So nobody is saying you can’t just throw a steak on the grill. In fact, just say the word and we’ll be right over. Yet with these summer months filled with peaches and other stone fruits, and tropical heat in most sections of the country, we think it’s high time fresh seasonal fruit took its natural place, that being over a mound of glowing coals.
Just like the sauces we make, grilling fruit gives dish after dish that something extra that turns being good into being unforgettable.
Grilled fruit is terrific in desserts, usually the fruit we think of but taken to the next level. Think: grilled strawberry shortcake. Grilled peach cobbler. Grilled banana split – yes, it can happen, with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and even a cherry on top. We are more intrigued, however, by those intersections of sweet and savory, by what happens when the caramelized sweetness from grilling make fruit an excellent accomplice to grilled protein.
The how-to starts with your choice of fruit. Be sure fruit for grilling is firm, never overripe. Overripe fruit will turn mushy, stick to the grate, fall into the coals and all the sort of thing. Some of the best fruits for grilling, with that caveat, includes peaches (of course) melons, pineapple, pears, avocado, tomatoes, bananas, watermelon and figs. This might be obvious, but small pieces are harder to grill than large chunks, slices or wheels. Grill them large and cut them small afterward, if that’s what your dish calls for.
Since sticking is one of the main things a new fruit grilling master fears, there are a couple tips. The hotter the grill, the less the fruit sticks, so do take preheating seriously. As for oiling the fruit, you certainly have permission, but it often isn’t necessary.
Generally, it’s important to leave the fruit alone on the grill for a few minutes when you place it, resisting the temptation to check for grill marks every 14 seconds. Even if there is a little sticking, the sweet caramelization with be worth it. And of course, we can’t resist. Some of our sauces are perfect for a quick baste of fruit right when it’s about to come off the grill.
Goodness is never a problem during summer grilling season, but sameness sometimes is. Check out these interwoven recipes of protein, fruit and sauce. The man or women working the grill will be an even bigger hero than usual.
GRILLED PORK & PEACH LETTUCE WRAPS
1 cup Dr. Foo’s Bali BBQ Sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Juice of 2 limes
1 1/2 pounds pork shoulder steak, no more than 3/4-inch thick, not trimmed
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/2 head Napa cabbage, thinly shredded
4 fresh peaches, pitted
Boston lettuce leaves, for serving
2 serrano chiles, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 green onions, sliced
2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
In a large plastic freezer bag, combine the Bali BBQ Sauce with the sesame oil, rice vinegar, fish sauce and juice of 1 lime. Add the pork and turn to coat in the liquid. Seal the bag and let marinate the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or as many as 8. Prepare the grill for indirect grilling, with one section over very high heat. Remove the pork from the marinade 30 minutes before grilling to take the chill off.
Grill the pork until charred, about 3 minutes. Flip the pork and grill for another 3 minutes. Move the pork to indirect heat, cover the grill, and cook for about 5 minutes, until a meat thermometer inserted in the pork registers 150 degrees F. Remove the pork from the grill and set aside, loosely tended with foil, about 10 minutes. Cut the pork, against the grain, into thin strips.
While pork is resting under the foil, lightly brush the peaches with additional Bali BBQ and grill flesh side down under lightly striped. Let the peaches cool and thinly slice. In a bowl, combine the sesame oil, rice vinegar and juice of remaining lime; toss the cabbage in this dressing and let sit to absorb. Set out 2 leaves of Boston lettuce on each of 4 dinner plates. Feel the leaves with slices of pork and peaches, then top with the cabbage and generous amounts of dressing. Sprinkle with chiles, cilantro, green onions and a final flourish of sesame seeds. Serves 4.
GRILLED SHRIMP, CORN & PINEAPPLE COCKTAIL
1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled, seeded and deveined
1 jar Fischer & Wieser’s Salsa a la Charra
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¼ stick butter, melted
3 ears of corn on the cob
3 1/2-inch-thick rings of pineapple, peeled, cored cut crosswise from whole fruit
1 small onion, minced
1 green bell pepper, minced
Juice of 2 limes
Shredded lettuce
1 cup chopped cilantro
In a bowl, combine the shrimp with about ¼ jar of the Salsa a la Charra and the olive oil. Melt the butter with 1 tablespoon of salsa. Pulling back the shucks to the ears of corn, remove the silk and brush lightly with the salsa butter; then close the shucks up again. Create a two-zone fire on your grill, with high direct heat in one section and lower indirect heat everywhere else. Wrap each ear of corn in aluminum foil, setting over indirect heat. Grill until kernels are tender and lightly charred, about 30 minutes. With about 10 minutes left for the corn, grill the pineapple rings under grill-marked and caramelized.
When ready to serve, slice the kernels from the corn and cut the pineapple into bite-sized chunks. Combine both with the remaining salsa, along with the minced onion, bell pepper and lime juice. Fill 4 clear-glass shrimp cocktail glasses with shredded lettuce and then with the salsa reaching to the top. Grill the shrimp over direct heat just until pink, 2-3 minutes, being careful not to let them burn. Hook the shrimp over the edge of each glass, as in traditional shrimp cocktail. Top with chopped cilantro. Serves 4.
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