degree of certainty that you will achieve the desired results for your raw ingredients, it is well worth giving a little extra thought to which type of barbecue and charcoal you want to use, as well as the temperature of both the grill and the ingredients themselves.

I usually use a barbecue with a lid (preferably with a thermometer). You need the lid when grilling indirectly, because the grill becomes your oven. Sometimes, I also use a tabletop barbecue. It is common in parts of Asia and is perfect if you want to barbecue together with friends everyone can gather around it at the table. Of course, you can also grill straight over an open fire. For a larger party, a fun idea is to saw a metal barrel in half lengthways and use it as a barbecue. Be creative but always remember fire safety!

Vegetables are generally more sensitive than meat when being grilled. The fuel you choose can have an impact on the flavour both positively and negatively. I usually use charcoal, which offers several advantages. Charcoal is more precise than wood and is better suited to barbecuing using a grill when you want to achieve the most even spread of heat possible. Additionally, it burns for longer and smokes less, which helps to better preserve the original flavour of your raw ingredients.

On the other hand, if you want to add another flavour dimension, you should barbecue using wood. Since this smokes far more than charcoal, it can contribute a variety of smoky flavours to whatever you are barbecuing. It also feels much cooler to use wood! It burns, its fragrant and it looks more real - the way you want fire to look! I like to use woods like apple and cherry fruit trees generally as well as woods like oak. However, I often end up using birch since it is cheaper and easier to get hold of.

I rarely use briquettes, but they are also fine to use. Regardless of the fuel you choose to use, it is important to ensure that they are FSC certified, as this ensures that the wood is free from chemicals and has been grown sustainably. Its good for you and the environment.

Once you have chosen your fuel, its time to light the barbecue. Never use lighter fluid ignite it using a chimney starter or an electric charcoal lighter. Then all you have to do is place the vegetable straight into the flames or just after they have died down if you are going to charcoal roast it. Otherwise, wait for the perfect glow if you are going to grill it more carefully. How do you know what the best glow is? When is it perfect? That depends on what you want to do are you caramelising an onion straight over the glow or perhaps roasting a swede using indirect heat? The charcoal is at its best and hottest when it is glowing and has a grey, ash-like exterior. During the next phase, when the charcoal has turned white, the temperature has begun to fall and it is often slightly too late to start grilling. A simple (and unscientific) method for checking the temperature is the hand trick. Hold your hand about 10 cm (4 in) above the glowing coals. If you can only keep your hand there for 1 second, its very hot more than 300C (575F). If you can keep your hand there for 2 seconds, its around 200250C (400480F), 34 seconds means the temperature is 175200C (350400F), and if you manage 57 seconds then it is less than 150C (300F).

Consider the core temperature

You might think it sounds strange to check the core temperature of a vegetable, but you probably wouldnt bat an eyelid if it was meat or fish. Try to find the vegetables densest or meatiest part and take the temperature there. One important thing to bear in mind when measuring the temperature is that there is a big difference between something like a fresh summer cabbage that will cook quicker than a stored winter harvest that needs longer to finish so do keep track! It goes without saying that the texture varies greatly depending on season, growing conditions, weather and much more.

A rule of thumb is that the greater the density of your vegetable, the higher the core temperature should be when it is cooked. A potato should ideally exceed 95C (200F), whereas courgettes (zucchini) or asparagus are at their best at 75C (170F). But, of course, it varies depending on how the vegetable is going to be used: a leek can be perfect with a core temperature of around 80C (175F) if you want it