Now, at the beginning of May, winter is finally over! The fruit trees are in full bloom and the beeches have been unfurling their leaves for some time. There's a flurry of activity throughout the neighborhood. Towards evening, the grills are fired up and the typical grilling aroma drifts through the gardens. Is it the longing for a familiar ritual that drives us all? Finding familiarity and a peaceful atmosphere while relaxing at the grill, with plenty of enjoyment and cheerful conversations. Grilling is not just a form of food preparation, but also has a social significance.
From June onwards, football fans will gather for public viewing in their home gardens – at least, as long as the German team plays a role in the tournament. Because with ticket prices as they are, very few can watch the games live. A regrettable development – and so, in this issue, we deliberately avoid a special grilling theme for the upcoming Football World Cup in protest. But for public grilling with friends, there are of course recipe suggestions – such as my special steak sandwich (see picture on the right) starting on page 54.
After the Football World Cup, the big travel season for 2026 begins – albeit with a bit of a snag. According to the tourism industry, take advantage of plancha grilling and bring the world into your garden! Perhaps with an Indonesian recipe that Andita Schirmacher presents with her grill menu starting on page 26.
For some time now, we have been working on attracting more women to grilling. The great interest of women, especially in the plancha, shows us that we are on the right track here. The numerous preparation options on the hot plate bring many kitchen recipes outside to the outdoor kitchen. Mediterranean dishes are particularly popular – and this FIRE&FOOD issue is no exception. A strikingly large number of the recipes are of Italian origin. And even more striking in this issue is the gratifyingly high presence of women at the grill. The "typical" role distribution – the man grills and the woman makes the salad – is probably finally a thing of the past.