The joy of British barbecue season

This is a collaborative post with Iceland Foods

Being the stay-at-home parent, cooking dinner is largely my responsibility, which is fine because I enjoy it. But I really enjoy it the most at this time of year. When the clocks go forward in April, and we enter British Summer Time, we also enter another auspicious time of the year – British BBQ Time.

However, this being Britain, you can never quite be sure when BBQ weather will strike – so we always have a supply of meats for the BBQ in the freezer.

Iceland’s #PowerOfFrozen is all about the convenience of having frozen food on hand as and when you need it – which is perfect for when that BBQ weather swoops in.

We tried out a trio of frozen meat products from Iceland on the BBQ. Any of these  would be great for a decent BBQ family supper by themselves – or you could have all of them for a super indulgent BBQ feast.

The Ultimate Steak Burger

The Ultimate Steak Burger: Lettuce, tomato, burger with melted cheese, red onion + beetroot slices, more lettuce – surrounded by a toasted brioche bun.

Burgers, specifically cheese burgers, are my BBQ staple, the ultimate BBQ food – so I chose these Ultimate Steak Burgers to have. They needed to be defrosted prior to cooking on the BBQ (packet instructions state to defrost at least 12hrs in a fridge on a plate).

The smoky flavour you get from a BBQ really suits burgers well, and after making and/or eating many burgers in my time I think I have finally nailed the ultimate order of garnishes and accompaniments.

So in honour of the Iceland Ultimate Steak Burger, here is my ultimate burger construction order (starting from the bottom – see photo):

  • Lettuce
  • Tomato
  • Burger (with melted cheese)
  • Red onion + beetroot slices
  • More lettuce

All surrounded by a toasted brioche bun, with ketchup served on the side.

Explanation: The lettuce stops the toasted bun getting soggy, the melted cheese should hold in place the red onion, as well as the beetroot – which is a Kiwi addition to the burger, and a delicious one at that. I couldn’t figure out where to put the ketchup in all this, so leave it on the side to dip you burger into before each bite.

So that’s my Ultimate Burger. What do you think?

Hot dogs (with Cumberland sausages)

Another BBQ favourite are hot dogs. While the Frankfurter might be traditional, I prefer an English classic like Cumberland Sausages.

These Iceland Cumberland Sausages can be cooked straight from the freezer, so are super convenient to slap on the BBQ.

I served these hot dogs with ketchup, and I really like fried onions with them too (my daughter doesn’t, hence the ones without). As with the burgers, if you feel like indulging yourself go for a brioche bun.

Belgian Blue Steak

Steak is not a meat I have cooked on the BBQ much, something I clearly need to rectify as it is delicious cooked this way!

Iceland’s Belgian Blue Steaks are super lean rump steaks, so they’re low in fat but still nicely flavoured. They come in packs of 2, but we love steak so had 2 steaks each! (Belgian Blue are a breed of cows from – you guessed it – Belgium).

They needed to be defrosted before cooking on the BBQ (packet instruction state to defrost at least 24hrs in a fridge).

Once defrosted, I got the BBQ as hot as possible. I oiled both sides of the steak, and seasoned with salt & pepper. We like steak super rare, so just cooked it for 1-2 mins each side. Make sure you rest the meat after cooking though, to get it nice and tender.

I serve it with a side of spinach fried with garlic and onion.

Now, I don’t like to admit to having ANYTHING in common with Donald Trump, but here is a confession – like the Donald, I too like having ketchup with my steak.

It’s delicious. Biggly 🙂

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5 thoughts on “The joy of British barbecue season”

  1. There I was admiring you for having beetroot with your burger, and then you ruined it with your ketchup confession at the end. Honestly Simon!

    That said, if you cooked me food looking that good, I would forgive you that transgression. The steak does look amazing.

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