So a vegan, a vegetarian and a pescatarian walk into a BBQ. Ok we don’t have the punchline for the joke. But what we do have is a nifty little vegan BBQ blog just for you. Now the common misconception is that vegans and BBQs don’t go together. However we don’t think this is the case at all. Let’s break down and explore a delicious world of possibility.
What Exactly is The Vegan Diet?
If we’re going to unpack the world of vegan BBQ, common sense dictates that we first examine the details of a vegan diet. Speaking in broad terms here, a vegan is a person who does not eat any food derived from animals and who does not typically use other animal products. Here’s a quick food-based breakdown.
Vegans can’t eat any foods made from animals, including:
- Beef, pork, lamb, and other red meat
- Chicken, duck, and other poultry
- Fish or shellfish such as crabs, clams, and mussels
- Eggs
- Cheese, butter
- Milk, cream, ice cream, and other dairy products
- Mayonnaise (because it includes egg yolks)
- Honey
On a vegan diet, you can eat plant-based foods including:
- Fruits and vegetables
- Legumes such as peas, beans, and lentils
- Nuts and seeds
- Breads, rice, and pasta
- Dairy alternatives such as soymilk, coconut milk, and almond milk
- Vegetable oils
- Vegan proteins such as tofu
So What Does A Vegan Diet Mean For A Vegan BBQ?
Ok so straightaway we can see the veg-based possibilities. Sure the usual BBQ staples are out, but we have so many avenues to explore. However, before we get a little deeper into things, let’s take a quick philosophical detour.
Many believe that BBQ is all about cooking meat over flame. However there’s a school of thought championing the idea that BBQ is about cooking anything over fame – meaning it isn’t meat specific. Following this logic, a vegan BBQ is perfectly possible!
What Are Some Vegan BBQ Ideas?
Looking for BBQ food for vegans? Well you’re in the right place. First let’s start with some simple and arguably obvious choices.
- Vegetable Skewers AKA Vegan BBQ Kebab
- Grilled Vegetables
- Veggie Burger
- Potato wedges
- Salads
- Veggie stuffed peppers
- Skinny Carrot Fries
- Couscous salad
- Grilled Aubergine
- Vegan Potato Salad (no mayo)
Just A Quick Word on Grilling Vegetables For A Vegan BBQ
Grilling vegetables is totally awesome and a great way to create new tastes and textures to your veggie dishes. This is because grilling draws out the natural sugars found in vegetables. This means that once the vegetables are caramelised and browned, they become sweeter and packed with flavour. Plus, that smoky char and taste from the charcoal somehow makes the vegetables taste heartier and more substantial.
What About Vegan Proteins & Meat Substitutes?
Ok so the veggie options are fairly obvious. However there are many vegan protein/vegetable options out there that can replicate the mouthfeel and texture of ground beef and other meats. Here’s a quick list to get your cerebral cogs turning.
Pea Protein. It can be difficult recreate the texture and mouthfeel of meat, but pea protein isolate or textured pea protein does the trick fairly well.
- Tempeh
- Seitan
- Jackfruit
- Tofu
- Lentils
- Black Beans
- Chickpeas
Terrific Tofu To Tantalise The Tastebuds
Tofu is well known, accessible and an easy way to provide vegan guests with a BBQ treat. Let’s dig deeper.
How To Grill Tofu - The Basics
- First thing’s first: please please try to use extra-firm tofu. Why? Well it’s pretty much the only tofu that can handle the conditions of the grill and maintain its texture. Extra firm tofu gives you that lovely crispy texture with a delicious internal chewiness.
- Time to press the tofu for 15 minutes. This will remove the excess internal water. And basically this means more flavour For you. Oh and you’re less likely to encounter any sticky grill issues.
- Cut your tofu into fairly thick strips. If you cut the tofu slabs too thinly, they’ll break apart or fall through the grill grates. You should be aiming for about 8 to 11 slabs, crosswise, per 14-ounce block of tofu.
- Get your BBQ grillnice and hot using some 100% natural Big K Lumpwood Charcoal of course.
- Now season your grill. Take an oil-blotted paper towel and run it across the grill grates. Next, cover the grill for half a minute. Repeat this process 3 times then you’re good to go.
- Next up, marinate the tofu to add more flavour. This can be from anywhere between 15 mis to a few hours.
- Add your tofu to the grill and cook for 8 to 10 minutes. Then simply flip and grill for another 7 to 10 minutes.
- Remove your tofu from the grill and brush leftover marinade on the slivers for a final boost of flavour. Serve and enjoy!
No need to go into too much depth here people! Your vegan BBQ UK party plan should be coming together nicely with this basic info. Ultimately we want everyone to enjoy the joys of cooking over flames, so we’re pumped to be able to give a shout out to all our vegan peeps out there. Hopefully now we can all see that BBQ is for vegans too! Here are some vegetarian recipes to help get your creative juices flowing.