The best ingredients for your grilling season
As soon as the days get longer and the temperatures rise, it begins again: the most wonderful time of the year for all barbecue fans. Whether it's a cozy family evening, a sociable get-together with friends, or a spontaneous dinner on the terrace – grilling connects people and stands for enjoyment, relaxation, and Mediterranean joie de vivre.
Especially in Portugal, grilling has been part of everyday life for generations. Here, grilling isn't just for weekends, but often several times a week. Fresh ingredients, aromatic herbs, and high-quality spices ensure that even simple dishes become a special taste experience.
Matching our barbecue week, you will find everything you need for successful grilling moments – from spices and marinades to high-quality salts, suitable side dishes, and refined sauces.
The fire makes the difference
A good grilling result begins long before the first steak or vegetable is placed on the grill. The right heat is crucial for taste, roasted aromas, and even cooking.
With quick-lighting charcoal, lighting the fire is particularly uncomplicated. Within a short time, an even glow develops, which is ideal for meat, fish, vegetables, or grilled cheese. This leaves more time for the essentials: shared enjoyment.
Seasoning like in Portugal
Portuguese cuisine thrives on high-quality ingredients and balanced spices. Instead of masking the inherent taste, meat, fish, and vegetables are refined in a targeted way.
A true classic is coarse sea salt. The larger salt crystals melt more slowly on the grilled food and provide a pleasant seasoning as well as a particularly aromatic crust. Especially with steaks or grilled vegetables, good sea salt is often enough to perfectly emphasize the natural taste.
If you prefer something a little more refined, you will find numerous spice blends for various grilled dishes in our assortment.
The right seasoning for every grilled dish
Depending on the grilled food, completely different taste experiences arise. That's why it's worth opting for specially coordinated spice blends.
In Portugal, high-quality salts are often deliberately used for grilling. The coarse sea salt "Especially for Grilled Food" from Vatel brings exactly this philosophy to the plate. The coarse salt crystals emphasize the inherent taste of meat, fish, and vegetables without overpowering it. It unfolds its full aroma particularly on a juicy steak or freshly grilled vegetables.
For poultry, we offer several options. The classic chicken marinade ensures juicy meat with delicate seasoning, while the spicy chicken spice blend combines a pleasant spicy heat with aromatic herbs and spices. Turmeric, curry, rosemary, garlic, and various types of paprika give grilled chicken a particularly intense aroma.
Lovers of hearty steaks will also get their money's worth. The steak seasoning combines organic onions, black pepper, various types of paprika, mustard seeds, coriander, cumin, and other selected ingredients into a harmonious blend. The spices support the natural meat flavor without overpowering it.
If you particularly love the unmistakable aroma of a charcoal grill, you should definitely try the "Hearty Smoke" grill seasoning. Smoked salt, paprika, pepper, and a finely tuned organic curry blend provide intense roasted aromas and give meat, vegetables, or grilled cheese a pleasant smoky character – even when grilling on a gas grill.
Marinating adds even more flavor
A good marinade makes grilled food particularly juicy and aromatic. Meat or vegetables can be prepared a few hours before grilling so that the spices penetrate deeply.
The garlic marinade is particularly popular. It goes perfectly with pork, poultry, shrimp, or grilled vegetables and gives every dish a pleasant Mediterranean touch.
Those who appreciate the intense taste of fresh garlic can also reach for liquid organic garlic. It is particularly easy to dose and is excellent for marinating meat, fish, and vegetables or for refining grilled potatoes, dips, dressings, and homemade herb butter. This way, you enjoy the full garlic aroma without peeling or pressing.
The right side dishes are simply part of it
A successful barbecue buffet is not just about meat. The side dishes in particular provide variety and make the meal particularly versatile.
Small potatoes can be wonderfully prepared as grilled potatoes. With a little olive oil, coarse sea salt, and a portion of herb butter seasoning, wonderfully aromatic potatoes with a crispy skin and creamy interior are created.
The herb butter seasoning contains wild garlic, garlic, basil, tomatoes, and cashews, among other things. Together with soft butter, a homemade herb butter is created in no time, which goes perfectly with meat, baguette, or vegetables.
Cooked sweetcorn is also indispensable at almost any barbecue evening. Briefly heated on the grill and then served with a little butter, coarse sea salt, or herb butter, it develops its pleasantly sweet aroma and is one of the most popular barbecue side dishes of all.
The right sauce rounds everything off
Only the right sauce makes many grilled dishes perfect. Whether spicy, fruity, or hot – everyone has their personal favorite.
With the 5-pack Gourmet Spice Sauces from Piri-Piri & Co., you bring variety to the table. The different flavors go well with meat, fish, vegetables, or potatoes and invite you to try them out.
A true classic must of course also not be missing: Paladin's ketchup convinces with its balanced tomato taste and goes perfectly with sausages, burgers, fries, or grilled meat.
The perfect snack for in between
While the grill is still heating up or the grilled food is resting, a small snack is a must.
The seasoned Smokehouse nut mix combines peanuts, almonds, cashews, and macadamia nuts with a finely tuned smoky seasoning. The combination of crunchy nuts and spicy smoky aromas makes it the ideal companion for a cozy barbecue evening or as a snack for your guests.
Grilling means quality time together
A barbecue evening is not just about good food. It stands for shared conversations, relaxed get-togethers, and beautiful moments with family and friends. Often it is precisely the simple ingredients that become real highlights with high-quality spices and a little attention to detail.
With the selected products of our barbecue week, you bring a piece of Portuguese grilling culture into your home. From aromatic spices and high-quality marinades to suitable side dishes and sauces, you will find everything that makes a successful barbecue evening.
Let yourself be inspired, try new combinations, and enjoy the taste of summer. We wish you many enjoyable grilling moments and a wonderful barbecue week!
