Grilling is a great way to cook vegetables. High temperatures and quick cooking times help preserve their nutrients. Slice them thinly or in chunks for kebabs. The best veggies for the grill are sturdy and develop sweet flavors:
- Sweet peppers (6-8 minutes each side)
- Onions (5-7 minutes each side)
- Zucchini and other summer squash (5 minutes each side)
- Corn (25 minutes)
- Portabella mushrooms (7-10 minutes per side)
- Romaine lettuce hearts (3 minutes per side)
Fish That Can Take the Heat
Salmon is almost a grilling tradition -- it cooks well on the grill because its oils keep it moist and help prevent sticking. For medium-rare fillets, cook them about 4 minutes on each side. Besides salmon, the best fish to grill are ones that can be cut thickly and cooked with the skin. Consider halibut, tuna, trout, and swordfish.
Tasty Ways to Grill Delicate Foods
You can grill small foods like eggplant slices, mushrooms, or flaky fish in a hinged grilling basket or foil packet, which holds the food firmly and is easy to turn over. Or choose a plank: Grilling small or delicate morsels on a wooden plank keeps them from falling apart (or through the grates). And it also infuses a light, smoky woodiness to foods, from prawns to figs. Follow instructions that come with your plank for pre-soaking and heating.
Slow and Smoky Secrets
Where there's rich, aromatic smoke, there's tasty, succulent meat. Smoking -- which is slow-cooking with indirect heat -- is often preferred for large cuts like briskets and pork loin, and whole turkeys or chickens.
Use a covered grill if you don't have a smoker. Put a pan of water under the grate between two piles of coals. Center the food over the pan. For the best smoke flavor, use beech, oak, hickory, apple, or maple wood.
Give It a Rest
After you remove meat or poultry from the grill, let it sit for 5 minutes. The juices will settle as the temperature evens out. Because resting prevents the juices from leaking out, the meat will be more moist and tender.
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