1,2,3 Plancha – Barbecue Season Has Begun
Well, barbecue season actually began a while ago, but I finally took the current heat wave as an opportunity to invite a few lovely friends over for a solid afternoon of grilling. My enthusiasm for grilling stuff stems from my time in Australia, where BBQs are properly organised and celebrated, even though during the summer months, they happen pretty much daily, or at least every weekend. That was exactly the kind of spirit I wanted to infuse last weekend's barbecue with - featuring my new gas grill and some very motivated guests.
Back in December, I was contacted by Lyon-based company Verycook. They produce beautiful Plancha gas grills and wanted to know if I was interested in testing one of their products. As a food blogger, you get a ton of these requests on a regular basis, but I was particularly happy about this one, seeing as I didn't actually own a grill. What arrived at my doorstep was this incredibly beautiful piece of machinery - in red of course, in line with the pepper in my foodtastic logo. Even though Australia taught me the seasonless-ness of grilling, I wasn't exactly throwing mulled wine winter barbecues very frequently. Or ever. Although this might be a good idea for the next cold season. Until then, let's keep to the Australian motto: „Let’s have a barbie (BBQ) on the balcony (actually: on the beach).“
I went all out for my first Verycook Plancha-Gasgrill barbecue. I served everything off the grill, from meat and sausages to salmon, prawns and vegetables followed by a delicious dessert. The drinks menu featured summery cocktails like my favourite, the Moscow Mule, as well as gin and tonics, homemade lemonade and some excellent white wine. In addition, there was guacamole, caprese, mango-tomato salsa salad with peanuts and even more salads. My own personal highlight however was my surf & turf burger.
Before I let you in on the recipe, I want to give you a rundown of this unforgettable barbecue with my friends and the astonishingly user-friendly Plancha grill. I had 20 guests taking part in the inauguration of the grill, so the 60x40cm plate, holding up to 15 dishes at one time, was a big hit. No one had to wait their turn and starve.
The best thing about the Plancha grill is its easy handling. When I still had my old coal grill, I tended to smoke out my entire neighbourhood every time I used it, but with this one, you just turn up the gas and within a few minutes, the hotplate reaches over 300°C. The integrated burners constantly regulate the temperature and there are two different grilling sections that can be adjusted independent from one another or used individually.
This grill comes with three plates, all of them produced in France. They are available in rolled steel, enamel-coated steel (that's the one I got) and, the most expensive version, in stainless steel. You can also buy accessories like a pizza oven. The Plancha lets you grill or fry pretty much everything - meat, vegetables, fried eggs and pancakes. Maybe I'll just invite my girl posse over for a barbecue brunch next time and make pancakes and scrambled eggs on this.
I am particularly enamoured with the design and the beautiful colours the Plancha is available in: green, blue, yellow, red, pink or turquoise - it'll be an eye catcher for every balcony or backyard. This is a high quality grill and it shows.
Even the set-up is easy: screw on the feet and the gas pipe, top with the grill plate and you're done. The required gas cylinder (5kg and up) isn't included, but is available at most petrol stations and DIY stores.
One, two, BARBECUE!
Once you've turned the griller on, it reaches the optimal temperature to grill minute steaks, for example, within just two minutes, due to its impressive 7,6kW. It also lets you grill things the low-fat way: if you apply oil to the grill plate evenly on a regular basis, you'll need very little for grilling - and the smoke-inducing grease-dripping-on-hot-coal effect is entirely avoided! There's a very handy grease drain at the back of the plate, catching old, excess oil.
As you can see - the Plancha grill isn't just a sight to behold, it's also user-friendly and ideal for BBQs with friends or a quick grilled burger after a long workday.
And now finally - my first BBQ recipe - the Foodtastic Surf & Turf Burger! Delicious desserts next time. Stay tuned!
Sponsored Post / Verycook https://www.verycook.de/
Surf & Turf Burger
2 burgers
Ingredients:
- 2 burger buns (either store bought or homemade - my recipe is here)
For the patties:
- 150g minced beef
- 1 egg
- 1 TBSP capers
- 1 shallot
- ½ bunch parsley
- pinch of chilli
- 1 tsp mustard
- salt and pepper
And also:
- 2 prawns
- pinch of chilli
- salt, olive oil
- 1-2 TBSP curry powder
- ½ jar sour cream
- 1 tomato
- 2 large lettuce leaves
- 1 lemon
- optional: bacon
Preparation:
- Bake the burger buns (see recipe) or halve the store bought ones. Combine minced meat, egg, chopped shallots, parsley, capers, mustard, chilli, salt and pepper in a bowl until you have a smooth mass and form patties.
- Marinate the prawns with chilli, salt and olive oil. Wash the lettuce and shake or spin dry. Slice the tomato and halve the lemon. In another bowl, combine sour cream with curry powder and salt. Mix well.
- Turn on the grill and put some butter on the grill plate. When it's melted, put the patties on the plate and grill on all sides. Right next to them, you can fry the buns, tomato slices, prawns and lemon halves in a little oil.
- Take the grilled buns off the hot plate and top with lettuce, tomato, patty and prawn and serve with the sour cream sauce and some lemon.
Notes:
Tipp: Schmeckt auch mit einer gegrillten Speckscheibe sehr gut.
