Memorial Day Grilling: Vegetable-style

I love grilling. There's something magical about the communal nature of cooking outside along with friends and family. Of course, grilling usually involves large slabs of meat, and those you'd want to spend time with can include people who don't eat meat. While it is easy enough to throw in some cold vegetarian side dishes for them, that doesn't really allow them to share in the communal experience.

The solution? Grill up some vegetables.

Some people like to grill big portobellos. I'm not a huge mushroom fan. Instead, my personal favorite vegetables for grilling are broccoli and sweet potatoes (zucchini work well, too). The broccoli I cut into long spears, while the sweet potatoes (or summer squash) get sliced lengthwise into large slabs a bit less than 1/4 inch thick. These get marinated for a bit in a mixture that varies but is roughly 1 part sesame oil, 1 part lime juice, 2 parts honey, 2 parts rice vinegar, and 3 parts soy sauce. Sometimes it gets a dash of fish sauce or sriracha sauce. Other times the lime juice and honey might be replaced with orange juice... or the honey might be replaced with maple syrup. There are many possibilities.

Regardless, they get marinated for a bit and then tossed on the grill until they are cooked through and just start to char. The results are substantial, delicious, and far better for you than coleslaw and potato salad.

My other favorite is to grill up some green onions Mexican-style. Salt them with kosher or sea salt, grill them until they are beginning to char, and squeeze some lime juice over them. Eat them whole. The experience is transcendental.