Three Quick and Easy Meals You Can Cook on a Grill

As summer approaches, many a thought turns to the great outdoors and to activities such as swimming, playing sport, spending quality time with family and friends and of course eating great food under a perfect blue sky. Sandwiches and cold cuts in a picnic basket are a great option for outdoor eating, but sometimes we want something that is warm and a little more substantial; but still easy to prepare and cook.

That’s where the outdoor grill comes in handy. They come in a wide range of sizes and types, some ideal for your back yard in a permanent outdoor kitchen arrangement; with others more portable and suited to taking to parks, beaches and other recreation areas. To see what best suits your needs, pop into a barbecue specialist store such as Barbeques Galore to see their range of Ziegler & Brown and Weber gear.

There really is no limit to what you can grill on a barbecue. Steak, pork, lamb, seafood and vegetables are all perfectly suited for the barbecue and there are literally thousands of recipes on the internet to get the best out of your food and grill combination. Look for recipes that are easy to prepare, quick to cook and healthy to eat, and you’ll have the perfect menu for your outdoor lunch. Here are just three ideas to whet your appetite.

Barbecued Lime Shrimp and Corn

Shrimp or prawns are ideal for the barbecue as they cook quickly and suit a wide variety of food styles and flavours. This particular recipe was originally designed for a camp fire but works just as well on a grill with a rack. Wrap enough peeled prawns or shrimp and pre-boiled corn for one person in aluminium foil along with flavoursome seasonings such as lime, soy sauce, honey, and coriander. Throw as many wraps as you need on the grill and cook for about 10 minutes or until everything is cooked to your liking. You can then open the packets and eat straight from the foil.

Chicken Sate with Ponzu Sauce

Chicken is another versatile meat, with this recipe demonstrating how easily it can be adapted to suit different flavours. This is a cross-cultural dish, using sate from Indonesia and a citrusy dipping sauce, or ponzu, from Japan. Just soak the chicken in a sate mix before cooking and use the ponzu, which consists of the citrus juice of sudachi, yuzu, and kabosu, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar or mirin, and dashi for added flavour. If you don’t want to make your own, you can buy ponzu from most supermarkets. Just don’t tell anyone.

Grilled sirloin salad

This is a great dish for both meat lovers and those looking for a healthy option. Simply cook strips of tender steak and place them on top of a salad of vegetables of your choice. Flavour the lot with nice red wine-lemon vinaigrette and you’re done. Easy, healthy and delicious!

The sky and your imagination really is the limit when it comes to cooking on the grill. Experiment with different foods and recipes and you can’t go wrong. Most importantly of all, enjoy yourselves.

*Photo credit: Dreamstime