30 Recipes for The Ultimate Vegetarian Barbecue - thinlyspread.co.uk (2024)

All this hot weather brings my neighbours out of hibernation and, before you know it, there is a waft of burning meat drifting over the garden wall. I like to respond by sending the delicious aromas of a vegetarian barbecue to assail their nostrils and get them drooling. Barbecue wars!

If you have been the sole vegetarian at a non veggie BBQ you will know just how quickly ‘your food’ is snaffled by the other guests which is both deeply satisfying and incredibly annoying – watching the last veggie sausage vanishing into the chops of Mr Pulled Pork leaving with me with a plate of limp lettuce isn’t my idea of fun! Why not invite them all to your place and feed them what they clearly desire – a veritable feast of vegetarian barbecue goodness – and be done with it?!

So, just to help you out, I’ve put together this list of vegetarian barbecue recipe suggestions to get you started – if you have any more please let me know in the comments!

Veggie Burgers

Vegetarian burgers have come a long way since I went veggie over 30 years ago. Back then we made them with a powdered mix from the wholefood shop which worked well in a non stick pan, not so much on the grill and DEFINITELY not in a camping trangia cooker, fried in margarine – my then boyfriend (now Mr TS) had to get me to a pub for veg lasagna and chips pretty sharpish after he tried that one I can tell you! You could of course just buy a packet of burgers from Linda McCartney but why not stun people with some of these fabulous variations on the burger theme? They’re all vegan too – hoorah!

If you’re in a hurry, or you want to show off just how easy veggie food actually is, try my Green Lentil Burgers, The Veg Space’s Black Bean and Jalapeño Burgers or these 10 Minute Spicy Vegan Burgers from Tinned Tomatoes.

Squash and sweet potato are fabulous burger binders and Gingey Bites’ makes the most of it in her Butternut Squash and Bean Burgers while these Green Lentil Burgers always disappear at a tremendous speed whenever I make them!

The beauty of veggie burgers is that you are not bound by the meaty burger tradition and can branch out with ingredients and flavourings – I’m very excited by these Pad Thai Broccoli Burgers from Strength and Sunshine, A Virtual Vegan’s White Bean and Artichoke with Hints of Lemon and Rosemary have me drooling and Green Gourmet Giraffe’s Tamale Burgers have me reaching for the Mole Sauce!

Veggie Kebabs

Anything on a stick always goes down well at a barbecue, especially with children – how many barbecue related incidents have we witnessed over the years, skewers make excellent swords don’t they?! It’s fab to be able to finish the day off with vegan marshmallows on the embers these days but before we get to that bit there are lots of vegetarian and vegan kebab possibilities, here are a few to start with!

Writing this has made me realise that I have never written up my own tofu kebab recipe, my tempeh skewers or my veg kebabs – I will get onto that straight away and update this asap but, in the meantime if you are after delicious vegan options Tin and Thyme has Maple Tofu Skewers with Papaya Salsa and Rhian’s Recipes offers these Tofu Satay Kebabs.

Haloumi is a staple of the vegetarian barbecue so ring the changes and use paneer instead. You could try Supper in the Suburbs’ Tikka twist with her Tikka Paneer Kebabs or have a go at these Paneer Tikka Kebabs with Nectarine Chutney and Rocket Raita from Natural Kitchen Adventures – ooh la la!

Meanwhile the Petite Cook has these Grilled Eggplant Parmigiana Skewers to make your guests gasp outloud (I did!) – to make it vegetarian you’ll need to swap the parmesan in this recipe for a vegetarian hard cheese – it would actually be really easy to make vegan too with some of the fabulous vegan cheeses now so readily available!

Barbecue Baps and Breads

Soft, pillowy baps are a thing of beauty stuffed with a burger or a portabello mushroom while flatbreads can be used to scoop up dips, wipe up sauces or rolled up around falafels and salad – ooh I’m in the mood now! Really wow your guests with some homemade breads, so tasty and much easier to pull off than you might think! Try Tin and Thyme’s Spelt Burger Buns, my Homemade Pitta Pockets or these Olive BBQ Flatbreads (with bonus artichoke skewers) from The Veg Space.

Barbecued Vegetables and Fruit

Pile them up on your burger in that pillowy bap or load up your plate and drizzle with sauce. Barbecued fruit and veg are just scrumptious – think beyond the cob (although those are pretty hard to beat it has to be said!) If you’re quick you can still grab English asparagus for Fab Food 4 All’s Barbecued Asparagus Spears or you can go all exotic with Barbecued Pineapple with Coconut Rum from Family Friends Food or Grilled Plantains from Strength and Sunshine. With nectarines and apricots at peak season right now (June) you’d be mad not to rustle up some Grilled Nectarines from A Virtual Vegan (carry on through the summer by swapping them for peaches as the season marches on) or these Apricots with Goats’ Cheese from Tinned Tomatoes!

Vegetarian Barbecue Salads and Sides

Crisp salads, exotic salads, fruit salads for dessert – absolutely essential for the perfect BBQ, don’t forget them! Try Grilled Baby Potatoes with Rosemary from A Virtual Vegan, Tomato, Red Onion and Coriander Salad from Fab Food 4 All or Summer Salad with Grilled Vegetables from Family Friends Food. My Greek Salad Couscous always goes down well as does this Three Grain Salad with Roasted Pepper Sauce

and if you really want to impress I suggest you whip out Veggie Dessert’s inspired Mexican Grilled Chipotle Salad in Tortilla Bowls!

Vegetarian Barbecue Sauces and Dips

And we all need some saucy sauce and dippy dips don’t we?! Try Strength and Sunshine’s Easy Homemade BBQ Sauce, Lettuce Liv’s Sweet and Spicy Peach Jalapeño Salsa or this Sweet Chilli Beetroot Baba Ganoush

What have I missed? What else do I absolutely need at my ultimate vegetarian BBQ?

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