Barbecue Balance

 Read more from Gerald

"Tout est question d'équilibre"
Mireille Guiliano 1946- French author

Whether yours is by the beach or in the backyard, state of the art or run of the mill, fuelled by gas, charcoal or driftwood there is something wonderful about cooking on a barbecue. At this time of year and in the weather we have been enjoying lately, the question "What shall we have for dinner?", could be just as easily "What shall we barbecue?".

There are times though when I have found myself happily jerking chicken, marinating meat or seasoning salmon and then realising that I had given hardly any thought as to what else we would eat with the meal. This has usually been resolved by throwing together a very simple salad; fresh and healthy undoubtedly but somehow not quite measuring up to the meaty (or fishy) star of the show and so now I make a point of giving equal thought to the supporting cast.

Potato salad always seems to go well with a barbecue; I don't mean the cubes of watery potato in industrial mayonnaise that can be bought ready-made but a good quality version made at home. Cook waxy new potatoes in their skins, cut them into chunks and while they are still warm dress them with a garlicky vinaigrette, and some chopped sun-dried tomatoes, spring onions, black olives and torn basil leaves. Another time the potatoes could be dressed with sour cream then tossed with chopped gherkins, red onions, whole seed mustard, caraway seeds and green peppercorns then garnish with some snipped dill leaves. If you still yearn for potato salad in mayonnaise then use a 50/50 mix of homemade aioli and basil and walnut pesto. Like many other vegetables potatoes do well cooked on the barbecue too. Just peel and parboil some Agria or similar floury potato, slice them then brush with oil and brown on grill or hotplate; season and serve with chopped chives and a drizzle of tasty olive oil.

Should potatoes not be your thing or if you just don't fancy them one day try couscous instead. For six servings, put 500g of couscous in a bowl then add 500ml boiling water and cover with cling film. Leave for 5 minutes then stir in some butter or olive oil and salt to taste. If I'm serving it with lamb, I sometimes add some chopped dried apricots, spring onions and sultanas and a pinch or two of ground cinnamon. It makes an ideal base for serving kebabs.

To give fresh crisp salads an added depth of flavour, brush slices of aubergine, zucchini and capsicum with olive oil and grill them until brown; lay the vegetables on the salad leaves, season and serve sprinkled with chopped herbs and balsamic vinegar. In the past I have served these grilled vegetables together with sliced onions and fennel cooked the same way on thick slices of focaccia bread which I have brushed with oil, toasted on the grill and rubbed with garlic.

Portobello mushrooms grill and go well with most barbecue. One way is to oil and grill them open side down until they begin to soften. Turn them over, fill the cup with crumbled blue cheese and chopped walnuts and cook until the cheese starts to melt then serve on steaks, with chops or by themselves with a green salad.

A great favourite of mine at barbecues or indeed any time is tabbouleh, the Lebanese salad of burghul, parsley and mint. It is easy to make and so refreshing on a summer day. Soak cracked wheat (burghul) in cold water for 30 minutes then drain, squeeze as dry as possible and place in a bowl. Add to this, lemon juice, some extra virgin olive oil and salt and pepper and set aside.

Finely chop a large amount of flat-leafed parsley and half that amount of fresh mint together with a large onion. Place this in a large bowl and to this gradually mix in the cracked wheat. The dish should have a green and brown speckled look. Adjust the seasoning and dressing to taste, be generous with the lemon and serve with chopped raw tomatoes and cucumber

Horseradish is easy to grow although there is a danger that, like mint, it can take over a garden and apart from beef one of the things that horseradish gets on very well with is oily fish. I grate our horseradish root and mix it with cream and white wine vinegar and when this is mixed with chopped dill, a little dry mustard and sour cream it makes a perfect dressing for baby beetroot which I serve with barbecued fish. I also use the horseradish cream as a sauce with steak or to give beef sausages a lift.

And of course there is the fresh salad. There is such a selection of lettuces and leaves available that salads need never be boring…peppery watercress and rocket, crisp Iceberg and young Cos, soft young spinach and Buttercrunch, red lollo rosso and white endive…

I often mix paper thin slices of Florence fennel, red onion and celery with the leaves or slices of cucumber, zucchini or white radish. Other raw vegetables make delicious salads… for example, carrots, radishes, peas, beans; cauliflower florets mixed with crisp apple slices and dressed with a mustardy vinaigrette make a crunchy gem of a salad and fresh fruit and nuts open a whole new range of salad possibilities.

So, barbecues are wonderful but they can be that much better and healthier; it's all a matter of balance.