5 Meals to Cook on the Grill for a Healthier Lifestyle

Grilling Makes Good Nutrition Easy

As a registered dietitian, I’m into healthier ways to cook. So, the grilling season opens lots of possibilities for me. The great thing is that most everyone I know likes to grill out, so the outdoor cooking season broadens their repertoire of healthy meals, too. Think about it — with grilling, the fat drips away from center-plate favorites like steak, salmon, or chicken.  This means fewer calories and less potentially harmful fat. The grill offers tons of variety of side options, too, like asparagus, skewered mushrooms, a sweet potato, or colorful Bell peppers. This means adding plant foods with all their antioxidants, vitamins, and fiber easily to your plate. And — who knew — for those who are more adventurous, there are desserts that are grill-able like fresh pineapple rings, bananas, or nectarines. Fruit offers its nutritious, natural sweetness to finish the meal.

 Grilling Makes Flavors Pop

With so many people cooking out these days, it’s no wonder there are many, many combinations to ‘throw on the grill for dinner.’ Try these 5 options for delicious results:

1. Vegetable skewers. Make a colorful mix of chunks of Bell peppers, onions, and cherry tomatoes. Brush lightly with extra virgin olive oil before grilling. Afterward, sprinkle with a lower salt mix of dried herbs and spices. Serve the skewers on a bed of quinoa or couscous and add grilled garlic bread for more flavor.
2. Squid rings and/or bodies. Marinate squid in a mixture of minced garlic, minced fresh parsley, extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt. Grill, turning often. Add a side of asparagus spears and corn-on-the-cob, too.
3. London Broil steak. Rub steak with your favorite lower salt rub, or make your own. Easy, homemade rubs combine flavors like paprika, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, salt and pepper. Grill small romaine lettuce heads and then cut up into a salad with cucumbers and radish slices and dress with vinaigrette.
4. Chicken thighs or breasts. Marinate skinless chicken in either a yogurt and fresh herbs mixture or a combo of extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, plenty of garlic, salt, pepper and dried basil. Grill until moist and tender. Grill zucchini and onion slices as tasty side items.
5. Salmon. Rub extra virgin olive oil onto the salmon and then sprinkle it with a mixture of soy sauce, garlic powder and sesame seeds. Grill until done but not overcooked. Add coleslaw and a grilled aluminum packet of white or sweet potato chunks.

Grilling Makes it Easier to Follow a Healthy Lifestyle

Delicious foods cooked on the grill get my attention – do they get yours? Many people cook the same meals on their grill over-and-over and yet the nutrition is not great quality. By trying a new variety of meals cooked on the grill, like the 5 choices above, you’ll want to come back for more. Trust me. Delicious foods cooked in healthier ways will put you on a path to a healthier lifestyle. To begin improving right away, grab my free report. Then, clean off your grill and get started.

Which grill meal will you cook first and why?