Cook dense vegetables through over indirect heat first, then char over the coals; cook quick, watery ones over direct heat only; and cook peppers and aubergines straight in the embers. Oil, season well, and dress hard at the end.
Step by step
Sort by density
Dense vegetables, cauliflower, cabbage, potatoes, need long gentle cooking to soften before they can char. Quick, watery ones, courgette, asparagus, mushrooms, cook fast over direct heat. Peppers and aubergines are best charred whole in the embers. Sorting them is the first decision.
Oil and season generously
Vegetables take far more oil and salt than people expect. Brush or toss them so every surface is coated, and season boldly. Under-seasoned vegetables are the reason people think grilled veg is dull.
Cook dense ones through first
Give cauliflower steaks, cabbage wedges and thick vegetables a spell on the indirect side until a knife goes in with only slight resistance. Charring something still raw in the middle is the commonest mistake.
Char over the coals
Once tender, move them over the direct heat to blacken and blister at the edges. That char, the bitterness against the sweetness underneath, is the whole point.
Dress hard
Vegetables are a blank canvas. Finish them with something bold: tahini and lemon, chilli and garlic, herbs, good oil, a sharp yoghurt. A charred vegetable with a generous dressing is a proper dish.
The ember trick
Some of the best vegetable cooking uses no grate at all. Peppers, aubergines, onions and whole heads of garlic cooked directly in glowing embers, then peeled and dressed, are extraordinary. It is how baba ganoush and romesco are properly made, and it costs nothing. Do it at the end of a cook while the fire dies.
Do not press or crowd
Give vegetables space so they char rather than steam against each other, and resist pressing them, which drives out the moisture and flavour. A grill basket helps for small pieces that would fall through the bars.
Vegetables are the perfect thing to cook alongside a two-zone meat cook. They sit happily on the cool side while a chicken finishes, and they use heat that would otherwise go to waste.
Common questions
Why do my vegetables burn before they cook?
You are cooking dense vegetables over direct heat the whole time. They need a gentle indirect phase to soften, and only a few minutes of direct fire at the end to char.
Should I soak vegetables before grilling?
No. Water makes them steam rather than char. Oil them instead; the oil carries heat and helps them brown.
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