Easy Barbecue Ideas for Meat Eaters and Vegetarians

Ah, summer: the season of barbecues. We can almost smell the charcoal in the air already! If you follow a vegan or vegetarian diet, however, you may be thinking that barbecues are out of the question for you. After all, isn’t meat the essential ingredient for any successful grill?

Well here’s a newsflash: even non-meat eaters can enjoy barbecues! And whether you’re a big fan of burgers or you’d prefer something plant-based, we’ve got some delicious ideas that just about anyone can tackle for their next cookout.

Elote

Regular corn on the cob is a favourite summertime treat, but rather than just add a little bit of butter, salt, and pepper to it, why not take things up a notch? Elote does just that. It’s is a popular Mexican street and festival food that consists of sweetcorn grilled to perfection, then rolled in mayonnaise, crema, and cojita cheese. Chili powder and lime juice are often added for an extra spice and flavour kick.

Barbecuing your own elotes couldn’t be easier, but if crema and cojita cheese are hard to come by, sour cream and feta make great substitutes. Here’s a super simplified recipe that you can beef up with extra ingredients like coriander.

Patties

Is there anything more ‘barbecue’ than the image of patties sizzling on a hot grill? We’re using the term ‘patty’ here to include anything that contains meat, like beef and chicken – or even strictly veg. This means everyone can enjoy a good burger!

Every great burger needs a great bun. You can go the shop-bought route if it’s easier for you, but this homemade roll recipe is quite simple to undertake. You can easily make a beef burger with ingredients you have at home, or you can be adventurous with lamb and feta burgers. Vegetarian? No problem. Veggie burgers are always on the menu.

Seafood

You don’t typically see seafood at barbecues, and we’re not sure why. If you’re a pescetarian, it’s an ideal substitute to the traditional beef burger. Grilled fish has a uniquely smoky flavour that we can’t get enough of. Take this grilled Chinese-style mackerel dish, for example.

Fish tacos are another barbecue-friendly recipe you can take on, with just 30 minutes of prep and cooking time to make things easy for you. You can pop smaller types of seafood, like prawn and mussels, to barbecue alongside larger types like fish to really utilise all of your grill space.

Kebabs and Skewers

Skewers are great for portioning, and they reduce the mess of eating with your hands. Even better, you can put just about anything on a skewer, so whether you’re a fan of juicy kebabs or you prefer grilled vegetables or seafood, there’s something for everyone. All you really need to do is pile on your ingredients on a wooden skewer and et voila, you’re almost done!

Turkish doner kebabs use fragrant, succulent lamb meat to get that flavour that everyone will want more of. Use herbs like rhyme and rosemary to make your veg skewers extra delicious. For a stronger, spicier flavour, why not try this simple chicken tikka skewer recipe?

Until next time…