The weather is heating up and that makes us excited. Seeing our dad wheeling out the barbecue is a sign summer is on its way. There is nothing like being outside cooking on a warm afternoon with something cold to sip after a long day's work. We were never ones to stay inside and prepare the salads together. We always preferred being out among the charcoal action (although Dad was pretty protective of his hot plate).
It's almost like cooking on the barbecue makes time slow. You aren't in a rush to get anything on the plate because cooking the food feels so therapeutic. So many of our memories happened around a barbecue and we associate this way of cooking with family, friends and long evenings.
Vegetables love barbecues. They get all charred and tasty on the outside but keep their integrity on the inside from the hot and fast heat of the fire. The only thing to remember is to cut your vegetables into even sizes and into pieces that aren't too big to ensure they cook through at the same time without the outside burning. We mix rocket through the vegetables and top off the salad with some crunchy chickpeas.
Free-range pork chops are one of our favourites. They stay succulent but have a delicious crunch on the outside. We coat them in our versatile barbecue sauce mix and marinate them for a couple of hours.
