Can you really do vegetarian BBQ? Ideas?

syndicate559 · 09-09-2013, 12:09 AM

I searched through the few threads that kind of covered this and found mostly side ideas that were truly vegetarian and mostly grilled at that. I have some very good friends who are veggies, though, and they really want me to do some BBQ for an end-of-season bicycle racing team party. They're considering letting me do turkey for it, but I need to come up with a couple of good veggie options too. I feel confident that I can convert my existing mac 'n cheese and bean recipes to vegetarian and make them taste good. Considering trying ABTs with fake bacon and seeing how that goes. I'd like to come up with something that is actually really good and doesn't use any meat that I can actually smoke and not just grill. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

joshcary · 09-09-2013, 12:31 AM

As a former vegetarian, I can tell you that the reason veggies are usually grilled and rarely smoked is that the flavoring and tenderizing that smoking does to meat is not the same as what it does to vegetables.

But, a couple ideas:

Smoked stuffed mushroom caps - stuff cheese, spinach, and sautéed onions in mushroom cap and smoke until cheese is melted.

Smoked guacamole - Smoke all ingredients for an hour and then prepare as normal.

These are just off the top of my head. If I think of more, I'll add them to the list!

syndicate559 · 09-09-2013, 01:11 AM

Nice, I appreciate it. And if you think of anything else, I'd absolutely love to hear. Did you ever try to smoke any of the meat substitutes?

mrbill · 09-09-2013, 01:40 AM

baked pasta. Do up a pasta dish so that the pasta is slightly undercooked. Put everything(sauce, pasta and whatever else) in a foil pan/dish/casserole pan...etc. if using cheese, spread on top. Now grill/smoke until pasta is done. Easy/quick vegetarian meal if you don't add meat. Now, if they're, vegan, that's a horse of a different color.

landarc · 09-09-2013, 02:32 AM

You can compress and smoke tofu, it works well. You can smoke seitan 'sausage' and it will take a light smoking well. Almost all meat substitutes will not take a long cook, as they have a lot of moisture and once that is gone, they are hard to enjoy.

bbqgeekess · 09-09-2013, 04:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by syndicate559

Nice, I appreciate it. And if you think of anything else, I'd absolutely love to hear. Did you ever try to smoke any of the meat substitutes?

It's not grilling or barbecue, but the best stir-fry is outdoors, using a 60k+ BTU propane burner ($50 on Amazon) and a good carbon steel wok ($30 on Amazon).

Indoor "stir-fry" isn't really stir-fry--more like stir-braise; the 10-15k BTU gas burners just aren't strong enough.

You could impress your vegetarian guests with this powerful wok/burner while you barbecue meats for the rest, at the same time, outdoors.

This is the propane burner I went with off of Amazon:

Amazon.com: Bayou Classic SP10 High-Pressure Outdoor Gas Cooker, Propane: Patio, Lawn & Garden

ebijack · 09-09-2013, 05:05 AM

I smoke eggplant, carrots, potatoes, zucchini, onions all the time! It is one way I will eat veggies when surrounded with great smoked meat. I use garlic canola oil and lemon pepper. To make the oil I start with a pan full of garlic cloves, cover with canola oil and simmer about 25 mins till the gloves are butter soft. Put those into a jar and in the fridge for cooking later, put the canola oil into a squeeze bottle and in the fridge, it stays liquid form, doing this with olive oil is great too, just know the olive oil turns into a paste like butter once in the fridge. Makes great garlic toast! You could probably do that to most any veggy, and make quite a spread for them along with the garlic bread. Just a thought.

syndicate559 · 09-09-2013, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrbill

baked pasta. Do up a pasta dish so that the pasta is slightly undercooked. Put everything(sauce, pasta and whatever else) in a foil pan/dish/casserole pan...etc. if using cheese, spread on top. Now grill/smoke until pasta is done. Easy/quick vegetarian meal if you don't add meat. Now, if they're, vegan, that's a horse of a different color.

thankfully, they're not vegan. That would make it virtually impossible. I don't know how those people survive!

deguerre · 09-09-2013, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by syndicate559

thankfully, they're not vegan. That would make it virtually impossible. I don't know how those people survive!

B12 supplements.

HankB · 09-09-2013, 10:30 AM

Do they eat eggs? I have smoked hard boiled eggs and they make awesome egg salad, deviled eggs and so on. I used cherry wood. Peel them first, of course.

Not true BBQ but still really good.

misterrachel · 09-09-2013, 11:37 AM

You can make a very good fake pulled pork out of jackfruit. I've done this myself for visiting vegans/vegetarians and they loved it.

For an example, check out this one:

http://chowvegan.com/2008/05/28/bbq-...ruit-sandwich/

and

http://archives.quarrygirl.com/2011/...he-sexy-vegan/

syndicate559 · 09-09-2013, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by misterrachel

You can make a very good fake pulled pork out of jackfruit. I've done this myself for visiting vegans/vegetarians and they loved it.

For an example, check out this one:

http://chowvegan.com/2008/05/28/bbq-...ruit-sandwich/

and

http://archives.quarrygirl.com/2011/...he-sexy-vegan/

Now THAT is the kind of stuff I'm looking for. While I find the thought of eating vegan or even vegetarian somewhat insane, this actually made me want to try cooking this and see for myself. The second link with the video is really helpful and I think I have some ideas of how to pull this off with my own rubs and sauces. Bottom line is I love my friends and I'd be really excited to make something that sufficiently imitated real BBQ and made them really happy.

oifmarine2003 · 09-09-2013, 01:10 PM

Here is a link to a throwdown that was eggplant or tofu that might give you some ideas...

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/sh...d.php?t=167162

misterrachel · 09-09-2013, 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by syndicate559

Now THAT is the kind of stuff I'm looking for. While I find the thought of eating vegan or even vegetarian somewhat insane, this actually made me want to try cooking this and see for myself. The second link with the video is really helpful and I think I have some ideas of how to pull this off with my own rubs and sauces. Bottom line is I love my friends and I'd be really excited to make something that sufficiently imitated real BBQ and made them really happy.

:-)

I think it comes out pretty darn tasty. It's very filling too. Another variation is to make "carnitas" for tacos, which I've also done with great success. Here's the link for it:

http://cleangreensimple.com/2011/06/jackfruit-carnitas/

Oh, and I know those posts mention it, but make sure you get the canned jackfruit in brine, NOT in syrup (that'd be a nasty surprise).

Fuddernutz · 09-09-2013, 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by syndicate559

thankfully, they're not vegan. That would make it virtually impossible. I don't know how those people survive!

Hahahahaha!

09-09-2013, 12:09 AM	#1
syndicate559 Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 06-04-11 Location: Fresno, CA	Can you really do vegetarian BBQ? Ideas? I searched through the few threads that kind of covered this and found mostly side ideas that were truly vegetarian and mostly grilled at that. I have some very good friends who are veggies, though, and they really want me to do some BBQ for an end-of-season bicycle racing team party. They're considering letting me do turkey for it, but I need to come up with a couple of good veggie options too. I feel confident that I can convert my existing mac 'n cheese and bean recipes to vegetarian and make them taste good. Considering trying ABTs with fake bacon and seeing how that goes. I'd like to come up with something that is actually really good and doesn't use any meat that I can actually smoke and not just grill. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated! __________________ Eddie G. - Smoke Bomb BBQ coming off a Lang 48 Hybrid Deluxe

09-09-2013, 01:11 AM	#3
syndicate559 Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 06-04-11 Location: Fresno, CA	Nice, I appreciate it. And if you think of anything else, I'd absolutely love to hear. Did you ever try to smoke any of the meat substitutes? __________________ Eddie G. - Smoke Bomb BBQ coming off a Lang 48 Hybrid Deluxe

09-09-2013, 01:40 AM	#4
mrbill is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 06-25-13 Location: Tx	baked pasta. Do up a pasta dish so that the pasta is slightly undercooked. Put everything(sauce, pasta and whatever else) in a foil pan/dish/casserole pan...etc. if using cheese, spread on top. Now grill/smoke until pasta is done. Easy/quick vegetarian meal if you don't add meat. Now, if they're, vegan, that's a horse of a different color. __________________ NYG Smokey Joe-Copper gas assist Weber Performer-Rec Tec 590 pellet grill/smoker

09-09-2013, 02:32 AM	#5
landarc somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 06-26-09 Location: sAn leAnDRo, CA	You can compress and smoke tofu, it works well. You can smoke seitan 'sausage' and it will take a light smoking well. Almost all meat substitutes will not take a long cook, as they have a lot of moisture and once that is gone, they are hard to enjoy. __________________ [COLOR=DarkGreen][COLOR=DarkRed][SIZE=1]me: I don't drink anymore Yelonutz: me either, but, then again, I don't drink any less [/SIZE][/COLOR][/COLOR][SIZE=1][COLOR=DarkRed] [COLOR=Pink]SSS[/COLOR] [/COLOR][/SIZE]

09-09-2013, 10:30 AM	#10
HankB is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 01-16-12 Location: Winfield, IL	Do they eat eggs? I have smoked hard boiled eggs and they make awesome egg salad, deviled eggs and so on. I used cherry wood. Peel them first, of course. Not true BBQ but still really good. __________________ Weber Crazy

09-09-2013, 12:31 AM	#2
joshcary Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 03-05-13 Location: Wichita, KS	As a former vegetarian, I can tell you that the reason veggies are usually grilled and rarely smoked is that the flavoring and tenderizing that smoking does to meat is not the same as what it does to vegetables. But, a couple ideas: Smoked stuffed mushroom caps - stuff cheese, spinach, and sautéed onions in mushroom cap and smoke until cheese is melted. Smoked guacamole - Smoke all ingredients for an hour and then prepare as normal. These are just off the top of my head. If I think of more, I'll add them to the list!

09-09-2013, 05:05 AM	#7
ebijack Babbling Farker Join Date: 08-23-13 Location: Detroit Mi Name/Nickname : tom	I smoke eggplant, carrots, potatoes, zucchini, onions all the time! It is one way I will eat veggies when surrounded with great smoked meat. I use garlic canola oil and lemon pepper. To make the oil I start with a pan full of garlic cloves, cover with canola oil and simmer about 25 mins till the gloves are butter soft. Put those into a jar and in the fridge for cooking later, put the canola oil into a squeeze bottle and in the fridge, it stays liquid form, doing this with olive oil is great too, just know the olive oil turns into a paste like butter once in the fridge. Makes great garlic toast! You could probably do that to most any veggy, and make quite a spread for them along with the garlic bread. Just a thought.

09-09-2013, 11:37 AM	#11
misterrachel On the road to being a farker Join Date: 12-26-09 Location: Overland Park, KS	You can make a very good fake pulled pork out of jackfruit. I've done this myself for visiting vegans/vegetarians and they loved it. For an example, check out this one: http://chowvegan.com/2008/05/28/bbq-...ruit-sandwich/ and http://archives.quarrygirl.com/2011/...he-sexy-vegan/ __________________ Licensed Realtor in Kansas & Missouri - Unlicensed BBQer with a Camp Chef Woodwind

09-09-2013, 01:10 PM	#13
oifmarine2003 Babbling Farker Join Date: 11-26-12 Location: Cedarburg, WI	Here is a link to a throwdown that was eggplant or tofu that might give you some ideas... http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/sh...d.php?t=167162 __________________ Chris- Midwest BBQ Outreach