« Art For President | Home | Cobb Grill Or Who Knows What? Take Your Pick. »
Grilling Surprises – 10 Best Foods You May Not Think To Grill
By Ben Fesxbe | July 26, 2008
Just in time for the Dog Days of August, here are 10 suggestions for grilling foods you might not think of. Put some pizzazz back in your outdoor cooking… Bon appetit!
1. Pizza - Yes you can make pizza on your grill, and yes it’s delicious. To get it right and keep the crust from burning on the bottom you need to take a few precautions. Indirect heat is best, so your grill works more like an oven. If your grill isn’t quite big enough to have the fire on one side and the pizza on the other, you can put a sheet of aluminum foil under the crust during part of the cooking time to keep the bottom from scorching. Experiment and you’ll get it right. We’ve had great results with pre-made dough from our local pizzeria. We put the crust on the grill for a few minutes first, then add the toppings and continue grilling until it’s done. To maintain oven-like temperatures, keep the lid down as much as possible, or make the pizzas small and cover each with an aluminum pie pan, thus creating a miniature oven!
An excellent article about grilling pizza onboard a boat.
2. Bread - Bread baked using a wood fire is indescribably wonderful, but you can’t use just any grill, unless you’re making flat bread. We’ve experienced our best success using the Cobb Grill. In spite of it’s small size, the Cobb comes very close to those beehive shaped clay ovens you see in Northern African and Middle Eastern countries, and has similar heat retention capabilities. Imaging baking a loaf of crusty, smoky bread using just eight charcoal briquettes. Too, putting water in the Cobb’s flavor well creates a little steam in the heat chamber, turning out tender, flaky crusts. Mmmmm!
3. Fruit - The next time you’re grilling for a few friends, thrill them with an appetizer or dessert of papaya, mango, or peaches done over your grill. Something about the smoky carmelization created by the hot metal grill, combined with the pungent sweetness of the fruit itself, conjures up a tropical feeling. Grilled fruit compliments all sorts of foods, and goes especially well with dry white wines. Experiment with different fruits and let me know in the comments how it goes!
4. Tomatoes - Grilling tomatoes brings out flavors they’ve only hinted at before. The best part is, you can grill them to eat and enjoy with your meal, and you can also grill them before you use them in sauces, salsa, or any other tomato based dish. If you make your own spaghetti sauce, why not grill your tomatoes first the next time?
5. Breakfast - There’s something really appealing about firing up your grill early on a beautiful summer morning, and turning out awesome omelets, french toast, bacon, and home fries. You can use a non-stick griddle right over the coals, a cast iron skillet, or even do french toast right on the rack. Add some grilled fruit (see # 3) and make your breakfast truly special. Serve mimosas and make it brunch!
6. Lamb - You may not think lamb belongs on this list, because folks grill lamb all the time. But I’m talking about grilling a whole leg of lamb long and slow over a controlled, smoky fire. Marinate the lamb first for several hours in a mixture of seasonings and chopped vegetables. Nothing beats slow cooked leg of lamb for hearty flavor and fall-off-the-bone tenderness.
7. Squash - Late summer and autumn is squash time, and there’s often a little more than you know what to do with – so grill it! You can grill all kinds of squash- zucchini, butternut, acorn, what have you. Grilling not only makes squash taste great, the grill marks make it look more appealing, too! To get really good results, slice the squash in a way that gives you relatively flat pieces. Remove the seeds, and the skin if you want to grill both sides, brush the flesh with a little olive oil, and place on a hot grill. Turn frequently, so the squash cooks all the way through before scorching.
8. Sweet Potatoes - Here’s one you have to try to believe. If you like sweet potatoes, you’ll love them done up on the grill. To make things easy on yourself, slice them the long way and put them directly on the grill. You can leave the skin on or off, and brush them with a little oil or not, depending on your personal preference.
9. Nuts - I tried this last week, and truly enjoyed the results. I bought some raw almonds, threw them in my grill basket, and toasted them up on my Cobb Grill. A little smoky, and a lot of real nutty flavor. Give it a try yourself
10. Eggplant - If you’re an eggplant lover, here’s a new one to try. Grill slices of eggplant over a charcoal fire, then top with a sauce made from grilled tomatoes. Sprinkle with a little fresh grated Parmesan or Romano cheese… delightful!
This weekend, you’ve got the chance to take a giant step away from the usual and expected and try something a little different. Why not search your fridge and cupboards for something you’ve never thought of grilling, or try one or two of these ideas? Then, come back here and tell us how it went.
If you enjoyed this article, would you take just a moment and click the “Digg” button below, and let others know about it? Thanks!
Topics: Grilling Tips, Recipes | 1 Comment »
One Response to “Grilling Surprises – 10 Best Foods You May Not Think To Grill”
Comments
Fatal error: Call to undefined function display_cryptographp() in /home/artfleed/public_html/wp-content/themes/clean-copy-right-sidebar-1/comments.php on line 102
November 26th, 2008 at 9:33 pm
[...] I’ve even made biscuits on my Cobb! This weekend, I even compiled an awesome breakfast on my Cobb Premium Portable Grill, from scrambled eggs and sausage, to french toast and homefried [...]