Chantel Simmons

As an alternative to buying an expensive metal grill, recycle a spare terracotta pot from the garden and use charcoal from sustainably managed woodlands.

What you'll need:

Terracotta pot (choose one 13 inches in diameter to feed up to three people, or larger for bigger crowds)
Two bricksEnough pebbles or shards of broken clay pots to fill container at least halfway
Aluminum foil
Barbecue lighter
Locally produced charcoal
Oven shelf or grill-pan shelf

1. Stand the pot on a couple of bricks to allow air to circulate underneath the fire. Fill
it halfway with pebbles or shards of broken clay pots (use slightly more if the pot is very tall).

2.   Line the top part of the pot with tinfoil and heap the charcoal in the centre. Use a barbecue lighter to light the coals.

3.When the coals are glowing red and you see the edges starting to turn grey, spread
them out evenly and balance an oven shelf or grill-pan shelf over the rim of the pot.

4. Cook vegetable skewers (try peppers, zucchini and mushrooms), fish or meat on your DIY barbecue. For added flavour, throw a handful of rosemary, thyme, or lavender on the fire as the food is cooking.

Tip: More than 90 per cent of our barbecue charcoal is imported, and much of it is likely to come from unsustainably managed tropical forests, so look for charcoal bags that say “locally produced” or “home grown.”

Excerpted from A Slice of Organic Lifeby Sheherazade Goldsmith. Copyright © 2010 by author. Excerpted by permission of publisher. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher. Buy the book!

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