Marion Grasby Summer BBQs Interview

Question: Why do you turn to the BBQ in Summer?

Marion Grasby: Summer is the perfect time to be outdoors and celebrating in the sunshine. Also, I like to get everything marinating so that my other half can do the cooking on the barbecue while I relax!


Question: What's your best BBQ cooking advice?

Marion Grasby: My biggest tip is to keep the heat from getting too high, especially if you're using spices or marinades. If the barbecue is too hot, your lovely marinades will burn before your meat or seafood is cooked.


Question: What inspired you to create Marion's Kitchen Asian Spice Rub range?

Marion Grasby: I live and travel in Asia and some of my favourite street foods come from those portable grills loaded with marinated skewers or grilled seafood. I found myself being inspired by those tasty street-side treats and started making my own spice rubs at home.


Question: What's great about adding an Asian flair to the BBQ?

Marion Grasby: Having a super tasty rub infused with Asian flavours is such an easy way to add loads of flavour to any meat or seafood. I love that a simple piece of grilled chicken can be transformed into something special with a smear of spicy goodness.


Question: Can you talk us through the method of the Marion's Kitchen Asian Spice Rub range?

Marion Grasby: It's sooo simple. You just rub my Asian Spice Rub onto any meat or seafood along with a little dash of oil, marinate for 10 minutes and then you're ready to barbecue, roast or grill!

Question: What types of ingredients are used in Marion's Kitchen Asian Spice Rub range?

Marion Grasby: I've used the exact recipes I use at home to make my Asian Spice Rub products. They're packed with natural goodies like lemongrass, roasted coconut, spices, ginger and galangal.


Question: What would you cook, if you had a family BBQ, this Sunday afternoon?

Marion Grasby: That's easy…I'd do a load of beautiful grilled prawns marinated with my Balinese Asian Spice Rub. I'd serve a few bread rolls and a big fresh salad on the side.


Question: If you could only choose five ingredients to cook with, for a whole week, what would you choose?

Marion Grasby: Chilli, garlic, coriander, prawns and ginger.


Question: What has been your career highlight, so far?

Marion Grasby: Getting to travel the world discovering new recipes and ingredients for my cookbooks and products is the highlight of my job. I'm an explorer by nature so getting to travel and eat as part of my career is something I'm incredibly grateful for.


Question: What's next for you?
Marion Grasby: I'm currently working on a new TV series, creating tasty new products and expanding my product range into new international markets. It's going to be busy 2015!

Seafood Lemongrass Skewers

Using lemongrass stalks as a skewer is such a lovely way to serve these little morsels. You could hand these around as a party treat, serve them as part of an Asian banquet dinner or simply eat them straight off the barbecue.

Serves 4

Ingredients
Marion's Kitchen Balinese Spice Rub
300g (about 10 oz) peeled and deveined prawns (shrimp), roughly chopped
300g (about 10 oz) white fish fillets (e.g. snapper, barramundi, or cod), roughly chopped
¼ cup desiccated coconut
1 long red chilli, finely chopped
4 kaffir lime leaves, de-stemmed and finely sliced
16 thin lemongrass stalks, trimmed and cut into 15cm lengths (use metal or bamboo skewers as an alternative
2 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil
sweet chilli sauce to serve
lime wedges to serve

Method

Place the Asian Spice Rub, prawns, fish, desiccated coconut, chilli, kaffir lime leaves and 2 Tbsp of water in the bowl of food processor. Process to a thick paste.
Mould 2 heaped tablespoons of the seafood mixture onto the end of each lemongrass stalk.
Heat oil in a non-stick frying pan or on a barbecue plate over medium heat. Cook skewers, turning often, for 8-10 minutes or until firm and just cooked through. Serve with sweet chilli sauce and lime wedges.

Coconut and Chilli Grilled Salmon

This is an easy way to spice up a simple grilled salmon fillet. You can serve it with any sides you like but one of my favourites is this easy cos lettuce and fennel salad.

Serves 4

Ingredients
Marion's Kitchen Malaysian Spice Rub
2 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil
4 x 180g (about 6 oz) salmon fillets
lime wedges to serve

Cos Lettuce & Fennel Salad
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp milk
4 baby cos lettuce, washed and leaves separated
1 baby fennel, trimmed, finely sliced
4 Tbsp toasted pine nuts

Method
Place Asian Spice Rub, oil and salmon fillets in a large bowl. Mix until well combined. Cover and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 10 minutes.
In the meantime, whisk mayonnaise, lime juice and milk in a bowl until well combined. Arrange cos lettuce leaves, fennel and pine nuts on serving plates.
Heat a barbecue grill or non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Cook salmon for 3-4 minutes each side or until cooked to your liking. Transfer salmon to serving plates.
Drizzle cos lettuce with mayonnaise dressing and serve.

Lemongrass & Garlic Chicken Salad

This chicken salad is for days when I crave something healthy, green and crunchy. Using an Asian spice rub to flavour the chicken for this salad makes it healthy and super tasty. Flavour made easy!

Serves 4

Ingredients
Marion's Kitchen Balinese Spice Rub
2 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil
4 x chicken breasts
200g mixed salad leaves
½ cup roughly chopped coriander (cilantro)
2 ripe avocadoes, peeled, stone removed and sliced
¼ cup finely sliced spring onion (scallions)
¼ cup fried shallots or onions (available in the Asian section of supermarkets)

Pickled Red Onion
½ small red onion, finely sliced
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 tsp white sugar

Salad Dressing
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 Tbsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp honey

Method
Place the Asian Spice Rub, oil and chicken in a large bowl. Mix until well combined. Cover and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, for the pickled onion, toss the ingredients together and set aside.
For the salad dressing, whisk ingredients in a small bowl and set aside until ready to serve.
Heat a chargrill pan or non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Cook chicken for about 4 minutes each side or until just cooked through. Remove from heat and slice.
Drain and discard liquid from the pickled onion slices. Place onion in a large bowl along with the salad leaves and coriander. Drizzle with 4 Tbsp of salad dressing and transfer to a large platter. Top with avocado, chicken slices, fried shallots and spring onion. Serve with extra dressing on the side.

Lemongrass & Garlic BBQ Prawns

I'm always looking for an easy marinade for meats or seafood destined for my barbecue. These skewers are a tasty addition to any barbecue or cook them indoors and serve as dinner party finger food.

Serves 4

Ingredients
Marion's Kitchen Balinese Spice Rub
2 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil
800g (about 1.7 lb) peeled and deveined prawns (shrimp)
12 skewers
1 lime, cut into wedges
¼ cup finely chopped spring onion (scallions)
¼ cup roughly chopped mint leaves

Method
Place the Asian Spice Rub, oil and prawns in a large bowl. Mix until well combined. Cover and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 10 minutes.
Thread prawns onto skewers. Heat a barbecue grill or non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook skewers for 2-3 minutes each side or until just cooked through. Remove from heat and squeeze over some lime juice. Sprinkle with spring onion and mint leaves and serve.


Interview by Brooke Hunter