SHEET PAN KEBABS MY WAY 🥙

Welcome back to The Veg Table - a place where we’re all about making vegetables and plant-based ingredients the star of the show.

It’s a bank holiday heatwave over here in the UK, and I’ve been thinking a lot about cooking outside - and more specifically, what to grill. Because let’s be honest, BBQs are still very meat-heavy. But it doesn’t have to be like that …

I recently made these sheetpan kebab/kofte style wraps and OH MY LORD were they good.

As always, the full recipe is below if you fancy giving it a go.

Alfie x

I’ve been seeing sheet pan kebabs + kofte everywhere. And honestly, they look delicious. Luckily, if you don’t eat meat, you don’t have to miss out.

This is my take on a proper BBQ-style meal. Kofte-inspired skewers, cooked over the grill, served in warm flatbreads with harissa tahini, fresh tomatoes, crunchy pickles and tangy sumac onions. It’s everything you want from outdoor cooking. With each bite, you get the perfect combination of:

• smoky

• juicy

• messy (in a good way)

• full of contrasting flavours, textures + colours

And importantly, it feels like a proper BBQ meal - not just a substitute.

Instead of meat, I’m using a mix of:

• extra firm tofu

• cooked lentils

• grated veg

• ground spices + seasonings

And honestly, together with a few more ingredients, you can create something that holds together well, crisps up nicely, stays soft in the middle and tastes OUT OF THIS WORLD.

You get the same kind of texture you’d expect from kofte, but with a good boost of veggies and fibre!

I made this on my Ninja Woodfire Pro Connect (part of a paid partnership across socials), and it worked really well! But you can of course make them on your bbq, or simply do them under the grill.

• 1 white onion, grated

• 1 sweet red pepper, finely chopped

• 4 garlic cloves, minced

• 3 tbsp tomato purée

• 1 tbsp ground cumin

• 1 tbsp ground coriander

• 1 tbsp smoked paprika

• ½ tsp (kashmiri) chilli powder

• 2 tbsp dark soy sauce

• 500g firm tofu (I like ½ smoked, ½ normal), patted dry + crumbled

• 150g cooked brown lentils, mashed

• 6 tbsp chickpea flour

• 6-8 tbsp olive oil, for grilling

• 2 large tomatoes, chopped into quarters

• Salt and pepper

• 6 tbsp runny tahini

• 1 tbsp harissa paste

• 1 lemon, juiced

• 1 garlic clove, minced

• 1 large red onion, finely sliced

• 25g handful fresh parsley, finely chopped

• 2 tbsp sumac

• 1 lemon, juiced

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• flatbreads or wraps of choice

• pickles

1. Once you’ve grated your onion + finely diced your pepper, place in a clean tea towel. Wrap it up tight + squeeze out as much moisture as you can - this will prevent a soggy kebab.

2. To a large mixing bowl, add your tofu mice, pepper, onion, garlic, mashed lentils, smoked paprika, cumin, chilli powder, tomato puree, soy sauce + fresh parsley. Add a good drizzle of olive oil, mix well to combine, then add chickpea flour. Mix again to help bind.

3. Work into a solid mixture. Oil a baking tray + chop into kofte/kebab shaped pieces (you can choose any size you want). Pre-heat your oven (200C fan) or Woodfire ProConnect (I like to roast at 200C fan for 15-20 mins, then finish on a grill for 5 mins).

4. If cooking in the oven, keep on the sheetpan. Brush your kebabs liberally with oil + cook as above. On the grill, brush the grill plate liberally with olive oil + either side of the kebabs + cook as above. Don’t worry if they stick a little, just be patient + gentle. Add the tomatoes for the final 10 mins to roast + char.

5. To make the sauce, whisk the harissa, tahini, lemon juice + garlic together with a pinch of salt. As it stiffens, gradually add cold water + continue to whisk until a creamy sauce forms.

6. To make the onions, simply mix with sumac, season with salt + lemon juice, give a good scrunch, then mix through the parsley + olive oil,

To serve, toast your flatbread. Spread a good dollop of sauce on, then your kebab, grilled tomatoes, sumac onions, pickles, more sauce + wrap up.

This is the kind of thing that makes BBQ cooking feel exciting.

It’s not about replacing anything - just making something that stands up on its own.

Smoky, slightly messy, and absolutely packed full of flavour… exactly what you want to be eating.

You know the drill by now - if you give it a go, let me know!

And tell me … what sort of thing do you like to cook on your BBQ?

Speak very soon,

Alfie x