Barbecued Vegetable Skewers

Name: Barbecued Vegetable Skewers
Ingredients: A packet of Bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes and drained. This stops them from burning.; 2-3 cherry tomatoes per person; 3 sugar snaps (young peas in their pods) per stick; 3-4 button mushrooms per stick. Or you can use large, Portobello mushrooms cut into chunks. They have meaty texture; Courgette slices or squares, 1/2 courgette per person, thickly sliced or cubed; Beetroot chunks, boiled is better; 3-4 small green beans per person, or cut a large one into 2-3 inch pieces; 3-4 thick slices of carrots, peeled and thickly sliced (you can par boil them); A couple of aubergines chunks per person; 3-4 tiny, new potatoes per person, boiled until just tender or steamed in a microwave oven for 5 minutes; 3-4 lotus roots slices (Kamal Kakri or Kamal Gatta or Bhein/Bhain/Bhen), parboiled. Fresh, Chinese ones are better in texture than the Indian ones. Try to avoid ones with broken ends, they can be full of mud.; 3-4 thick slices of mooli radish; Marinade suggestion 1:; 2-3 tbsp. peanut oil; 2 tbsp. sesame oil; 3-4 tbsp. coriander powder; 2 tsp. salt; 1 tsp. chilli powder (adjust to taste); 3-4 tbsp. white sesame seeds; Marinade suggestion 2; Salt; Pepper; Chilli oil; Marinade 3; <a href="/recipe/chaat-masala-spice-mix/">Chaat Masala Mix - A Hot Spice Mix for Spicy Street Foods</a> to taste; 2-3 tbsp. oil

Mamta Gupta

Easy Main Starter Vegetarian

Finding interesting things to barbecue for vegetarians can sometimes be a problem. Once we went on a tour of Sichuan province in China. We had a lovely selection of barbecued vegetables on street shops, they were delicious! They would BBQ any seasonable vegetable available and sell them on street stalls.

Amounts are per BBQ stick/skewer. Use only 6-8 chunks per stick, no more. You don't need all of these, they are only for ideas.

Make 1-2 BBQ sticks per person. I have given a selection below, you can try some or all of them for your next BBQ. Look out for other vegetables too.

Also see A Collection of Barbecue Recipes and Marinades-A Collection of Marinade Recipes. Experiment with other vegetables and with different marinades.

Ingredients

A packet of Bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes and drained. This stops them from burning.
2-3 cherry tomatoes per person
3 sugar snaps (young peas in their pods) per stick
3-4 button mushrooms per stick. Or you can use large, Portobello mushrooms cut into chunks. They have meaty texture
Courgette slices or squares, 1/2 courgette per person, thickly sliced or cubed
Beetroot chunks, boiled is better
3-4 small green beans per person, or cut a large one into 2-3 inch pieces
3-4 thick slices of carrots, peeled and thickly sliced (you can par boil them)
A couple of aubergines chunks per person
3-4 tiny, new potatoes per person, boiled until just tender or steamed in a microwave oven for 5 minutes
3-4 lotus roots slices (Kamal Kakri or Kamal Gatta or Bhein/Bhain/Bhen), parboiled. Fresh, Chinese ones are better in texture than the Indian ones. Try to avoid ones with broken ends, they can be full of mud.
3-4 thick slices of mooli radish
Marinade suggestion 1:
2-3 tbsp. peanut oil
2 tbsp. sesame oil
3-4 tbsp. coriander powder
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. chilli powder (adjust to taste)
3-4 tbsp. white sesame seeds
Marinade suggestion 2
Salt
Pepper
Chilli oil
Marinade 3
Chaat Masala Mix - A Hot Spice Mix for Spicy Street Foods to taste
2-3 tbsp. oil

Instructions

Place all vegetables in a bowl and add all marinade ingredients. Mix well, but gently, to coat each piece of vegetable.
Thread vegetables as you like onto the skewers. Lotus roots can be cooked on their own. Thread 2-3 slices per skewer through their diameter so that the circles are lying flat one above the other, like a lollipop.
Barbecue until beginning to look slightly burnt and enjoy.

Notes

Lotus roots: scrape lotus roots, cut top and tail ends and slice into 1 centimetre thick slices. Lotus roots grow in ponds and often have mud inside their tubular holes. Wash thoroughly, making sure that no mud is left inside. You will understand this, when you see a lotus root!