Mastering the Grill

The Owner’s Manual for Outdoor Cooking

By David Joachim and Andrew Schloss

June 11, 2007

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Title

• Mastering the Grill

Authors

• David Joachim and Andrew Schloss

Publisher

• Chronicle Books

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From Chapter 9: “Mastering Vegetables and Other Sides”

Vegetables come in all shapes, sizes, and densities. Each one requires a slightly different approach once they hit the fire. And some vegetables can be grilled in more ways than one.

For instance, eggplant can be sliced and grilled over direct heat to keep the slices intact, or whole eggplant can be grilled with indirect heat so you can scoop out the softened flesh from the skin.

Sliced sweet potatoes can be grilled over direct heat, or you can bury whole sweet potatoes in the coals and eat them out of their skins like a baked potato.

In general, most vegetables should be quickly grilled over a medium-high fire. It helps to add some fat and flavor, so we recommend brushing or tossing most vegetables with oil and sprinkling them with salt and pepper or the spice rub of your choice. We prefer to grill large vegetables directly on the grill grate, but smaller pieces, like slices of zucchini or unpeeled garlic cloves, are better on a grill screen coated with oil to prevent the pieces from falling into the fire.

Grilled corn.

(Grill trays, grates, and screens are perforated grill toppers that allow you to cook small or delicate foods without the use of skewers. They often include handles on both sides and can also be used to cook doughs right on the grill. Grill purists may scoff, but these grill toppers expand the possibilities of your grill.)

Here are some general prep guidelines and cooking times for various vegetables. All cut vegetables should be washed, trimmed, and tossed with oil and the seasonings of your choice before grilling. All vegetables listed below are cooked over direct medium to medium-high heat, turning once or twice during cooking until just tender and grill-marked.