How to Make Vegetarian Shish Kabobs It is always difficult to decide what to give vegetarians when inviting them for a barbecue, as barbecues traditionally consist of meat. Vegetarian shish kabobs served on rice are the perfect and healthy answer to your vegetarian dilemma and makes for a lovely side dish to any barbecue.
Food on a stick just seem to taste better and vegetarian shish kabobs don't just look lovely, they are also very easy to make and versatile enough so that you can grill or cook them.
You Will Need: * Zucchini * Whole mushrooms * Whole cherry tomatoes * Eggplant * Bell pepper * Squash * Whole pearl onions * Pineapple (optional) * Metal or bamboo shish kebob skewers For a Mustard Basting Sauce for Your Vegetarian Shish Kabobs You Will Need: * 1 1/2 Tablespoon mustard * 1 1/2 Tablespoon white wine vinegar * 10ml Olive oil * Freshly ground black pepper * Salt to taste
Step 1 Preheat your grill or oven. Wash all your vegetables and cut the bell pepper, eggplant, zucchini, squash and pineapple into more or less equal sized chunks. Be sure to leave the mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and pearl onions whole.
Step 2 Push your vegetable chunks onto the skewers alternating between the different vegetables to make your vegetarian shish kabobs look attractive.
Step 3 In a small mixing bowl, whisk the ingredients for the mustard basting sauce together. Using a brush, brush half of the basting sauce over the kabobs.
Step 4 Place your vegetarian shish kabobs on the grill or in the oven and grill or bake for about 10 to 15 minutes. After 15 minutes turn the kabobs over, apply the rest of the basting and bake or grill for an extra 10 to 15 minutes.
Hints and Tips:
* Italian salad dressing makes for a delicious marinade for vegetables. Marinade the vegetables in the sauce overnight for the best results. * It is always a good idea to parboil denser vegetables such as potatoes, zucchini, peppers and carrots before skewering them as you will run the risk of them not being fully cooked when grilling them on a gas grill. * If you are going to use bamboo skewers for your kabobs be sure to soak them in water for about 1 hour before grilling to stop them from burning. * When using metal skewers lightly oil or spray these with non-stick cooking spray before skewering the vegetables. * If your vegetables keep on sliding around on our skewers use two skewers instead of one. * Leave some space between the pieces to allow them to cook through. * Do not put food with different cooking times on the same skewer as this will cause some food to burn while the others will still be raw. * If you are planning on not using a basting sauce when grilling your vegetarian shish kabobs, you will need to soak your vegetables in water for about 60 minutes to prevent them from becoming dry when you grill them.