They days are heating up in the UK, so it’s a perfect excuse to light up the barbecue, eat outdoors and soak up the late suns rays. After being in the UK for 8 months we still have not purchased a barbecue so a huge thanks to our lovely neighbours for lending us theirs for dinner! Being Aussie’s, we are well accustomed to and thoroughly enjoy our BBQ dinners. Cooking meat this way really can’t be matched on a grill pan indoors, so we were very excited to be barbecuing after such a long time away from Australia. This meal is a perfect marry of our BBQ lifestyle back in OZ, together with our mediterranean heritage, flavour combinations.
I have to be honest, my favourite thing about barbecuing is that I am not in the kitchen for very long preparing the side dishes while my husband cooks the meat. I look forward to these meals as they are quite relaxed and require very little time to put together, leaving more time to play outdoors with the kids after school.
If you’re looking for a great tasty side dish or a vegetable to add to an antipasto platter, these roasted peppers are sensational. The flavour combination is so mediterranean and authentic to my Italian heritage. It’s a recipe passed to me from my mum which makes it even more special. By slowly roasting them till their skin is charred, they become soft, velvety and super sweet. Dressed with the simplest of dressings, you are all set for your mediterranean BBQ. They might take a little bit of preparation, and you might scold your fingers while you impatiently peel off their roasted skins but they are well worth the effort and last for at least a week in the fridge. If you are having a dinner party, they are the perfect dish to make during the week and will keep beautifully till your party.
I used a delicious fresh rosemary rub for the meat to jazz up the flavour of plain steak. You can use this rub on so many meat dishes….you really can’t go wrong. Some char-grilled fresh asparagus on the side really ties in the meal beautifully.
For those of you experiencing a cooler climate right now, this meal might be the burst of sunshine you are looking for! 😉
Enjoy!
xxx
- 12 Mixed peppers/capsicums
- Olive oil
- A large bunch of fresh parsley – finely chopped
- 1 large garlic clove – finely diced
- 1 tbsp balsamic glaze
- 4-5 Rib eye fillet steaks
- A large bunch of fresh rosemary –
- Salt and pepper – to season
- 2 bunches of fresh asparagus
- *For the peppers*
- Pre-heat the oven to 220℃.
- Cut the long stalks off the peppers without piercing the skin or cutting the base of the stalk.
- Place the peppers upside down on a roasting tray and place them in the top half of the oven. Keep rotating the peppers every so often until their skins are charred, well browned and softened all the way around. Time will vary on your oven.
- Remove them from the oven and place inside a double lined plastic bag, tying them off.
- Let them sweat off the skin for about 30 minutes, then check to see if the skin is coming away easily. If not, give it some another 30 and carefully pull the skins away from the flesh (take care to not burn yourself!)
- While you are peeling the skin, tear up the peppers into rough, bite sized lengths. Discard about half the seeds.
- Once peeled, place all the peppers in a bowl and scatter with the diced garlic, chopped parsley, a generous dressing of olive oil, the balsamic glaze and salt and pepper to taste. Amounts of the seasonings can vary depending on your preference. Store the peppers in the fridge until needed.
- *For the steak*
- In a processor, grind up the fresh bunch of rosemary untill almost dust size. Mix the rosemary in a small bowl with olive oil. This will become your marinade and the baste mixture for the meat.
- Removing the steaks from the fridge, leave them to sit on the bench till they are at room temperature before cooking. Baste the steaks with the rosemary mixture, salt and pepper and place on a hot barbecue. Cook the steak to your liking and baste the meat every so often to keep it moist. Baste it for the last time once it has cooked and leave it to rest for 5 minutes before eating.
- *For the asparagus*
- Place the asparagus in a bowl and toss lightly with olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Place them on a hot grill pan or on the barbecue, if you have space alongside the meat.
- Keep turning them until charred and they are cooked to your liking.
