Grilling Guide for Vegetables - Tips

[Guest guest]

This info was printed in yesterday's food section of the Providence

Journal. Thought some of you who are new to grilling veggies might like

a copy.

 

JoAnn

 

* Exported from MasterCook *

 

Grilling Guide for Vegetables - Tips

 

Recipe By : Steven Raichlen and The Providence Journal News

Serving Size : 1 Preparation Time :0:00

Categories : Grilling Information

Vegetables

 

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

--Text Article--

 

Steven Raichlen declares, " For me, there is no better way to cook

vegetables. Nothing brings our the sweetness of a vegetable like the

dry, smoky heat of the grill. In grilling vegetables, there are two

things at play. A lot of vegetables like peppers and onions have high

sugar content. Grilling caramelizes their sugar and brings out the

flavor. The second thing has to do with charring. Vegetables are about

the only food you can burn on a grill and they still taste good. In

fact, burning is what you should do, with things like eggplant. Ditto

with bell peppers. If you char the skins, they become sweet. "

 

ASPARAGUS:

Choose fat stalks and trim the ends. Brush with olive oil. Use a

vegetable grilling rack, or place directly on grill rack crosswise to

slats. Cook 6 to 8 minutes until lightly browned.

 

CORN:

Clean ears and boil about 5 minutes, then rub with oil and grill until

lightly browned on all sides., 5 to 10 minutes total. Or pull back

husks, remove silks, pull husks back out and tie with kitchen string,

then soak in water for 5 or 10 minutes. Place directly on grill rack and

grill about 20 to 30 minutes until husks are charred.

Raichlen adds that grilled corn is one of his favorites. He peels the

husk back and ties it at the bottom so it kinds of forms a handle. He

brushes it with garlic butter or garlic cilantro butter.The kernels get

dark and they sort of crackle. He does not soak it or leave it in the

husk.

 

FENNEL:

Trim off frond down to bulb. Cut bulb into quarters, then steam 10

minutes. Brush with oil and grill 2 to 3 minutes per side. Or trim bulb,

cut in slices about 1 inch thick, brush with oil and grill, turning,

about 10 minutes. Serve as a side dish or on an antipasto platter or use

in a salad or slaw.

 

FRUITS:

(bananas, cantaloupe or honeydew, pineapple, peaches)

Leave peels on bananas and grill until peels are browned, about 10

minutes. Cut firm melons like cantaloupe into wedges, place directly on

grill rack and grill about 2 to 3 minutes per side, until slightly warm.

For pineapple, use fresh pineapple cut into wedges; grill 3 to 4 minutes

per side. Halve and pit peaches, brush with oil and grill, cut side

down, 3 to 4 minutes, then turn and grill a minute or two longer.

 

MUSHROOMS:

Soak white mushrooms in a marinade or brush with oil, then place on

soaked bamboo skewers and grill 5 minutes per side, until lightly

browned. For large mushrooms, like portobello caps, brush with marinade

or plain olive oil and grill about 5 to 8 minutes per side, until

lightly charred. JoAnn's (poster) personal note here is to brush

portobello mushrooms with a combination of olive oil and balsamic

vinegar while grilling, or marinate in same.

 

ONIONS:

Peel but leave root end on. Cut into wedges, brush with oil and grill

until lightly charred on a vegetable rack, about 10 to 15 minutes.

(Leaving root end on keeps the onion wedges from falling apart on the

grill.)

 

PEPPERS:

Leave peppers whole and brush with olive oil. Grill, turning frequently,

until skin is blackened on all sides. Place briefly in a paper bag, then

remove and pull off skins. Remove seeds and stems.

 

SUMMER SQUASH,ZUCCHINI:

Cut into halves or trim and cut into long slices about 1/2 inch thick.

Brush with oil or soak briefly in marinade. Place on a vegetable rack or

directly on rack crosswise to slats. Grill about 5 minutes per side,

until lightly browned.

 

SWEET POTATOES:

Peel two pounds of sweet potatoes and cut into 1/2 inch slices. Place

sweet potatoes and 1 cup water in large microwave-safe dish, cover and

microwave on high 6 minutes or until crisp-tender, turning once. Drain

well. Combine 1/2 cup Dijon or honey mustard with 2 tablespoons olive

oil and 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary. Grill sweet potato slices

on oiled rack over medium-high for 5 minutes or until tender, turning

and basting with mustard mixture. Serves 6.

 

TOMATOES:

Large whole tomatoes can be brushed with oil and grilled whole until the

skins split, about 10 minutes total. Pull off skin, core, then halve and

squeeze out seeds. Chop and use in a sauce or salsa. For cherry

tomatoes, place on bamboo skewers, brush with oil and grill, about 5

minutes or until lightly browned. Serve whole. And, as long as the grill

is hot, consider grilling bananas for dessert - for a warm banana split!

 

LEFTOVERS:

Grilled vegetables take little work and yield a lot, even leftovers. How

about grilled mushrooms added to a pasta sauce later in the week? Or a

salad sprinkled with slices of grilled onions?

 

Taken from an article in The Providence Journal Food Section 6/30/99.

Put into MC by JoAnn Pellegrino

 

JoAnn's note:

GRILLED GARLIC:

If I have room on the grill, I take a few heads of whole garlic, cut off

the tops, brush with olive oil and wrap in foil. Put the package to one

side and grill until the cloves become soft, about 15 to 20 minutes.

These can be used to spread on grilled breads or stored in refrigerator

for a few days to add to salad dressings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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