Grab the charcoal and fire it up – grilling season is in full-force!
Everyone seems to be pretty opinionated on the best ways to grill meat, but what about veggies? Grilling vegetables is a great way to pack a lot of flavor into your daily dose of veg. It’s one of the healthiest ways to prepare them, to boot! It only takes a light drizzle of olive oil and a little salt and pepper to create a delicious and healthy addition to your barbecue. Balance out your healthy meals with grilled veggies!
However, grilling vegetables can take a little finesse. They are, after all, a little more delicate and at risk of falling through the grate than a rack of ribs or rib-eye.
Here are some of our favorite techniques for grilling vegetables.
Vegetables in Foil
Pros: This is perhaps the easiest way to grill veggies. Chop them up, create a foil packet, throw them on the grill.
Cons: Keep in mind that sealing the vegetables in foil mostly steams them. Steamed vegetables are fine, except you’re not getting as much of that smoky flavor or any pretty grill marks.
Use a Basket
Pros: A basket certainly helps keep your vegetables from falling on the fire and gives them access to the open flame.
Cons: While using a grilling basket can certainly yield tasty results, we tend to find them unwieldy and hard to clean.
Kabob It!
Pros: Putting chunks of veggies on a kabob is a great way to get both grill marks and keep everything together. We like the added bonus of alternating different vegetables and shrimp or chunks of meat. If using bamboo sticks, don’t forget to soak them in water first! We like these kabob recipes!
Cons: Remembering to soak your bamboo sticks before grilling can be a challenge. Metal sticks are often slippery and don’t hold the vegetables very well, giving this a higher risk of vegetables falling into the fire.
Put them right on the grill
Pros: Putting your veggies directly on the grill requires no extra tools, and you tend to get pretty grill marks, to boot. Just make sure your veggies are in very thick slices (about ½-1 inch thick) or else they may fall apart on the grill. Simply brush with olive oil and a little salt and pepper and you’re good to go.
Cons: This isn’t ideal for all vegetables. We like this method the best with eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, portabella mushrooms, or even a romaine heart sliced in half.
Why is it that some things just taste better when someone else makes them? Enjoy grilled vegetables any night of the week with our chef-prepared meal delivery! Simply mention in the comments on our food questionnaire that you like grilled veggies. We’ll be sure to incorporate them into your weekly menus! We specialize in healthy meals delivered directly to your door and ready to heat and eat!