Anne Morgan For a vegetarian barbecue, Delia Smith’s halloumi kebabs are her Marinated Halloumi Cheese Kebabs with Herbs, for 2 people. You soak cubes of the cheese with vegetables in olive oil, lime juice, garlic and five herbs, then grill them over hot coals. Start a day ahead, because they marinate for a full day and then cook in about 10 minutes.
Delia’s Summer Collection, from 1993, puts these kebabs in its barbecue chapter. She wrote it because vegetarians so often miss out at barbecues, and she spent a whole day testing until this one worked.
Halloumi holds its shape over the heat, so the cubes brown at the edges without melting. The long soak gives the mild cheese the taste of lime, garlic and herbs.
To fry halloumi instead, her halloumi salad comes with a lime and caper dressing.
Delia Smith’s Marinated Halloumi Kebabs with Herbs
Course: DinnerCuisine: MediterraneanDifficulty: Easy2
servings15
minutes15
minutes770
kcalHalloumi threaded between pieces of onion, pepper and whole mushrooms, after a day in a lime and herb marinade. They grill on flat skewers until browned at the edges.
Ingredients
- For the kebabs:
350g (12oz) halloumi, cut into 2.5cm (1in) cubes
1 medium pepper, any colour
1 medium red onion
4 medium cap mushrooms
- For the marinade:
55ml (2fl oz) extra virgin olive oil
1 fat garlic clove
1 level teaspoon each of chopped fresh thyme, oregano, rosemary, mint and parsley
juice of 1 lime
freshly milled black pepper
Directions
- Cut: Cut the pepper and onion into even pieces about 2.5cm (1in) square, the same size as the cheese.
- Marinade: Chop the herbs and garlic quite finely. Mix them with the oil, lime juice and some black pepper.
- Soak: Put the cheese, onion, pepper and mushrooms in a large bowl and pour the marinade over them. Mix it all very well.
- Chill: Cover the bowl and leave it in the fridge for 24 hours, stirring now and then.
- Thread: Push a mushroom right down each of 2 long flat skewers. Then add onion, pepper and cheese in turn, and finish each skewer with a mushroom.
- Grill: Cook the kebabs over hot coals for about 10 minutes, turning them often, until the edges are tinged brown. Brush on any marinade left in the bowl as you turn them.
Notes
- There is no salt in the marinade, because halloumi is already salty.
- Some halloumi is made with animal rennet. My own tip is to check the pack for a vegetarian mark.
FAQs
What should I serve with halloumi kebabs?
Her Mexican tomato salsa, from the same chapter. It serves 4 and needs about an hour to sit before you eat it.
Skin 4 large firm tomatoes in boiling water for 1 minute, squeeze out the seeds and cut them into 5mm dice. Then add a deseeded green chilli and half a red onion, both finely chopped. Stir in 2 heaped tablespoons of chopped coriander and the juice of a lime.
Season it, mix well and cover it. She uses the fat, squat green chillies that are not too hot, and suggests a few drops of Tabasco for more kick.
Why do they marinate for so long?
Because halloumi on its own tastes mild. In the same book, Delia says it is not the most exciting cheese to nibble, but it cooks very well and takes on other flavours.
A full day in the fridge gives the oil, lime, garlic and herbs time to soak in. My own tip is to make the marinade the evening before your barbecue.
Which herbs can I use?
Any mix you have. She uses a level teaspoon each of thyme, oregano, rosemary, mint and parsley, but says a similar mix of whatever herbs are around will do.
Keep the total to about 5 teaspoons of chopped herbs, my own rule, so the lime and garlic still come through.
What is different in her Vegetarian Collection?
The kebabs and the salsa become one recipe. Her Vegetarian Collection came out in 2002, and there the mushrooms are chestnut mushrooms. You make the salsa on the day, before the kebabs go on the barbecue.
The amounts, the 24 hours in the fridge and the 10 minutes on the coals stay the same.
Can I cook them without a barbecue?
Yes, under a hot grill, my own tip, because Delia only gives the barbecue method. Turn them often and keep brushing on the marinade.
Watch the edges of the cheese rather than the clock, and take them off when the halloumi is tinged golden brown. Serve them straight away, because halloumi turns firm and rubbery as it cools.
