Created during lockdown, Tom Kerridge releases his new cookbook filled with barbecue recipes are perfect for alfresco dining.
Celebrity chef Tom Kerridge spent much of his time during lockdown with his wife Beth and five-year-old son Acey, who he says he didn’t manage to see much when he was busy working in the restaurant.
But while he has been at home he’s also been working away on his new cook, that has been launched perfectly in time for the arrival of summer.
Outdoor Cooking: The Ultimate Modern Barbecue Bible is Kerridge’s ode to al-fresco cooking, which he particularly loves because it allows him to socialise at the same time as serving up delicious food.
“You’ve got your friends and family around, there’s people hanging out… for me it’s a great space to be. You’re immersed in it, you’re not just stuck in the back.”
Plus, he loves the variety of an international melting-pot menu. “You can travel the world with a barbecue. You can have Korean-style kimchi as a side garnish, and then you can have American-style barbecue stuff, you can have fantastic Indian cookery… The beautiful thing about it is there’s no real rules.”
Outdoor Cooking: The Ultimate Modern Barbecue Bible by Tom Kerridge, photography by Cristian Barnett, is published by Bloomsbury Absolute, priced £22.
Ultimate hot dog
Makes 4
Ingredients
For the barbecue burnt onions:
- 3 large onions, finely sliced
- 3tbsp vegetable oil
For the pigs in blankets:
- 4 jumbo sausages
- 2 tsp (heaped) mild curry powder
- 12 rashers of steaky bacon
For the German mustard mayo:
- 100g thick mayonnaise
- 40g German mustard
- 3 tsp finely chopped shallot
- 10 cornichons, finely sliced
- 2 tbsp dill, finely chopped
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
To assemble:
- 4 long hot dog rolls
- 8 large slices of dill pickle
- 8 thick slices of smoked Bavarian cheese
- A bunch of spring onions, green part only, finely sliced
Method
- To cook the onions, place a cast-iron pan on the hot barbecue and add the oil. When it is hot, add the onions with a generous pinch of salt. Stir well and cook for about 20 minutes until softened, dark and caramelised.
- Meanwhile, prepare the sausages. Poke a metal skewer through the length of each sausage and lay the skewers on a tray. Season with the curry powder, trying to get an even coating all over the sausages. Wrap each one in bacon, using three rashers per sausage, and secure the bacon with a couple of cocktail sticks.
- Lay the bacon-wrapped sausages on the hot barbecue and cook for about 10 minutes, turning every minute or two. While they are on the barbecue, mix the German mustard mayo ingredients together in a bowl, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste; set aside until needed.
- Once the sausages are cooked through, lift them off the barbecue and place on a tray. Remove the cocktail sticks and metal skewers.
- To build the hot dogs, cut the rolls through the middle and spoon in plenty of caramelised onions. Add the bacon-wrapped sausages and top with the pickle slices and cheese.
- Place the hot dogs on a sturdy baking tray on the barbecue, put the lid on and leave for a minute or two so that the cheese becomes all gooey and melted. Transfer the hot dogs to plates and spoon on the German mayo. Scatter over the spring onions for freshness and serve.
Spicy fish skewers
Makes 8
Ingredients
- 8 skinless salmon fillets (about 125g each)
- 2 large garlic cloves, grated
- 2.5cm piece of fresh ginger, grated
- Juice of 1 lime
- 200g Greek yoghurt
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp sweet smoked paprika
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the pickled red onions:
- 2 small red onions
- 125ml water
- 125ml white wine vinegar
- ½ tsp fennel seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
To serve:
- Naan bread or roti
- A handful of coriander leaves
- 1 long green chilli, finely sliced
- Lime halves
- Sweet chilli sauce
Method
- Prepare your pickled red onions an hour or so ahead. Thickly slice the onions and place in a clean jar. Put the water, wine vinegar, fennel and cumin seeds, salt and sugar into a small pan over a medium heat and stir until the sugar and salt are fully dissolved. Pour the hot pickling liquor over the onions and leave to cool slightly. Pop the lid on and place in the fridge to pickle.
- To prepare the salmon, cut each fillet into four equal-sized chunks. Place these in a bowl with the garlic, ginger and lime juice and mix well.
- In another bowl, mix the yoghurt with the spices and some salt and pepper. Add this spiced yoghurt to the salmon and mix well again. Leave to marinate in a cool place for at least 20 minutes, or up to an hour. Meanwhile, if using wooden skewers, soak eight, 16cm long, in water for 30 minutes.
- Once marinated, thread the salmon onto your skewers, putting four chunks onto each skewer.
- Place the skewers on the hot barbecue and cook for two to three minutes on each side until golden brown and lightly charred. Meanwhile, warm the roti or naan on the edge of the barbecue. Once cooked, transfer the skewers to a warm plate.
- Serve the skewers on the warm naan or rotis. Scatter over a little pickled red onion, some coriander and sliced green chilli. Serve with lime halves for squeezing over, and sweet chilli sauce on the side.