I’ve never been a big grill guy. In general, cooking on the grill never really appealed to me to much because I’m not a huge meat eater. Burgers, ribs, wings, they are all good, but definitely meals I’d prefer someone to prepare. With that, we never bought a grill. We were that family. The only people living the suburban dream without a backyard grill. But a few summers ago, my dad was upgrading his grill and I gave me his old one. Great, now I have a grill! I got it just when I started to cook mostly vegetarian meals at home though. Now what? I didn’t want to pass up a free grill, but how much grilled asparagus can a guy make?
I am now a proud owner of a grill! Can you believe it? I’ve been a home owner for ten years and have never owned a grill before. But after grilling for the first time at my own house on a real grill, I can finally call myself a “true American.” But once you hear what I grilled, you may take issue with my choices and my “true American-ness.”
Korean BBQ portobello burgers still count, right?
We were having friends over for a BBQ over the fourth of July weekend. And since I’ve never grilled before, I figured I should do a practice run with something just to make sure I got the hang of it.
I made grilled zucchini, grilled corn on the cob, and Koren BBQ portobello burgers. No meat, but that’s what we decided on (I’ve been told if you don’t grill meat that it doesn’t count, which I suppose is a valid argument on some level).
Anyway, I killed it for my first time! The corn was crisp and rich. We didn’t even use butter or salt! The mushrooms were juicy and meaty (as much as a vegetable can be). And the zucchini was, ok, maybe a little overdone, but still delicious.
I think I’m going to love summer time grilling. Next up, Chicago style hot dogs!
Recipe taken from Isa Does It, by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. If you enjoy vegan and vegetarian meals, I highly recommend you get this book. It’s my most used recipe source at the moment.
Marinade:
1 cup water
1/4 cup light molasses (I left this out because I couldn’t find it)
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 red wine vinegar
2 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp liquid smoke
2 tsp sriracha
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp onion powder
4 portobello mushroom caps
Olive oil for grill
Toppings:
Hamburger buns (I lightly grilled Kaiser roll buns)
Vegan mayo (I used regular)
1 cup kimchi
Marinate mushrooms for an hour. Grill mushrooms 5 minutes per side or until done. I added the marinade as I grilled them. I wanted as much of the marinade flavor as possible.
Spread mayo on lightly grilled buns. Place mushroom on bun and top with kimchi.
(The book has a lot more details but you get the gist of it)
I’ve never been a big grill guy. In general, cooking on the grill never really appealed to me to much because I’m not a huge meat eater. Burgers, ribs, wings, they are all good, but definitely meals I’d prefer someone to prepare. With that, we never bought a grill. We were that family. The only people living the suburban dream without a backyard grill. But a few summers ago, my dad was upgrading his grill and I gave me his old one. Great, now I have a grill! I got it just when I started to cook mostly vegetarian meals at home though. Now what? I didn’t want to pass up a free grill, but how much grilled asparagus can a guy make?