BBQ
Ember-baked roots with garlic and carrot tops
This dish needs to be cooked on a coal- or wood-fired BBQ as all the cooking is done in the embers. Let your fire catch and burn down, until you have a bed of ash-coloured embers. All the veg gets wrapped in parcels and nestled in the bottom, which acts like a smoky oven.
Ingredients
- 500g bunched beetroots with tops on
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 500g new potatoes
- 2 bay leaves
- a few sprigs of thyme
- 1 lemon, finely zested
- 500g bunched carrot with tops on
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Method
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Step 1
Burn your BBQ down to embers. Give all the veg a wash and scrub clean, removing and reserving the tops from the beets and carrots. The veg will all cook at varying speeds, so prepare those with the longest cook first and add them to the fire as you go.
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Step 2
Separate the beetroots from their tops. Keep small beetroots whole, cut any larger ones in half. Rub the beetroots with salt. Lay out a large double-layered square of foil and place half of the leafy tops in the middle. Sit the beets on top, drizzle with a little olive oil and season well. Cover with the rest of the leaves. Fold the foil over and crimp into a tight parcel. Stab the parcels 3-4 times, to allow some smoke in. Bury the parcel in the glowing embers and cook for 40 minutes, or until tender - it will depend on their size.
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Step 3
Lay out a large double-layered square of foil and sit the potatoes in the middle. Drizzle with olive oil and season generously. Add a couple of bay leaves, a few sprigs of thyme and a few slices of lemon. Fold the foil over and crimp into a tight parcel. Bury them next to the beets and cook for about 40 minutes or until tender.
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Step 4
Rub the carrots generously with salt. If any are particularly large, split them in half, lengthways. Lay out another double-layered square of foil and sit the carrots in the middle. Drizzle with a little olive oil. Fold the foil over and crimp into a tight parcel. Stab the parcels 3-4 times, to allow some smoke in. Bury the parcel with the other veg and cook for about 30 minutes or until tender - it will depend on their size.
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Step 5
While the veg cooks, finely chop the carrot tops with the garlic, lemon zest and a pinch of salt.
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Step 6
When the veg has cooked, take a few minutes to slip the skins off the beetroots and cut them into wedges. Throw all the veg together in a serving bowl and garnish with the carrot top mixture.
