this is the best dinner we’ve made this summer.
it’s so good that when my dad and stepmom drove up to seattle to visit us, i immediately knew that this was the dinner i wanted to make for them (and most of these pics were taken by them – thanks, dad and Bonnie!).
it’s a pretty basic concept – you just chop and skewer fresh vegetables, brush them with oil, and rub them with spices before letting the grill (or in my case, the grill pan) do its thing. but it ends up tasting absolutely amazing when you roll all the vegetables into a corn tortilla. so what are you waiting for? go make this now, while the beautiful summer veggies are still in season!
one year ago: berry cobbler (special guest post by my mom!)
two years ago: ragout over polenta
three years ago: gazpacho
four years ago: best chocolate chip cookies
grilled vegetable tacos
yields 6-8 servings
adapted from edible perspective
- 1t chili powder
- 1t cumin
- 1/2t paprika
- 1/4t coriander
- 1/4t cayenne
- 3 ears of corn
- 1 large red onion
- 2 red bell peppers
- 2 zucchinis
- 8oz crimini mushrooms
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes
- 4-6 wooden skewers
- safflower or olive oil
- 1 avocado
- 1 package corn tortillas
- 1 lime
- salt and pepper, to taste
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- begin to heat your outdoor grill or indoor grill pan to medium-high
- combine the chili powder, cumin, paprika, coriander, and cayenne in a small bowl
- shuck the corn and pop the stems off
- slice the onion into large strips
- rinse, dry, de-seed/de-stem, and then slice the red bell peppers into strips
- rinse and dry the zucchini, then slice in half and slice each half into wedges (see pics above for examples)
- clean the mushrooms and skewer them
- rinse and dry the cherry tomatoes, then skewer them
- use a pastry brush (or your hands) to coat all the vegetables with safflower or olive oil
- using your hands, rub all the vegetables with some of the spice rub
- put the corn, onions, bell peppers, and zucchini on the grill, turning as they cook (the corn took about 12 minutes, while the onions, bell peppers, and zucchini all took about 6-8 minutes)
- if your grill is big enough, add the mushrooms and tomatoes, too. if your grill isn’t big enough, these can be grilled during a second round of grilling, after the vegetables above are done (they both took about 6 minutes).
- once the vegetables are done, remove from the grill so they don’t char too much (side note: because my grill pan is small, the first time we made this recipe, the initial round of vegetables got cold. the second time we made this recipe, i heated a heavy baking dish in a 350º oven for about 15 minutes, then removed it from the oven, placed it on the counter on hot pads, and put the grilled vegetables into the warm pan. i covered the pan with aluminum foil, and the initial round of vegetables stayed nice and warm.)
- as you’re finishing grilling the other vegetables, slice the avocado in half and remove the pit, then lightly oil it
- grill the avocado flat side down for 4 minutes (don’t skip this step – grilled avocado is delicious!)
- while your avocado is grilling, heat your corn tortillas in the oven (in an aluminum foil packet), microwave (in between paper towels), or stove (on a hot pan or the grill pan itself) until warm and soft
- next, use a heat-proof cutting board and tongs so you don’t burn your fingers, and cut the kernels off the corn
- then roughly chop the onions, bell peppers, zucchini, and mushrooms so they fit easily into the tortillas
- sprinkle all the vegetables with lime juice, then add salt and pepper to taste and some more of the spice mix if desired
- pile your tortillas high with the grilled vegetables and enjoy!
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