Heather says:
Get ready to grill. Today we’re using foil packets to to turn a pile of vegetables into a fantastic summer side dish. Actually if you look at the portions, the grilled vegetables were the main feature. I would like, at least while we’re rolling in produce, for you to consider treating vegetables as your main dish. Spend your time and energy planning your meals around the available, seasonal produce rather than treating slapping a can of green beans in the microwave as an after thought. Just give it a try, you may discover a new world of flavor or you’ll hate it, but you won’t have caused any harm.
This tutorial is a guide rather than a strict recipe as the amounts are going to vary widely, but the technique remains the same.
Gather your vegetables and slice or mince as appropriate. These vegetable packets will contain: bell peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, onion, garlic and mushrooms. *Note* Do not be lazy and assume your chef knife can go one more day without sharpening, even good cooks get distracted with less than fun results. Sharpen your knives regularly.
Place the vegetables in a bowl and toss with a little olive oil or homemade Italian dressing. If you choose to omit the dressing and go with straight olive oil, don’t be scared to add a sprinkle of your favorite herbs, some rosemary, thyme, basil etc. Choose your seasoning based on the other items being served. Try to carry the same flavors throughout. Since we’re serving these packets with grilled Italian sausage, I went with an extra sprinkling of Italian seasoning. If I’d had fresh basil on hand, that would have been in there, too. Let the flavors mingle for a little while. A pinch of salt can be added now or at the table, either way works. While vegetables have wonderful flavor, herbs and aromatics like garlic and onions can go a long way to making them even better. This was almost a summer version of one of our favorite recipes, sausage, peppers, and onions.
Grab a sheet of heavy duty foil, don’t get the wimpy stuff, you don’t need it tearing on the grill. Arrange a couple of healthy handfuls of vegetables in the center of the foil. Bring the long sides together and fold over in an accordion or pleat type fold. You want to keep the steam that will develop inside your packet. Fold the short side over a couple of times to close the packet tightly.
Do not juggle with your packets. They are not that sturdy. They should be sturdy enough to handle being turned over.
Heat your grill, these should be grilled 10 – 15 minutes per side on a hot grill. If you cut your vegetables very thinly or used butter, you may want to grill indirectly or pay close attention and grill for less time. Packets with tender vegetables like zucchini and squash will be done faster than packets with sturdier vegetables like carrots and celery.
Enjoy!
Just as an FYI, heating the leftovers in a frying pan and scrambling an egg into the mix for lunch the next day is awesome. I may or may not be eating that right now.
I’ve been doing something like this with red potatoes in the oven.. complete with the foil and everything. But it’s warming up finally and I’m ready to use the grill more! Love the mixed veggie ideas! and sausage. YES.
@CarissaRogers I may or may not have thrown a leftover Andouille sausage into the lunch scramble. And I may or may not be licking my plate. Probably not on the latter, but the urge is there.
I hear you. The sausage idea has my brain exploding a bit. We haven’t had normal mom cooked food in 2 weeks. recitals/concerts/field trips/little league/8th grade final dance/.. I’m sure I missed something there but you get the idea. I am SO ready for SUMMER in like 10 different WAYS. @HeatherSolos
I don’t have a grill (sob) but this can be done easily in the oven, yes? What temp/time do you think?
I marinate strips of vegetables like zucchini, yellow squash, and eggplant, and long slender veggies like asparagus and green beans overnight and grill directly on the grate (which is sprayed with olive oil before lighting). Mushrooms, stuffed or not, also grill well, just coat them well with flavored oil, and don’t turn the stuffed ones over. All veggies like to be misted lightly while grilling – try adding a little wine or rice vinegar or lemon juice and a small amount of sugar or honey to water, or mist with diluted soy sauce or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos. If you aren’t on a sodium restricted diet, you might try salt-crusting veggies before grilling, too. I’ve had luck with that, particularly with small potato halves. Just mix up some flake salt and your choice of spices on a plate and roll damp veggies in the mix.
An alternative to the foil pouch -and reusable! – for sliced veggies is to take two wire strainer baskets (identical ones work best), fill one full with veggies (or small shrimp!), and then put the other one on top to make a ball. Use uncoated craft wire or binder clips to hold them closed. Essentially, you are making a giant tea ball that can be rolled around to control the grilling. It the handles aren’t heat-safe, wrap in foil and hang the handles off the side of the grill.
@tothink I’d do 400F. But wait until the heatwave ends or just bring the family over here.
This is great! I’m going to give it a try this weekend. I wonder if frozen meatballs (precooked) would go good in the mix
We do this with potatoes, onions and carrots, usually at the lake. When we fry it up for breakfast with eggs, we call it ‘Camp Food’.
Yummmmmm! Your veggies look so good! 🙂