6 Delicious BBQ Sides for National Snack Day
When it comes to cooking, BBQ dishes tend to be the star of the show – and for good reason. A juicy burger, perfectly cooked steak, or scrumptious set of ribs certainly deserves the spotlight. However, your barbecue is also capable of creating bite-sized masterpieces that you can enjoy as a standalone snack or pair well with your favourite meals. In honour of National Snack Day on March 4th, we’ve assembled a list of snack recipes that are so tasty you may have difficulty sharing them. From bacon bites to pulled pork bruschetta, read on to discover the bite-sized snacks you can BBQ!
1. Peach and Halloumi Bites
Recipe Courtesy of Extra for Avocado
These sweet, savory, and oh-so-snackable treats are perfect for your next dinner party. Although they are easy to make, the combination of ingredients packs a flavour punch. For this recipe, all you’ll need is some halloumi cheese, peaches, basil, ciabatta bread, and olive oil.
Start by preheating your grill to medium and brushing the halloumi slices and ciabatta loaf with olive oil. Then place them, along with the peaches, on the grill. Make sure to pay close attention to your food as the peaches and halloumi will only take roughly 3 minutes to cook before you need to flip them and grill for another 3 minutes. Once the halloumi is soft, the peaches are juicy, and the ciabatta is lightly toasted, you’re done!
After your ingredients have cooled slightly, dice up the halloumi and ciabatta loaf. Then stack the halloumi, basil, and peach slice atop your ciabatta bread. Secure with a toothpick.
2. BBQ Pulled Pork Bruschetta
Recipe Courtesy of The Food Network
These bite-sized snacks put a BBQ spin on your typical bruschetta. If you’ve got some left-over pulled pork (after all, cooking up a whole pig makes a lot of meat!) then this dish is a perfect way to repurpose it. All you need to do is grill some bread, carmelize some onions, and you’re good to go!
To make the beautiful BBQ bruschetta pictured above, you’ll need to utilize both your stove and your barbecue. Start by sauteing your onions over medium heat with plenty of olive oil and butter. Stir regularly for about twenty minutes, or until the onions reach a deep brown colour.
In the meantime, preheat your grill to high and begin preparing the bruschetta. Season the bread slices with olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. Place the bread on your barbecue and grill until golden brown. Flip and repeat.
Once the onions are cooked and the bread is grilled, you can assemble your savory snack by topping each piece of toast with pork and onions. For extra flavor, add some barbecue sauce and garnish with chives or green onions. Voila!
3. Grilled Shrimp and Mango Bites
Recipe Courtesy of The Flavour Bender
For anybody who ever wondered how grilled shrimp could be made any more delicious, the answer is mango. This combination creates both a smoky and tropical flavour that is bound to make you feel like summer no matter what time of year you make this dish.
To create these scrumptious snacks, marinate 40 or so shrimps in soy sauce, coriander, garlic, brown sugar, cilantro, salt, and however much cayenne pepper you can handle. While the ingredients are mingling, preheat your grill to medium-high and oil the surface generously. Once it’s reached the right temperature, cook your shrimps for about 30 seconds per side. You will know they are done when both sides turn caramel.
The rest of the process to make these scrumptious snacks is ultra-simple: spread hummus on your favourite cracker and add a shrimp and mango slice atop it. To finalize the dish, squeeze some fresh lemon on your snacks and garnish with chili flakes and chopped cilantro.
4. BBQ Brown Sugar Bacon Bites
Recipe Courtesy of Traeger Grills
Bite-sized bacon? Sign me up! This recipe makes it much easier to eat, share, and devour the classic Canadian dish.
Start by dicing either pork belly or slab bacon into one inch cubes. In a separate bowl, mix brown sugar, ground fennel, salt, and pepper. Add in the bacon and stir to distribute the toppings evenly.
Next, move over to your smoker and set a piece of tin foil on the grill grates, crimping the edges to create a rim. Pierce holes in the bottom of the foil with a fork to allow some of the bacon fat to drain. This will ensure your bacon bites come out nice and crisp.
When all is said and done, set your smoker to 350°F. Close the lid and leave it to heat up for 15 mins. After the time has elapsed, set your bacon pieces on the grill and leave them to cook for 20-30 minutes.
5. Bacon-Wrapped Onion Rings
Recipe Courtesy of Grilling 24x7
Keeping with the bacon theme, these BBQ goodies are surprisingly simple but extremely effective whether you’re entertaining or looking for a salty snack.
To create bacon-wrapped onion rings, start by slicing your onion into half inch rings. Discard the inner rings as they’ll be too small to wrap with bacon (but you could always camelize them to create the bruschetta in recipe 2).
Brush each of the onion rings with hot sauce and wrap it with bacon. Secure with a skewer or toothpick. Generously sprinkle seasoning – we recommend Back Eddy’s seasoning salt – onto the rings.
Preheat your grill to Medium and grill for about 90 minutes, or until the bacon is nice and crispy. In the meantime, you can make a simple sriracha mayo for dipping using mayonnaise, sriracha, and a tsp of lime juice. Once the sauce is made and your onion rings are cooked to perfection, put on a show or sit on your porch and enjoy these savory snacks!
6. Grilled BBQ Potato Skins
Recipe Courtesy of The Food Network
Whether baked, fried, or barbecued, potatoes are a staple snack for those in the mood for comfort food. These grilled BBQ potato skins are perfect for any type of year and can be customized with any toppings you like
For a perfectly cooked potato skin, you’re best off using both your oven and your grill. That way the potato will be perfectly cooked on the inside, and perfectly crisp on the outside. It may take some extra effort, but the end result will be well worth it.
Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees. Scrub any excess dirt off some russet potatoes and bake, on the middle rack, for one hour. Remove the potatoes from the oven and let cool. Then, cut the potatoes lengthwise and spoon out some of the centre, making sure to leave half an inch of potato around the rim.
In the meantime, lay down bacon strips on a pan and bake for 15 minutes in the oven. Remove the bacon when it’s sufficiently crispy, and crumble when it’s cool enough to handle.
Next, preheat your grill to medium. While waiting for the grill to heat up, heat butter on the stove and add minced garlic. Brush the mixture on the tops and bottoms of your potatoes, and set them on the grill. Cook for about 4 minutes on each side until grill marks appear.
Once your potatoes and bacon are done cooking, next comes the fun part: adding the toppings. This recipe calls for sour cream and chives, but if you want it to have a more sweet flavour you could add caramelized onions and a bourbon flavoured barbecue sauce.
Whether you’re looking for snack ideas for yourself, your guests, to pair with a meal, or to enjoy on their own, look no further than these treats whenever you need recipe inspiration!
- Taylor Mitchell
