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It seems that BBQing is still a man’s domain. Men are expected to turn the snags at the family do. Don’t get in their way.
After years on the grill in restaurants managing to juggle a multitude of orders for different meals cooked to order, I am still treated like an interloper if I offer to wield the tongs at a BBQ. Even though I am sure I can BBQ much better than most male people I know, I feel like I’ve entered the wrong locker-room and duly scuttle back off to the kitchen with the women.
Despite loving to grill we don’t have a BBQ at our house, and Skater and I often stop by the shops to look at all the BBQ’s. Its a strange thing that my son, who is not so interested in food really loves the whole idea of a BBQ. It could be the natural lure of the mens business, I am not sure, but on a trip to the Supa Centa to get a new printer on the weekend we took a detour past Barbecues Galore, the BBQ store .
Once inside the store we marvelled at the wok burner on the side, monster- sized BBQ’s and oo-ed over the large lidded grills. When a salesman sidled up and we started to chat. He suggested we should look at the Ziegler and Brown or the “Ziggy” – “Because if you guys don’t have much room and you live in a rental house, it’s easy to move anywhere you go.” So, even before we were able to tell him we were really just dreaming, he proceeded to give us the run down on the Ziggy.
It looks a bit like that famous brand of flip top BBQ’s that have been around forever. So I asked what the difference is and apparently it’s all about the burners and the high dome. This Ziggy is designed to cook perfectly with the lid up or down because there is more burner coverage, more heat in the double or triple burner. The salesman suggested using them together for high heat or independently for a gentle heat or when there’s just one or two people. He went on to tell me how he bought one on special and that he bakes and roasts and even makes pizzas in his………..all the while he talked to my son, who was exclaiming superlatives like…awesome & cool & sick. They bonded over the flame thrower on each burner……….did I tell you that this was all directed to my son, kind of like I’d walked up to a group of men barbecuing in the park. Secret BBQing business. That is when I told him that we were just dreaming. We left the shop to go and get our printer chatting about where we’ll put our Ziggy one day.
I got home and still dreaming, thought of what I could make. I wanted a recipe that was all about the thrill of the grill, that used the idea of the lid, and the smokey charry flat grill. I came up with this warm Brussel sprout salad. If you don’t like sprouts you can use cauliflower or potatoes or even fennel.
- 500gm Brussel Sprouts halved if large or left whole if small
- 6 slices of hot salami ( or mild if you prefer)
- 6 slices of eye bacon
- ½ bunch chives
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped parsley
- 50gm toasted pinenuts
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- fresh ground black pepper
- 1-2 Tablespoons good balsamic
- 1-2 tablespoons extra olive oil
- 100gm smoked mozzarella ( or feta if none available)
- Prepare all of the other ingredients before you start. The chopped parsley, chopped chives, toasted pinenuts, ½'d salami and bacon pieces, grated mozzarella .
- Take a large bowl and add the trimmed sprouts, salt pepper and olive oil and toss to coat.
- Heat a flat BBQ plate till very hot, then turn down to medium. Lay all of the salami and bacon pieces on the grill. Turn after 1 minute and brown up the other side before taking off the grill and putting on a plate.
- Put the sprouts on the the grill and turn every couple of minutes, cooking and charring on all sides, put the lid down. The temperature will rise to about 200C between each time you move them around approximately 10 minutes. Test the sprouts with the tip of a knife and when the knife pierces easily they should be done.
- Scoop all of the sprouts back into the bowl and add the salami, bacon, parsley, chives & nuts. Mix together.
- Dress very simply with the balsamic and extra olive oil. Add a grind of fresh pepper and taste it for salt, add more if necessary . Put onto a plate and sprinkle with the smoked grated mozzarella.
Looks like a little robot….Ziggy is exclusive to Barbeques galore. One day Ziggy, one day..
This post was sponsored by Ziegler and Brown and I still wish I had one.
Smoked Mozzarella is available at Paesanella Food Emporium Sydney
