Fire Up the Grill

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Summer days bring sunshine, warm weather, and more fun activities like swimming, gardening, or spending time outside with friends and family. Making dinnertime quicker and easier can allow more time for these fun summer activities. Grilling dinner can save you time and allow you to prepare delicious, healthy meals at home.

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4 reasons to fire up the grill:

  1. All in one spot: Rather than cooking in the oven, stovetop, and grill, do it all on the grill. Veggies and protein work great on the grill, and so do energy/starches like potato or corn on the cob!
  2. Easy clean up: Put all your food on aluminum foil for less clean up (the grill stays clean too). No dirty pots/pans to clean after dinner is done. Win, win!
  3. Healthy option: Grilling allows you to experiment with different vegetables and requires little fat (vs. frying or sautéing foods). Try veggies like sweet potatoes, peppers, asparagus, or zucchini, wrapped in foil with a tablespoon of olive oil. Harder veggies like potatoes or carrots (10-15 minutes) will need longer than soft vegetables like peppers and asparagus (5-7 minutes).
  4. Budget friendly: Eating out is convenient and easy, but cooking at home is much easier on the wallet. You can easily make a meal for less than $5 a person with chicken, vegetables, and potatoes.

Sample summer grilling menu

Salmon: Season with garlic and lemon or ginger and soy sauce. Drizzle olive oil on bottom of aluminum foil and wrap in foil. Put on grill for 15 minutes with a grill temperature of 350 or higher.

Corn: Drizzle oil on corn and place on aluminum foil. Grill for 3 minutes and rotate, grill for another 3 minutes, until cooked as desired.

Summer Squash: Cut into strips and drizzle with 1 Tbsp oil, top with basil, oregano, and garlic. Wrap in foil and allow to steam cook on the grill for 7-10 minutes.

For more information on summer grilling safety tips: 

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/news-events/news-press-releases/your-top-10-food-safety-tips-summer-grilling

Post by Stephanie Long, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Diabetes Educator

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