How to Grill Vegetables Home Improvement Investments

How to Grill Vegetables

September 8, 2010, 3:37 am

If you look up grilling on the Internet, you are inundated with sites that will tell you every way to cook beef, pork, chicken, goat, monkey and occasionally squirrel. One thing that rarely comes up is vegetables.

Believe it or not, meat is not the only thing that can be charred beyond recognition I mean cooked to perfection on a grill. Vegetables are more than viable option, but they may take a little more finesse than a giant slab of beef. Step 1: Pick your veggies. Most veggies will do well on the grill, but some require a little preparation. For example, corn cobs should have their silks removed, but keep the husks. Most veggies can be put straight on the grill, but smaller ones that may slip through the grill cover and should be shishkabobbed or cooked in tin foil.

Step 2: A little TLC. You can soak your veggies in your favorite marinade over night or you can just get a brush and some olive oil. A light brushing will keep the veggies from sticking to the grill and also from drying out. A dried out veggie is nasty and the vegetarians in your group wont be back for Grillfest 2011.

Step 3: The Ice Cube Maneuver. One of favorite tricks of the grilling trade is to cook small veggies such as radishes wrapped in tin foil. When I place them in the tin foil, I add salt, pepper, butter and an ice cube. As the radishes cook on the grill, the ice cube melts and keeps them from drying out. You know when they are done because the majority of the water has evaporated.

Step 4: More TLC. The initial brushing of olive oil wont last long and should be reapplied throughout the grilling process, especially before and after you turn the veggies over. Step 5: How do you know when they are done? Unlike meat, veggies dont have a major color change or drip grease to let you know that its time to get off the grill. The easiest way to tell when they are done is to simply stick a fork in them. I know, its cliché, but its true. If you can skewer your plants with a fork with relative ease, then its time to take them off. Unlike meats, veggies dont have to be completely cooked before eaten. If you like a little crunch to your grilled veggies, then take them off a little early.

Veggies are much simpler to grill than a rack of ribs or t-bone. If you have a hankering for a little veggie action that doesnt involve boiling or baking, then open up the grill, clean off the layers of grease I mean flavoring that has been collecting and grill up some healthy alternatives to meat.

Home Improvement Investments