The spring-summer period is a season of picnics, swimming and barbecue. What recipes for marinating kebabs of meat, chicken and even fish have not been invented. Vegetables, as a rule, are served as a side dish for meat dishes, and few people think that it is possible to show originality and cook, for example, eggplant skewers. This dish will be an excellent side dish for meat. As for vegetarians, this approach can be an excellent alternative for traditional kebab for them.
Basic rules for the preparation of vegetable skewers
As a rule, the word "barbecue" means a dish cooked on a fire. It is cooked on the grill, on the grill and even in the oven, but only cooking on the coals, you can achieve that unique flavor. Vegetarian barbecue used to be considered an exotic dish, but now it can be found in any restaurant. It is very simple to prepare it, but there are subtleties here:
- So that during cooking the vegetables do not fall apart, it is impossible to salt them in any case. This applies to all vegetables except eggplant. If the kebab from eggplant is not soaked in salt water, it will give bitterness. Therefore, before cooking, chopped eggplant dip the salted solution.
- Cooking time depends on the size of the sliced vegetables. The cook himself determines this time period - vegetables should be ruddy and soft, but not lose their shape.
Skewers of eggplant at the stake can be prepared in various ways, and this will be discussed below.
Skewers of vegetables and bacon
Eggplant skewers on skewers can be prepared from various vegetables, with the addition of meat or lard, this is a matter of taste. For this recipe you will need: 5-6 medium eggplant, 250 gr. fresh lard, salt, pepper and spices to taste. In eggplants, make transverse cuts every 1.5 cm, without cutting to the end.
Sprinkle them with salt inside, wait 20 minutes, then wipe thoroughly with a paper towel to remove the bitterness. Cut the cooled fat into squares, grate with salt and spices, put into each cut in the eggplant. Plant vegetables on skewers and grill over charcoal until cooked. The eggplant peel should darken and wrinkle a little. Inside they turn out very tender and juicy, and the lard will be fragrant and crispy. This eggplant kebab is served with herbs and pita bread.
Vegetable skewers without pickling
This aromatic vegetarian kebab will be loved by those who do not eat meat. To prepare it, you need 2 large eggplants, 2 large tomatoes or several cherry tomatoes, 3 small green peppers, several onions, salt and pepper to taste. All vegetables must be preliminarily prepared. Cut eggplant into large rings obliquely, add salt and put in salt water. While they are soaked, peel the onions, cut across into three parts, if the onion is small, you can divide it in half. Lubricate the incision site with vegetable oil and leave for a while.
After 15 minutes, remove the eggplants from the water and pat dry with a paper towel. Bell pepper cut lengthwise into 4 parts, tomatoes in half. String vegetables on skewers in this order - a quarter of pepper, eggplant, onion, tomato, repeat the sequence. If cherry tomatoes are taken for cooking, you need to string them whole. Sprinkle all the vegetables a little with lemon juice and cook on charcoal until browning. When serving, pour sauce to taste and sprinkle with herbs.
Eggplant and minced meat skewers
This is an original way to cook eggplant skewers. The recipe for this dish includes not only vegetables, but also meat, which will appeal to any gourmet. For its preparation you will need: 0.5 kg of minced lamb or pork, 2 large eggplant, onions, garlic, fresh cucumber, herbs, low-fat sour cream, olives, salt, spices to taste.
Finely chop the onion, put in the minced meat, mix well, salt, add spices, mix again. Minced meat to remove the refrigerator for 30 minutes, and in the meantime prepare the sauce. Grind the cucumber on a grater, salt and remove excess water. Add chopped garlic, olives and herbs. Put 30 grams there. sour cream, mix everything and put in the refrigerator.
Peel a few cloves of garlic, chop, salt, mix with olive oil and leave to marinate for 10 minutes. Cut eggplant into thick slices, salt, and wipe with a napkin. From the minced meat to mold balls, flatten a little, string on skewers, alternating with eggplant. Fry over charcoal until tender, serve, sprinkled with pickled garlic, with pita bread and sauce.
Assorted vegetables with cheese
Eggplant skewers on skewers with the addition of various ingredients is a very simple and tasty dish. For example, assorted vegetables with cheese may appeal not only to adults, but also to children. To prepare it you need: 2 eggplant, 2 small zucchini, 2 tomatoes, sweet corn, hard cheese, vegetable oil, salt and spices.
Wash the vegetables, cut into circles, add a little salt, put the eggplant on a paper towel to make the glass of bitterness, and cut the cheese into cubes. Dip vegetables and cheese in vegetable oil so that they do not burn during cooking. String vegetables and cheese alternately on skewers, often turn over when frying. Serve with any sauce and herbs, sweet corn will serve as a side dish.
Tips & Tricks
Cooking vegetables is a very simple process, but to complete it successfully, you need to adhere to some recommendations.
1. During cooking, vegetables can scroll, so you can use the skewers, corners.
2. If possible, it is better to cook vegetables on a barbecue grill.
3. Any vegetables can do without pickling, so do not waste time on this.
4. When cooking barbecue with minced meat, you need to start frying from the ends of the skewer. Then the minced meat will immediately seize, and juice will not flow out of it.
It has long been known that the most unhealthy food is fried, so the eggplant barbecue cooked on charcoal is a great opportunity to eat not only tasty, but also healthy.
Bon appetit and be healthy!