Thank God for Imelda

If you’ve been like me, cherished reader, you’ll have long since dusted off the barbecue, scrubbed her up (mine is called, ‘Imelda’) and have already been availing of the long, bright evenings when the day’s toil is complete and you’ve nothing better to do than flip burgers over spitting embers.

Over the recent spell of glorious sunshine, aul Imelda has been playing an absolute blinder. Unlike my previous barbecue (Barbara – who had a tendency to be unreliable and surly), Imelda is a joy. She is entirely reliable and utterly good-humoured and has regularly been pumping out the most sumptuous feasts for us all to enjoy and to a meal, they have been magnificent – all the more magnificent when enjoyed en pleine air.

“Keep ‘er lit, Imelda,” I encourage, when the embers are dying and it appears that the heat is on the wane. And fair play to Imelda, whilst she doesn’t reply other than with a sizzle or a pop, when her lid goes on, she’s remarkably adept at retaining diminishing heat – which means that she also works wonders as an oven.

As with most other people, when the fine weather blew in, the first mission for Imelda was burgers and sausages. However, as the heatwave lengthened and as I gradually bored of red meat, I was forced to think outside the box so as to capitalise on Imelda’s aptness to purpose.

This resulted in various marinated wonders, from jerked pork to halloumi to the nearly obligatory Chinese-spiced chicken, which I always find is a bit of a let-down.

However, it wasn’t until I watched a TikTok of a street vendor making tandoori chicken, that I reckoned I might have a new and improved mission for Imelda.

MARINATION

I discovered long ago that marinating doesn’t have to be complicated. Barbecues can pose enough in the way of organisational challenges without going overly complicated on the prep. So, if you strip back a marinade to its basic principles it requires only three components: Oil, acid and flavouring.

And yet, figure a curry marinade into the equation and prep threatens to go off the chart. Making a curry from scratch isn’t something to be taken lightly at the best of times but when you want to be outside enjoying the sunshine, it’s ever more important to keep things simple – but effective. That’s why I use a marinade which includes a pre-prepared element: Patak’s curry paste.

You can actually buy a specific Patak’s marinade but I like to use the paste as I think it adds a bit more depth to the finished dish. Also, I usually have some paste in the store cupboard whilst the marinade is habitually missing. Plus, if you like madras, use madras paste. If you like korma, use korma paste. Personally, I like tikka masala, so I use tikka masala paste.

I used this recipe for tikka chicken skewers thrice in the space of two weeks and I don’t know who likes it more, me or Imelda.

INGREDIENTS

Good dash of sunflower or veggie oil

3 or 4 chicken breasts, chopped into chunks

150ml of Greek yoghurt

2 garlic cloves, finely grated

Small nub of fresh ginger, finely grated

3 tbsps of Patak’s Tikka Masala paste

1 tbsp of tomato ketchup

Quarter tsp of sea salt

TO SERVE

Nan breads

Sliced cucumber

Raita

coriander

mango chutney

basmati rice

quartered limes

THE PLAN

First of all, chop the chicken and dump the chunks into a large bowl and add the veggie oil. Stir to coat well and set aside.

Next make up the marinade: Add the Greek yoghurt to another bowl, grate on the garlic and ginger; add in the paste of choice, the tomato ketchup and the salt and stir around to well combined.

Pour this mixture on top of the oiled chicken and stir and mix until all the chicken is well-coated. Cover this bowl with clingfilm and retire to the fridge for at least four hours. That’ll give you time to clean up, open a beer and enjoy the sunshine.

Half an hour before the four hours is up, steep six or seven wooden skewers into a tray of water. This will stop them burning on the barbecue. Then, get Imelda lit up (sans beer) and wait until the coals are white but still hot.

As that’s happening, remove the marinated chicken from the fridge and skewer up the chucks. Don’t pack them on super tight but rather, leave a little daylight between each chuck – this allows for a quicker cook. This part is sticky and messy but it’ll be worth the effort in the end. Also, don’t worry about scraping off any lingering marinade from the chunks. Some superfluous marinade gives the finished chicken a goodly crust.

That done and Imelda ready, it’s time to cook. Secure another beer, grab the loaded skewers and head outside.

There’s not much to barbecue cooking really (turn and turn until everything is cooked through), but with a little intuition, you should be able to get the chicken cooked through but, thanks to the marinade, still very tender and juicy.

These skewers should take between ten and 15 minutes, depending on heat and chunk thickness. But if in doubt, turn and turn some more.

If really in doubt, cut off a thick chunk and see if it’s cooked in the middle. When they’re ready, plate up as in the picture and thank God for the Imelda in your life.