Tips for Grilling Vegetables

A well-balanced diet should contain adequate amounts of vegetables and fruits along with other food varieties. Vegetables and fruits, not only contain essential nutrients, but also consists of antioxidants, that are responsible for protecting the body against certain diseases and disorders. If you intend to lose weight, include lot of vegetables and fruits in your diet, as they contain low calories and fat. In addition, vegetables are rich sources of fiber that help in maintaining digestive health and regulating bowel movement.

Methods for Cooking Vegetables

There are many methods of cooking vegetables. They can be boiled in water (including other ingredients for taste), fried in oil or grilled. In the former cooking method, the soluble vitamins in vegetables are lost while boiling. Boiling vegetables is also a slow process and takes time. In case of frying vegetables in oil, we are increasing the calorie intake. The best way to retain the nutrients is to grill the vegetables properly.

Tips for Grilling Vegetables

Grilling vegetables is an easy and fast method of cooking. While grilling, there are chances of uneven cooking, overcooking or burning of the vegetables, and at times, falling through the grill. All these problems can be overcome, provided you follow certain tips for grilling vegetables. Following are some tips for proper grilling of vegetables.

First of all, choose the appropriate vegetables for grilling. You can include varieties that contain less water, for example, mushrooms, corn on the cob, potatoes, carrots, summer squash (zucchini), bell peppers, onions and asparagus. Wash and clean the vegetables thoroughly and keep them aside for about 10 - 15 minutes for drying (if possible).

Trim the vegetables and cut them in such a way that maximum surface is exposed for grilling. You can cut the large-sized vegetables into half or into slices. This will help in cooking quickly and evenly. For carrots and other hard vegetables, precook them for a few minutes before grilling or else, you can prepare slices of about ½ inch thick. To prevent the vegetable slices and small vegetables like button mushrooms and cherry tomatoes from falling through the grill grate, you can skew them by using thin metal skewers.

Include a wide variety of vegetables for grilling at a time, so that you can serve a mixed vegetable dish. Then, prepare a medium-heat grill. In order to prevent the grill from overheating, you can check by holding your hand five inches away from the grill. If you can keep your hand for 4 - 5 seconds, then the grill is medium hot.

You can either use foil to wrap the vegetables and place them in the grill; or make use of oil and marinade to avoid the vegetables from sticking into the grill. You can lightly brush the vegetables with olive oil (or any cooking oil, as per your choice) or other marinade and place them on the grill.

First grill the vegetables like potato and carrot, that takes longer time to cook. Once you place the vegetables on the grill, turn them occasionally (or whenever necessary) and brush with oil or marinade. You can check whether the vegetables are cooked or not by using a fork or knife. The vegetables are cooked, if they can be pierced easily. As per your taste, season with salt and pepper and serve hot.

You can serve grilled vegetables as a main course of the meal or include them as a side-dish or an appetizer. Nowadays, grilling vegetables has become a common practice in any backyard party. Some prefer to use flavored twigs like basil and liquorice, in order to enhance the flavor in grilled vegetables. During grilling, make sure to take certain precautions, as safety is the first and foremost priority.