Barbecued courgettes with dill, goat’s cheese, mint and yoghurt
Courgettes cook beautifully over fire. The high heat chars their surfaces and the smoke gives them a wonderful savoury depth. Here I’m pairing them with two of my favourite courgette accompaniments: goat’s cheese and dill.
A recipe from River Cottage Handbook No.17: Outdoor Cooking by Gill Meller (Bloomsbury Publishing). Buy the book here.
MAY WE SUGGEST: The best barbecues to buy now
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Ingredients
Method
Step 1
Prepare your fire. You want a glowing bed of embers with no real flames to speak of.
Step 2
Set a grill over the fire; it will have reached the right temperature when you can hover your hand above it for no more than 3 seconds.
Step 3
Top and tail the courgettes and slice them lengthways into strips, 3–4mm thick. Place in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add 2 tbsp olive oil along with the lemon zest, chilli flakes and fennel seeds, and tumble together.
Step 4
Lay the courgettes across the grill. Cook for 8–12 minutes on each side, or until they are lightly and evenly charred, with some caramelisation.
Step 5
Meanwhile, combine the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil with the yoghurt and crumble in the goat’s cheese. Add the garlic and half of each of the herbs. Season with salt and pepper and mix well to combine.
Step 6
Arrange the grilled courgettes over a large platter and squeeze over the lemon juice. Spoon on the goat’s cheese dressing and scatter over the remaining herbs to serve.
