This balsamic marinade for grilling vegetables gives you great flavor in just 30 minutes. With only 4 ingredients – balsamic vinegar, oil, kosher salt, and black pepper – you can transform your veggies into the perfect side dish. Use them at your next cookout or for an easy weeknight dinner alongside your favorite grilled protein.
When your family is coming at you for something to eat, time is of the essence.
That’s one of the reasons this marinade for grilled veggies is so great – it has a minimal amount of ingredients and a minimal marinating time. Which helps you get a meal on the table faster.
Grilled veggies are one of my favorite sides. While you can definitely just salt them and go to town (like in my grilled zucchini and grilled asparagus recipes), marinating them lends a whole different flavor profile that’s delicious.
Read on to see how easily this grilled vegetables marinade comes together, as well as storage tips, and a list of which veggies I like to use it on.
Grab these 4 ingredients
(Note: the full ingredients list, including measurements, is provided in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.)
- Balsamic vinegar – I like to use an aged balsamic as it’s less bitter and gives a little better flavor than a regular balsamic, but whether it’s aged or not the marinade still tastes great on veggies.
- Oil – use a mild, high heat oil since you’ll be putting the veggies on the grill. I like to use avocado oil.
- Kosher salt – I used Diamond Crystal kosher salt in this recipe. It is less salty by volume than many other salts, so if you are using a different type of salt (kosher or otherwise), you’ll want to use this salt conversion chart from Epicurious to determine how much salt to use.
- Pepper – freshly ground black pepper is great, but you could also switch it up with white or pink pepper.
You can use the marinade with whatever vegetables you’d like to grill. I’ve used it with red onion, zucchini, asparagus, mushrooms, and bell pepper before and all have turned out great.
WHAT’S IN A MARINADE?
All marinades should have the following 4 elements:
- fat to coat the food
- acid to help break down fibers,
- salt to season the food, and
- spices, herbs, or other flavors.
In this marinade, the balsamic vinegar is the acid, the oil is the fat, there’s salt directly in the recipe, and the ground black pepper adds additional flavor.
Making a balsamic vegetable marinade
Making a marinade is really simple. You just put all the ingredients in a container and stir them together until they’re combined. Super easy and quick.
I like to start by pouring the liquid ingredients into a measuring cup because it cuts down on dirtying dishes and you can just whisk everything together in the cup.
This recipe makes about 6 ounces of marinade, which is enough for 2.5 to 3 pounds of vegetables, depending on which vegetables you use.
When marinating vegetables, pour the marinade over them, mix with your hands to ensure they’re coated, then marinate for 30 minutes. Grill them according to your preference and the thickness and tenderness of the vegetable.
For complete directions, check out this post on grilling marinated vegetables (coming soon).
*PREP TIP*
If you find that the oil and vinegar aren’t wanting to mix though, you can pour the marinade into a small mason jar, put a lid on top, and shake it until they are combined.
Storing the marinade
You can use the marinade immediately, or store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
When refrigerated the contents may separate, so let the marinade come up to room temperature then shake the container to recombine.
What vegetables can you marinate for grilling?
You can marinate and grill most vegetables, though some lend themselves better to it than others. The vegetables I like to marinate and grill the most are:
- Mushrooms
- Asparagus
- Onion
- Zucchini
- Bell Peppers
You can also do others, like eggplant, yellow squash, cherry tomatoes, and even carrots.
*SERVING TIP*
When putting the veggies on the grill, reserve the used marinade in a dish. After you take the veggies off the grill you can brush the used marinade onto the veggies for additional flavor.
Pin this grilled vegetable marinade for later!
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30 Minute Marinade for Grilling Vegetables
Equipment
- A small whisk (or other utensil)
Ingredients
- 4 oz mild oil like avocado oil
- 2 oz balsamic vinegar
- 2 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Measure out the balsmaic vinegar and oil into a measuring cup (or other container).
- Measure out the kosher salt and ground black pepper and add that into the cup as well.
- Use a small whisk or other utensil to combine everything together.
Notes
- If you find that the oil and vinegar aren’t wanting to mix though, you can pour the marinade into a small mason jar, put a lid on top, and shake it until they are combined.
- You can use the marinade immediately, or store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
- When refrigerated the contents may separate, so let the marinade come up to room temperature then shake the container to recombine.
- When marinating the veggies, pour the marinade over them, mix with your hands to ensure they’re coated, then marinate for 30 minutes. Grill them according to your preference and the thickness and tenderness of the vegetable.
- When putting the veggies on the grill, reserve the used marinade in a dish. After you take the veggies off the grill you can brush the used marinade onto the veggies for additional flavor.
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