How to Grill Veggies

Earlier this year we bought a grill. For the first time in many years we now own a gas grill. And this one is 4 burner, and with a charcoal grill – well, from experience I can tell you that you have your hot, and not-so-hot spots. I point this out only because it’s easier to grill veggies on a gas grill than charcoal (because you can control the heat). Also, it’s nearly impossible to grill them without a grilling bowl. Otherwise, you’re going to have to do something like skewers.

A week or so, I saw a picture online of grilled cauliflower and thought that looked unique. I thought back to all the times that I had eaten cooked cauliflower, and it was always boiled or steamed – never grilled. I also saw somebody that had grilled sliced potatoes, which looked appealing as well. So this post is not only just about how to grill veggies, it’s about this meal I cooked entirely on the grill.

First, let me say that if you’ve done this before, you might not learn much more than the seasonings I used. But, for the benefit of all readers, I’m going explain everything.

Here are the ingredients used for the entire dinner:

Grilled BBQ Chicken

• 1 lb fresh chicken tenders (usually about half the size of a chicken breast)
• 1/4 cup olive (or other) oil
• BBQ sauce (your choice, Sweet Baby Ray’s works great

Grilled Veggies

• 1 head cauliflower
• 1/2 lb fresh green beans
• 1 med red pepper, sliced into 1/4″ strips
• 1 med sweet onion, sliced into 1/4″ strips
• 1/4 oil (olive, avocado, coconut – your choice)
• Seasoning to taste, salt/pepper, Lawry’s, garlic powder, chili powder, etc.

Grilled Sliced Potatoes

• About 4 med-lg potatoes in 1/2″ slices
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1/2 cup dijon or other mustard

Also you’re going to need a grilling basket, and I highly suggest you get this round one from Weber. There are many grilling baskets out there, but most of the square ones are hard to clean, and hard to rotate on the grill. This round one is a good size, and easy to rotate around and navigate on the grill as you cook.

So now that you have all the ingredients, let’s get started. The first thing you want to do is bring a med-lg sized pot to boil with water, and add your sliced potatoes. Cook them on med-high heat for 10-12 minutes, or until just before they are done. This is when you can stick a fork in them pretty easy, but you know if you removed them from the heat they wouldn’t be quite done for eating yet. Rinse in cold water – you will finish cooking them on the grill. Mix the rinsed potatoes with the mayo/mustard mixture – add salt/pepper to taste. Leave mixture in a bowl to transport to the grill.

Next place your chicken tenderloins in shallow bowl and mix with the olive oil. This so they don’t stick to the grill (as much).

Last mix your veggies up in a large bowl with the oil and seasonings. I left the cauliflower pieces in roughly 2-3″ pieces. Leave them in the mixing bowl until you get to the grill.

Once you have everything prepared, it’s time to fire up the grill! I light all the burners on high and let it heat up with nothing on it for about 5 minutes (which is usually 500+ degrees). Then clean it off scraping with a wire grill brush, and then I place the Weber grill basket in the center middle spot. Transfer the veggies from the mixing bowl to the grill basket, and then close the lid for about 5-6 minutes. This gives the veggies a head start cooking. I leave all the burners on high for this.

When you open the lid turn the heat down everywhere to med-high. Carefully mix up the veggies, to get the ones from the bottom on top, and vice versa. Move the veggies to the left. Then place the chicken tenders on the right open area of the grill. I usually season the chicken at this point with the spices and salt/pepper. Close the lid for 5 minutes. When you open the lid the next time, stir the veggies carefully in the grill basket again, and then (using a metal spatula), scrape the chicken tenders from the grill and flip them over. Cook about 3 minutes this time.

The reason you cook 5 minutes the first time and 3 the second is that the chicken will cook 70% of the way through when it first touches the grill, it doesn’t need that long on the flip side. Also, after the 3 minutes you are going to brush on some BBQ sauce, flip, and then sauce the reverse side. Then flip again (to the original side), and give it a minute or so of additional time to add some char with the lid closed.

Next, open the lid again, stir the grill basket veggies again, and remove the chicken from the grill, or if you have a top rack, place them on the very edge of it (to keep warm). With some tongs, carefully place the sliced potatoes on the open grill area one by one. Then shut the lid for about 3 minutes. Flip them all over, and cook an additional 3 minutes. Every time you open the lid mix up your grill basket veggies again. Check how they are cooking as you go, and if at this point they aren’t tender enough – turn up the heat on the burners of the basket for the last few minutes. Also, if they are cooking too much, or overcooking – feel free to remove them from the grill before they become all burned up. You want them tender and mildly charred, not mushy or completely burnt. Same with your potatoes.

Once everything is one – remove from the grill and enjoy!