Melissa Thompson, author of Fired Up, shares five barbecue recipes perfect for summer cooking over coals. From jerk prawns to lamb chops, these dishes bring fire and smoke flavor to your grill.
Jerk Prawns with Fire-Roasted Tomato and Garlic Pepper Sauce
This starter serves 4 and takes 10 minutes to prep, 15 minutes to marinate, and 55 minutes to cook. Ingredients include 20 raw shell-on king prawns, spring onions, ground pimento, garlic, ginger, black pepper, lime zest and juice, golden caster sugar, thyme, scotch bonnet, salt, and neutral oil. For the sauce, you'll need red onions, rapeseed oil, a garlic bulb, salt, red pepper, tomatoes, scotch bonnets, cider vinegar, and light brown sugar (optional).
Light the barbecue with coals set for 50:50 cooking. Place onions directly on coals, turning every 10 minutes until blackened and soft. Seal in a container to steam. Drizzle oil on the cut side of the garlic bulb, sprinkle with salt, wrap in foil, and cook over coals alongside the red pepper and tomatoes. Turn frequently until blackened. Cook garlic until soft (about 20 minutes). Quickly blacken scotch bonnets. Once cool, peel onions, tomatoes, and pepper, remove seeds, and blend with scotch bonnets, oil, vinegar, sugar, and squeezed garlic cloves until smooth. Season with salt. Store in a sterilized jar for up to three months.
Prepare prawns by cutting through the back of the shell from head to tail and removing the intestinal tract with a toothpick. Blend remaining marinade ingredients until smooth, pour over prawns, and massage into shells. Grill prawns directly over coals for a couple of minutes until pink, then flip and continue turning until charred. Move to indirect heat once cooked. Serve with sauce and lime wedges.
Courgette and Mushroom Skewers with Lemongrass and Tamarind
These skewers serve 4 and require 15 minutes prep, overnight pickling, 20 minutes marinating, and 35 minutes cooking. Ingredients include courgettes, spring onions, portobello mushrooms, tamarind and lemongrass marinade, and tamarind dressing. For the escovitch pickle, you'll need vinegar, salt, sugar, pimento berries, peppercorns, chayote, carrots, and scotch bonnets.
Make the escovitch the day before: boil vinegar and water, stir in salt and sugar, add spices, then pour over chayote, carrot, and scotch bonnet in a jar. Seal and leave for 24 hours. Blend marinade ingredients smooth. Mix dressing ingredients. Cut courgettes into pieces, skewer with spring onion and mushroom slices. Marinate for 20 minutes. Grill skewers over coals for 5 minutes per side, basting with leftover marinade, until golden. Serve with dressing and escovitch.
Grilled Peanut, Garlic and Cumin Lamb Chops
Serves 4 with 5 minutes prep and 35 minutes cooking. You need 8 lamb chops and vegetable oil. For the spice mix: cumin seeds, coriander seeds, smoked paprika, white peppercorns, dried chillies, and salt. Marinade: shallot, sherry vinegar, garlic, sugar, smooth peanut butter, oil, and spice mix. Peanut sauce: crunchy peanut butter, soy sauce, garlic, sherry vinegar, sugar, remaining spice mix, water, and salt.
Grind spice mix. Blend marinade ingredients. Rub marinade into lamb chops and set aside for 5 minutes. Mix sauce ingredients. Grill chops over coals for 4 minutes per side until colored, then move to indirect heat, close lid, and cook for 5–8 minutes until internal temperature reaches 50–52°C for pink or 55°C for medium. Rest for 2 minutes. Serve with spring onions, coriander, pickled chillies, rice, and peanut sauce.
Herby Potato Salad
Serves 4 with 20 minutes prep and 20 minutes cooking, plus cooling. Ingredients: 500g jersey royal or new potatoes, parsley, chives, dill, capers, quick pickled onions or red onion, olive oil, cider vinegar, salt, and pepper.
Boil potatoes for 10–15 minutes until tender; drain. Mix potatoes with herbs. In a separate bowl, combine capers, onions, oil, vinegar, and pepper. Pour dressing over potatoes and mix. Let sit for 20 minutes before serving.
Halloumi and Grilled Aubergine Salad
Serves 4 with 10 minutes prep and 15 minutes cooking. Ingredients: ground cumin, coriander, fenugreek, black pepper, salt, olive oil, aubergines, halloumi, tomatoes, cider vinegar, parsley. For cucumber and garlic yoghurt: cucumber, Greek yoghurt, and garlic.
Combine spices and oil, rub into aubergine and halloumi slices. Mix cucumber, yoghurt, and garlic for the yoghurt. Grill aubergine slices over coals for 3–4 minutes per side until limp and grill-marked. Move to indirect heat. Mix aubergine with tomatoes, remaining oil, vinegar, and parsley. Grill halloumi over coals, turning every 2 minutes until golden. Arrange aubergine, tomatoes, halloumi, and yoghurt on a plate.
These recipes are edited extracts from Fired Up by Melissa Thompson, published by Carnival at £22. To order a copy for £19.80, visit guardianbookshop.com.
