Sticking to a vegan diet can sometimes mean missing out on traditional treats like a summer barbeque. Typical BBQ recipes feature meat as the main ingredient, but there are ways to make BBQ recipes vegan-friendly. Here, vegan chef Chef Attila Hildmann shares 4 recipes for the grill.
VEGAN BBQ MENU |
Asian Sesame Tofu Burger
Serves: 2
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
Asian Slaw:
2 cups Chinese cabbage
1 carrot
½ chili pepper
½ bunch flat-leaf parsley
¼ cup tomato paste
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon agave syrup
3 tablespoons cashew butter
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, chopped
Iodized sea salt
Breaded Tofu:
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
6 tablespoons non-carbonated mineral water
½ teaspoon iodized sea salt
½ cup light sesame seeds
1/3 cup dark sesame seeds
7 ounces firm plain tofu
5 tablespoons canola oil
In addition:
1 red bell pepper
1 tablespoon sesame oil
Soy sauce
¼ cucumber
2 vegan burger buns
Directions
1. For Asian Slaw: Wash and clean the Chinese cabbage and then cut into fine strips. Peel and coarsely grate the carrot. Remove the seeds and membranes from the chili pepper. Wash and finely chop the chili pepper. Wash the parsley, shake dry, and finely chop the leaves. Mix the parsley with the chili pepper and the other ingredients for the Asian Slaw and stir until the sauce is creamy. Season with salt and then mix with the Chinese cabbage and carrot.
2. For Breaded Tofu: Whisk the flour, mineral water, and salt until creamy and pour into a shallow bowl. Mix the light and dark sesame seeds together and pour into a second shallow bowl. Cut the tofu into thin slices. Heat the canola oil in a skillet. Dip the tofu into the flour mixture and dredge in the sesame seeds. Fry approx. 3-4 minutes on each side over medium heat. Then transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.
3. To Assemble: Halve the bell pepper, remove the core, wash, and cut into fine strips. Sauté in hot sesame oil for 3 minutes; season with some soy sauce. Wash the cucumber and cut into fine strips.
Cut the burger buns in half. Spread the Asian Slaw on the bottom halves. Then add the sesame tofu, bell pepper, and cucumber. Put the other half of the bun on top.
Quinoa Salad with Curry Sunflower Seeds
Serves: 2
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
Quinoa Salad:
1¼ cups quinoa
Iodized sea salt
1 head of broccoli
3 carrots
¾ cup frozen peas
2 scallions
1 red chili pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
2 teaspoons lime juice
Grated peel of ½ organic lime
Freshly ground black pepper
Curry Sunflower Seeds:
3½ tablespoons sunflower seeds
½ teaspoon curry powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon agave syrup
Iodized sea salt
Directions
1. In a fine sieve, rinse the quinoa off with water. Pour into a small saucepan with just under 2¼ cups of water and ½ teaspoon sea salt. Cook uncovered over high heat approx. 17 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed.
2. In the meantime, wash the broccoli, and cut just under 2½ cups of florets from the stalk. Peel and slice the carrots into fine strips. Heat a large saucepan of salted water and cook the peas for 2 minutes. Add the broccoli and carrots and cook for another 2 minutes. Allow to drain in a sieve. Wash and clean the scallions and chili pepper, and cut into fine rings.
3. For the salad dressing, mix 2 tablespoons of olive oil together with the mint, lime juice, and lime peel. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet and sauté the pre-cooked vegetables approx. 2 minutes. Mix the vegetables, spring onions, and chili pepper together with the quinoa in a large bowl. Fold in the dressing, salt and pepper, and if desired, top with a dash of olive oil.
5. Toast the sunflower seeds with the curry powder and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small skillet over high heat for about 2 minutes. Add the agave syrup, remove from heat, and add salt. Sprinkle the salad with sunflower seeds and serve on plates.
Roasted Bell Peppers Stuffed with Lentils & Squash, Served with Cashew Saffron Froth
Serves: 2
Prep Time: 35 minutes
Ingredients
Roasted Bell Peppers:
1 tablespoon olive oil
Iodized sea salt
2 red bell peppers
Lentil-Squash Filling:
½ bunch thyme
About ½ butternut squash
4 tablespoons olive oil
Iodized sea salt
1 onion
2 pinches turmeric
1 1/3 cups cooked green lentils (drained)
Freshly ground black pepper
Cashew Saffron Froth:
3 tablespoons unsweetened cashew butter
A few saffron threads
Grated peel of ¼ organic lemon
1 teaspoon freshly pressed lemon juice
Iodized sea salt
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 480°F. Combine olive oil and approx. 2 pinches of salt. Wash bell peppers and brush them with oil.
2. For the filling, wash the thyme and shake dry. Then strip off approx. 1 tablespoon of leaves. Peel the squash, remove the seeds, and cut into about 1-inch vertical strips. Mix with 2 tablespoons olive oil, thyme, and 1 pinch sea salt.
3. Place bell peppers and squash on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake approx. 20 minutes, until the slices take on a light color. Then allow to cool for a short while.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet. Peel and finely chop onion and sauté in the oil with turmeric approx. 3 minutes, until onion becomes translucent.
5. Coarsely chop squash with a knife and place in a bowl. Add lentils and onions. Season with salt and pepper. Use a sharp knife to cut the top off of each of the bell peppers, and then use a teaspoon to carefully remove seeds and membranes. Place the bell peppers upside down on the parchment paper so that any fluid can drain out. Then fill with the lentil squash mixture.
6. For the Cashew Saffron Froth, purée 2/3 cup water, cashew butter, saffron, lemon peel, and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil while stirring. Season with sea salt and then use an immersion blender to make the mixture frothy.
Veggie Shish Kebabs with Basil Dip & Spicy Salsa
Serves: 2
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients
Shish Kebabs:
½ bell pepper
½ zucchini
¼ eggplant
4 small mushrooms
4 cherry tomatoes
4 small red onions
3.5 ounces smoked tofu
3 tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon sweet paprika
Sea salt
4 wooden skewers
Basil Dip:
1/3 cup blanched almonds
1 bunch basil
1 garlic clove
6½ tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon sea salt
5 pitted black olives
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed
lemon juice
Salsa:
2 red onions
4 garlic cloves
1 thumb-size piece of ginger
½ red bell pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ red chili pepper (a little under 1 inch)
2 rounded teaspoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon agave syrup
2 vine-ripened tomato
4 tablespoons soy sauce
1 pinch cinnamon
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
1. For the shish kebabs, wash and clean the vegetables, peel the onions, and remove the seeds from the bell pepper. Cut the vegetables and the smoked tofu into pieces that are about the same size so that all ingredients will cook evenly on the skewers.
2. Alternately thread the tofu and vegetables onto the skewers. Combine the olive oil with the paprika and a little sea salt. Coat the vegetables and tofu with this mixture
and cook on each side for about 8 minutes over medium heat on the grill or in a grill pan.
3. For the basil dip, toast the almonds in a dry skillet for about 1 minute. Wash the basil, shake dry, and pluck off the leaves. Peel the garlic and purée with the other ingredients for the dip in a blender.
4. For the salsa, peel the onions, garlic, and ginger. Wash the bell pepper and chili pepper, and remove the seeds from both. Finely chop the onions, garlic, ginger, bell pepper, and chili pepper. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and sauté the onions, garlic, ginger, and bell pepper for 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste and the agave syrup, stir, and allow to caramelize for 1 minute.
5. Wash and finely chop the vine-ripened tomatoes. Add the tomatoes, the remaining ingredients, and 2 tablespoons water to the skillet, cook for 2 minutes, and season with salt and pepper. Serve the shish kebabs with salsa and dip.
