How to Grill or Roast Vegetables
The thrill of the grill is at its height when summer’s bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables bursts into ripeness. Immerse your veggies in one of our special Vitamix vinaigrettes-turned-marinades, and your cookout will be as tasty as it is healthy. And if you’re grilling alongside a meat-eating friend or relative, you can share the love, since our marinades are equally good for meat and seafood.
Marinate vegetables first for at least 30 minutes. Marinating adds not only flavor, but a little fat, so your veggies will stay juicy as they cook.
Grilling tips:
- Use skewers or a grill basket when foods are small to keep your dinner from slipping through the cracks.
- Turn veggies with tongs rather than a fork, so that you don’t pierce them and lose juiciness.
- Cut round veggies like onions into rounds, and slice veggies like squash and eggplant lengthwise to expose the most surface area to the grill.
- Remember that dense root vegetables and tubers cook more slowly, and time your cooking accordingly.
Roasting tips:
- Use a metal pan with no higher than one-inch sides. The metal will conduct heat and low sides let steam escape. Line with foil for easy clean-up.
- Cut ingredients into small, uniform pieces. The denser the vegetable, the smaller your cut should be.
- Coat generously with oil until the vegetables glisten and season with salt and pepper before cooking to bring out the flavor. Add fresh seasonings like garlic, rosemary, or sage, if desired.
- Preheat your oven to high temperature, at least 425° F (218° C) and place pan in the top third of the oven.
Or try Vitamix's Roasted Vegetable Sauce over spaghetti for an easy weeknight meal.
Marinades:
- Spicy Honey Vinaigrette - Sweet honey and hot Sriracha sauce face off to produce a win-win in this Thai-inspired marinade.
- Lemon Garlic Dressing - Lemon, hot sauce, paprika and cumin combine for a distinctive marinade that wakes up veggies or chicken.
- Ginger Citrus Salad Dressing - A trio of citrus, a trio of oils, a trio of herbs and spices - a complex flavor blend made easy in your Vitamix machine.
- Thai Curry Carrot Sauce - Exotic lemon grass, coconut milk, and red Thai curry paste are tempered by sweet brown sugar and bright cilantro.
- Vegetable Vinaigrette - This unique vinaigrette is made from roasted (or grilled) vegetables - use it as a veggie marinade and double the flavor.