Taste
Grilling veggies
Advertiser Staff and News Services
Grilling vegetables is still a new idea to many home cooks, but it's an excellent technique for a number of compelling reasons.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser
It's easy: Most vegetable need only be washed and trimmed before grilling — no laborious chopping.
A grilled vegetarian delight: zucchini (bottom rack) and onions still on the grill; yellow squash, eggplant, corn and mushrooms are ready to serve.
The method preserves nutrition because vegetables are cooked just until they're done. And the fats in marinades can often be reduced or eliminated with no loss of flavor. Also, vegetables can be lightly sprayed with oil rather than heavily brushed with it.
Grilling enhances the natural sweetness of most vegetables, adding a bit of smokiness and the dark crunch of the skin where it's been marked by the grill.
Eggplant takes on a delicious smoky taste and a melting texture. Corn becomes a study in contrasts, its bright yellow kernels slashed with brown stripes from the grill bars.
Grilled vegetables can be savored hot from the grill as a main or side dish, or served with a wonderful homemade sauce. They can also be eaten at room temperature — an excellent technique when you're trying to get some cooking out of the way for a large dinner party. Or the vegetables can become an ingredient in stuffed pita sandwiches, as the centerpiece of a salad platter, or sliced and tossed with pasta for a quick entree.
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Chefs have experimented with and expanded the repertoire of grillable vegetables from a relatively short list that included summer squashes, peppers and sliced onions. They have found they can also satisfactorily grill and broil vegetables ranging from a tender leafy head of radicchio to such dense and sturdy vegetables as winter squashes.
For grilling, choose perfectly fresh vegetables, showing no softening, discoloration or wilting. Rinse or scrub selected vegetables well. Remove peel or skin, core and seeds if appropriate. Then, before grilling or broiling, larger vegetables should be cut into uniform slices or other even-sized shapes. Thread small vegetables or chunks of vegetables onto skewers, if desired.
High-moisture or tender vegetables can be grilled or broiled from the raw state; dense or starchy vegetables may need preliminary cooking to make sure they are properly done — they can be lightly steamed.
Among the vegetables that can be grilled from the raw state are eggplant, zucchini, peppers and mushrooms. Vegetables that are typically pre-cooked include fennel, sweet potatoes, carrots and beets.
Vegetables can be seasoned before grilling or broiling with a marinade. Marinate soft vegetables and precooked hard vegetables briefly (15 to 30 minutes) before grilling or broiling. Longer marination could make vegetables absorb too much moisture.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser
Let excess marinade, especially oil-based ones, drain from vegetables before grilling or broiling to prevent flare-ups which would leave carbon residue on the vegetables. One way to avoid this is to marinate vegetables after grilling.
A nice browning effect on the kernels adds to the appeal of corn with herbed butter. You can grill ears with or without husks. A piece of aluminum foil beneath the husks will keep them from burning.
Vegetables can be seasoned during cooking, however — with care. Brush on the glaze or marinade, and baste lightly with additional marinade or oil if the vegetables appear to be drying out.
If a marinade has been used, it can be served as a sauce with the cooked vegetables. Other sauces you might serve over your grilled vegetables include salsa, soy sauce, a jus-based sauce, reduced heavy cream, butter sauce or cream sauce.
Other seasoning can be added to grilled or broiled vegetables after cooking; salt and pepper will not adhere well to all raw vegetables, but will to a vegetable that is hot from the grill or broiler.
If the vegetables seem in danger of sticking to the bars or falling through, put them on a sizzler platter or in a hand-grill.
Grill or broil the vegetables, turning as necessary, until cooked to the preferred doneness. Turn them over with a spatula or tongs after the first side has been marked or browned. To make cross-hatch marks, give the vegetables a 90-degree turn after the grill bars have made a striped imprint, then let the bars make another set of stripes before flipping the vegetables to the second side. Finish the cooking time on the second side to get a well-browned exterior.
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| On the grill: top rack, mushrooms and onions; bottom rack: corn, zucchini, yellow squash and eggplant. Constant attention is needed when grilling vegetables, especially when using oil-based marinades.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser |
Vegetables that are to be used in another dish may be grilled just enough to mark and flavor them beforehand.
Serve grilled vegetables hot, cool or at room temperature. Remember that thick cuts or high-starch vegetables can retain heat, even after they are removed from the grill or broiler, so allow enough margin for carry-over cooking to avoid overcooking.
Maintain grills and broilers carefully. Scour the rods well with a wire brush between grilling different foods, as well as after each service period, to remove buildup of charred food particles.
Rub the rods lightly with a cloth dipped in vegetable oil to lubricate them before preheating the grill. It may also be necessary to lubricate the rods during cooking time, so keep a small container of oil and a cloth near the grilling and broiling equipment.
• • •
Grilled Shiitake Mushrooms with Soy-Sesame Glaze
1 1/2 pounds fresh shiitake mushrooms*
4 scallions, left whole
Soy-Sesame Glaze (recipe follows)
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Wipe the mushroom caps with a soft cloth to clean. If desired, slice large caps in half. Add the mushrooms and green onions to the glaze and marinate at least 15 minutes or up to 1 hour.
Remove the mushrooms and green onions from the glaze, letting the excess drain away. Grill mushrooms and green onions on a preheated grill or broiler until they are marked on all sides and cooked through, about 2 minutes on each side. Scatter with sesame seeds and serve at once.
* Other mushrooms, including portobellos or cepes or even large button mushrooms, can be used.
Makes 4 servings.
• • •
Soy Sesame Glaze
1/4 cup soy sauce or tamari
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup peanut or corn oil
2 tablespoons tahini (Middle Eastern sesame paste)
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
Combine all ingredients for the glaze. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
Makes 4 servings.
Recipe adapted from "The New Professional Chef, Seventh Edition," (John Wiley & Sons, being published this month)
• • •
Grilled Corn with Herb Butter
Butcher's string
4 ears sweet corn in their husks
6 tablespoons (fl stick) butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
Coarse salt and black pepper
Strip back husk from corn, but leave it attached at the stem end. Remove as much silk as possible. Using butcher's string, tie the husks back away from the corn to form a handle.
Mix butter, garlic, chopped parsley, salt and pepper until creamy.
Place corn on hot grill, but not over direct flame. To prevent husks from burning, place a piece of aluminum foil under the husks only. Brush each ear with some of the butter mixture. Grill 8-12 minutes, turning as needed and brushing generously with butter mixture.
Serve at once.
• • •
Grilled Eggplant Slices
1 large eggplant (about 1 1/4 pounds)
Salt
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced or 1/2 teaspoon powdered
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly grated black pepper
In a small bowl, mix together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper.
Slice eggplant about 1/2 inch thick. Salt liberally on both sides, and stack upright against sides of colander which has been put in shallow pan. Let sit for 30 minutes or so. Rinse eggplant slices and pat dry.
Brush both sides of the eggplant slices with the oil/vinegar mixture. Place eggplant on the preheated grill. If you wish to have nice grill lines, turn only once on each side.
Grill 10-14 minutes.
• • •
Grilled Zucchini
2 medium zucchini
Olive oil
Thyme (or cumin, or seasoning of choice)
Salt and pepper
Slice zucchini in half lengthwise. Brush with olive oil, and sprinkle with choice of seasoning, salt and pepper. Place on hot grill for 10-14 minutes, depending on desired crunchiness.
• • •
Grilled Yellow Squash
2-3 medium yellow squash
Olive oil
Salt, pepper
Slice squash about 1/2 inch thick. Brush with olive oil and place on hot grill. Salt and pepper to taste. Grill 4-5 minutes on each side.
• • •
Grilled Onions
4-5 large sweet onions (Maui, Kula, Vidalia, Mayan)
2 sticks butter
Toothpicks
Slice onions about 1/3 to 1/2 inch thick. Skewer each slice with four toothpicks, so that the toothpicks meet or cross at the center of the slice. Melt 2 sticks of butter in saucepan. Dip each slice in butter, then place on hot grill at lowest heat.
Grill 35-50 minutes, depending on heat of grill and thickness of onions. Baste often and turn occasionally with tongs. An occasional flare-up is good, but be careful not to burn the onions. Remove toothpicks before serving.
Food editor Wanda A. Adams and staff writer Elizabeth House contributed to this story.
