Grilled Vegetables Marinade
The Best Grilled Vegetable Marinade – This easy marinated grilled vegetables recipe is simply the best for grilling your favorite veggies as a healthy, hearty, and flavorful summer side dish.
Why We Love This Grilled Vegetables Recipe
The days are hot, the charcoal grill or gas grill is on, and summer is officially in full swing.
Our family tends to spend a lot less time in the kitchen and more time outside these days. It is always so nice getting to take advantage of the warmer weather, and many of our favorite meals can be made on the grill while we enjoy the great outdoors.
Nearly all season long and most nights of the week we can be found in the backyard grilling up relaxing, easy classics like juicy hamburgers and loaded hot dogs.
We also love to grill crisp summer veggies for adding wonderfully fresh, crunchy, and healthy sides to our meals.
Include fresh summer vegetables in your family’s rotation of easy weeknight dinners with our recipe for the Best Grilled Vegetables Marinade.
This is a great side dish for using that bounty of summer produce from your garden or farmers’ market. You can grill just about any hearty seasonal vegetables you’ve got available!
You won’t believe how simple it is to whip up a zesty, tangy, bright, and bold grilled veggie marinade in just minutes. I dare say that these marinated vegetables will wind up being the star of your meal…
What Ingredients You Need
You can grill many vegetables with only a little oil, salt, and pepper, but a good, simple marinade makes all the difference. I love this easy blend, made with pantry staples that together add a punch of perfectly savory-sweet flavor to your favorite summer veggies.
Here is what you need for the Grilled Vegetables Marinade:
- Olive oil – to get the perfect grilled char
- Balsamic vinegar – slightly sweet, deep, and tangy flavor
- Dijon mustard – adds an extra punch of tanginess and thickens the marinade
- Honey – for a hint of sweetness and great caramelization; you can also use agave to make vegan
- Seasonings – dried thyme, garlic powder, salt, and pepper
Our Favorite Veggies for Grilling:
- Carrots
- Asparagus
- Zucchini
- Squash
- Red bell pepper
Other types of produce you can grill with our vegetable marinade include eggplant, green and/or yellow bell peppers, portobello mushrooms, red onions and white onions. Get creative!
How to Make Marinade for Grilled Vegetables
Simply set out a 1-2 cup measuring pitcher, measure all ingredients into the pitcher, and whisk until smooth. That’s it!
Use this grilled vegetable marinade immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to a week for later use.
How to Marinate and Grill Veggies
First, prep the veggies. Trim and slice all of the vegetables into long strips as shown. This makes them less likely to fall through the grill grates.
Place the vegetables on a large rimmed baking sheet, and pour the marinade over the vegetables. Then gently toss the veggies to coat in the marinade.
Allow the vegetables to marinate for at least 30 minutes, or up to several hours. You can marinate hard vegetables like carrots in the fridge overnight. However, I wouldn’t recommend marinating softer veggies, such as zucchini and asparagus, for that long.
When almost ready to cook, preheat the grill to medium heat, about 350 degrees F.
Once the grill is hot, place the carrots on first, laying them across the grates so they don’t fall through. Let the carrots grill for 3-4 minutes, then flip them over. Then lay the rest of the vegetables on the grill.
As mentioned, you can use any vegetables you like with this marinade. But a pro tip for grilling: Be sure to place the hardest, most dense, vegetables on the grill first to give them a head start. Root vegetables will need more time to grill than other vegetables.
Give the marinated grilled vegetables a few more minutes, flipping halfway through cooking once a nice char has formed. Remove with tongs and plate to serve.
Tips & Tricks
- While grilled veggies won’t be as terrifically crispy and crunchy when reheated, they will keep well stored in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the fridge. You can even enjoy them as cold leftovers!
- If you prefer, you can use an Italian seasoning blend here! Or, if you have fresh herbs on hand like parsley, thyme or basil, add some of that for some herby goodness.
- If you are grilling both meat and vegetables for a meal, grill the meat first and while it is resting, grill up the vegetables!
Get the Complete (Printable) Grilled Vegetables Marinade Recipe + Video Below. Enjoy!
What Goes Well with Marinated Grilled Vegetables?
Tender, hearty grilled vegetables are the perfect side dish for servings with simple and delicious proteins that can also be cooked on the grill. Try this best marinated grilled veggie recipe in a kebab style with skewers along with this 4-Ingredient Magic Grilled Chicken Breasts and Grilled Pork Tenderloin recipes.
Or, for a completely vegetarian meal, make it with Grilled Artichokes with Miso Butter or our favorite Grilled Corn with Smokey Lime Mayo.
You can also enjoy marinated veggies by themselves with a bright and flavorful sauce, like our Creamy Chimichurri Sauce recipe or Aji Verde (Peruvian Green Sauce).
Frequently Asked Questions
Definitely! If you don’t have a grill or don’t want to fire up the grill, you have a few options. You can roast the marinated vegetables in the oven or place them on a grill pan on the stove to still get those beautiful grill marks!
Absolutely! Grilled vegetables are a wonderful way to eat flavorful, nutritious veggies!
To store leftover grilled vegetables, store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat on the grill or under the broil for crispy veggies, or simply microwave them until heated through!
Looking for More Summer Side Dish Recipes? Be Sure to Also Try:
- Giardiniera Pickled Vegetables
- 15 Bean Salad
- Vegetable Pakora with Kale
- Southern Coleslaw Recipe
- Grilled Fruit Salad with Creamy Lime Dressing
- Potato Chip Cookies with Chocolate Drizzle
- Sauteed Yellow Squash Recipe
- Best Italian Pasta Salad Recipe
- Loaded Cauliflower Florets Buffalo Wings
- Southwest Brussel Sprouts and Beans
- Summer Cobb Salad Recipe
- Baked Green Beans Almondine
Check the printable recipe card for nutritional information including calories, sodium, protein, and fiber percentages.
Grilled Vegetables Marinade Recipe
Video
Ingredients
For the Grilled Vegetables Marinade:
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
For the Grilled Vegetables:
- 1 pound carrots halved or quartered
- 1 pound asparagus trimmed
- 2 zucchini cut into sixths
- 2 yellow squash cut into sixths
- 1 large red bell pepper cut into ½ inch strips
Instructions
To Make the Marinade:
- Set out a 1-2 cup measuring pitcher. Measure all ingredients into the pitcher. Whisk until smooth. (Use immediately or cover and refrigerate for later use.)
For the Best Grilled Vegetables:
- Trim and slice all the vegetables into long strips. This makes them less likely to fall through the grill grates.
- Place the vegetables on a large rimmed baking sheet. Pour the marinade over the vegetables. Then gently toss the veggies to coat in the marinade.
- Allow the vegetables to marinate for 30+ minutes. (Or up to several hours.)
- Meanwhile, preheat the grill to medium heat, about 350 degrees F.
- Once the grill is hot, place the carrots on first, laying them across the grates so they don’t fall through. Let the carrots grill for 3-4 minutes, then flip them over. Then lay the rest of the vegetables on the grill. Grill another 8-10 minutes, flipping once. Remove with tongs.
this marinade was scrumptious!! I highly reccomend it. Everyone loved it.
I don’t just love this marinade, I CRAVE it! I marinate heartier veggies like onions and peppers overnight and a few hours before grilling, I add the softer veggies like zucchini and eggplant. This is the only vegetable marinade I’ll ever use again!
I used this marinade for chicken and veggies and it was amazing!! The whole family loved it!
Delicious! My entire family enjoyed this!
Made this for a barbecue and it was a big hit. I shared the recipe with several of the guests.
This was SO good! I did this as a last minute side for a family get together and everyone raved about it! Will definitely be making this often!
And I used Mexican oregano instead of thyme. Absolutely delicious!