Grilled Vegetables are delicious, healthy, and easy! It's one of the best ways to cook fresh veggies, whatever the season!
As a girl growing up we had a vegetable every night with dinner, a balanced meal - meat, starch and veggie... and I didn't like vegetables, at least the green ones.
I didn't like them because when they come out of a can, they are all kinds of limp, colorless, slimy things. Yes, that's right, we had canned vegetables.
Have you ever tried canned spinach or even worse...canned asparagus...??? Gag, gag, gag. (No pictures of any of those things!)
Now, to be fair to my parents they were born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, and it was all about meat and potatoes, and in the summer, fresh corn on the cob.
When commercially canned veggies became available, those corn huskers thought it was a wonderful invention!
I don't know what it's like there now, but hopefully they get some of the fresh bountiful goodness that we enjoy here in California.
And in the summertime, the best thing to do with the beautiful fresh vegetables from the farmer's market or even better, from your own garden, is to grill them.
When vegetables are grilled you get a little bit of caramelization and they are tender without becoming limp.
The process is oh so simple, and if you don't mind eating the veggies at room temperature (sort of like a salad), it is perfectly okay to make them ahead of time to free up the grill for the protein.
How to Get the Tastiest Grilled Vegetables
Let the garlic marinate in the oil for a few minutes to flavor the oil. Use plenty of salt and pepper to amp up the flavors.
Cut the onion about ⅜" thick and try to keep the rings together, they will be easier to grill, then can be separated after cooking.
Cut the eggplant about ⅜" thick as well, or it will become mushy quickly on the grill.
Either brush each piece with the garlicky oil, or do a quick dip and shake. Once all the veggies are coated, grill them on a medium heat grill.
And, voilà! you have the Gr8-est Grilled Vegetables!!!
Here are some other grill recipes that you may enjoy:
- Grilled Pork Tenderloin
- Lamb Chops
- Teriyaki Chicken Skewers
- Chile-Spiked Grilled Corn on the Cob
- Complete Fish Dinner on the Grill!
Grilled Vegetables
Ingredients
- 2 medium to large zucchini,, sliced lengthwise about ¼" thick
- 1 large sweet onion,, peeled and sliced about ⅜" thick
- 1 large eggplant,, sliced into rounds about ⅜" thick
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil,, divided
- 6 garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoons sea salt,, divided
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper,, divided
Instructions
- Put ¼ cup of the olive oil in the bottom of a large mixing bowl.
- Smash 4 of the garlic cloves into the olive oil.
- Add half of the salt and ¼ teaspoon of the pepper to the oil and stir until well combined.
- Let the oil sit for about 10 minutes and stir again to let the flavors come together.
- Dump all of the zucchini slices into the oil and toss around until all the slices are covered.
- Then lift the slices out of the oil and lay onto a baking pan or tray. As you lift the slices out of the oil you may want to drain most of the oil from each slice.
- Quickly dip each onion slice in the oil, making sure to coat both sides, then lay on the baking tray; try to keep the onion slices together as they will be easier to lay on the grill and flip if they are in one piece.
- Add the remaining oil, garlic, salt and pepper to the bowl.
- Then very quickly dip each piece of eggplant into the oil. Eggplant will soak up a LOT of oil, so be very quick with this step. You can also brush the oil onto the eggplant.
- Heat your grill to medium-low then start by grilling the onions, they will take the most time, about 8 minutes on each side.
- Then grill the zucchini and eggplant, about 4 minutes per side.
- Vegetables can be served hot or at room temperature.
Anna
Hi Bernie! Yes! I think a lot of us grew up on those cans, and luckily we discovered fresh and healthy and delicious! Looking forward to meeting you at IFBC. Thanks for being a Gr8 Friend!
Bernie ~ A Gouda Life
I grew up on canned veggies too! Ugh! Love this recipe ~ who wouldn't eat their vegetables when they're cooked like this?