Cooking outdoors on a grill gives great flavor to food, reduces fat, and prevents heating up the kitchen.  If you have a covered porch to grill on, a summer shower doesn’t have to stop your cooking plans.  We enjoy our gas grill but the most economical way to grill is in a traditional fire grill (Like a Weber), with coals made from fallen wood that has been allowed to cook down into coals.

When you think about a grill, what foods do you think of most?  The first thing that popped into my mind was BBQ chicken, then hot dogs and hamburgers.  But there’s even more that can be cooked on a grill, including stew and pizza!

To make the most of your grilled foods, consider marinating them.  There are lots of commercial marinaids available for sale, but homemade ones are easy, cost effective and delicious.  Marinades typically have oil, an acid ingredient like vinegar, pineapple or lemon juice, and herbs and spices.    I’ve found that I can replace the oil with water which saves money and calories.  We didn’t notice a difference in flavor. 

You can marinate meat or vegetables, just don’t marinate them together.  To marinate, mix all ingredients, pour over the food in a zipper seal bag and store in the refrigerator overnight.  Flip the bag over and continue to marinate until time to grill.  Discard raw meat marinades after use.  If you’d like to brush the meat with marinade as it cooks, save some separately before you marinate the food to keep it from getting contaminated.

Here’s my favorite chicken marinade recipe:

3/4 cup water or oil

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup vinegar (red wine or rice vinegars are nice)

1 teaspoon fresh thyme

Favorite Fajita Marinade

2 Tablespoons oil

2 Tablespoons lemon or lime juice

1 1/2 teaspoons seasoned salt

1 1/2 teaspoons oregano

1 1/2 teapspoons cumin

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon paprika

************************************

Zucchini is one of my favorite vegetables to grill.  We like to slice it thick (about 3/8″) and marinate it in low calorie Italian dressing before grilling.

We’ve also grilled corn on the cob:  http://whatscookingamerica.net/Vegetables/GrillingCorn.htm

http://www.backyardandbbq.com/easy-grilled-pizza/186

Here are some links for grilled pizza instructions:  http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2008/05/how-to-make-grilled-pizza-tips.html and http://pizzatherapy.com/grilling.htm

Photo Source: Food Network

Or try making your own individual meal packets in foil and grilling them.  We love hamburger patties with carrots, potatoes, green beans, garlic and salt.  Or fish with carrots, zucchini, onions and lemon pepper.