Grilled Vegetables with Basil Vinaigrette

4.67 from 15 votes
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🌶️🧅🍄 My Grilled Mixed Vegetables with Basil Vinaigrette are simple to prepare and offer the perfect amount of smoky flavor thanks to teh cooking method and my basil vinaigrette! The basil sauce is LOADED with layers of flavor and ready in 1 minute! Healthy, fast, EASY, minimal cleanup = the PERFECT side dish recipe!

A bowl of grilled mixed vegetables.

Grilled Mixed Vegetables with Basil Dressing

This is my idea of a summer dinner. Loads of grilled veggies, simply tossed with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and an easy vinaigrette that’s exploding with flavor.

The dressing comes together in one minute in a blender or food processor and tastes like a beautiful basil plant exploded in your mouth. I mean that in the best way possible.

There’s fresh basil, shallot, rice wine vinegar, honey, and olive oil. Simple but so intensely flavorful. Use my recipe as a guideline, but taste and tweak it based on what you think it needs.

There’s nothing like the smoky flavor of grilled food, and lately I can’t get enough grilled mixed veggies. I’ve eaten this or something similar to this for dinner most nights the past few weeks. Simple, easy, fast, virtually no cleanup, and I don’t heat up my house.

A platter of grilled mixed vegetables.

Recipe Ingredients

For this easy grilled veggies recipe that’s perfect for summer, I used:

  • Vegetables – Red bell peppers, yellow bell peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, baby portobello mushrooms, and cauliflower.  Feel free to mix and match based on what you have on hand. Try yellow onions, red onions, tomatoes, eggplant, sweet potatoes, and even broccoli
  • Olive oil – Avocado oil will also work, but I prefer the stronger flavor of olive oil
  • Salt and peppr – Adjust to taste

For the basil sauce for the grilled vegetables  you’ll need the following ingredients:

  • Basil – Fresh basil is best
  • Olive oil – I don’t recommend using any other oil for the sauce
  • Shallot
  • Rice vinegar – Do NOT substitute any other vinegar
  • Honey – Maple syrup will also work
  • Salt and pepper – Again, adjust to taste

Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.

How to Make Grilled Mixed Vegetables 

It doesn’t get any easy than this fast and easy Italian grilled vegetables recipe! Follow these easy steps:

  1. Heat a gas grill to medium-high heat or a grill pan over medium-high heat and spray with nonstick grill spray.
  2. Add the vegetables to a large bowl, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss to combine.
  3. Grill for about 10 minutes total or until the vegetables are tender, flipping once or twice as needed. Grill directly on a grill grate, or use a grill pan or grill basket if needed!
  4. For the basil dressing, simply add all the ingredients to the canister of a high speed blender and blend away!
  5. Drizzle over your grilled veggies as desired.
A platter of grilled mixed vegetables.

What to Serve with Grilled Mixed Vegetables

Storage:

It’s always a nice treat to enjoy your grilled vegetables hot and fresh from the grill. However, I tend to make extra to toss over salads in the upcoming day or two.

Generally speaking most grilled vegetables will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days.

The basil vinaigrette isn’t quite as forgiving and will begin to oxidize and turn darker as time passes. The taste won’t be affected but it doesn’t look quite as pretty. So, I recommend consuming that within 1 to 2 days. Store it airtight in the fridge. 

Grilled vegetables with basil vinaigrette Pinterest image.

Recipe FAQs

Is it possible to add protein to a grilled vegetables recipe?

Sure it it! If you want to add protein but still keep it light and vegetarian, grilled tofu or tempeh is great. I was going to add some tempeh here but already had plenty going on.

Tip: I prefer grilling tempeh to tofu because it’s much firmer to begin with, holds together better for me, and I like the texture of the final result better.

If you want to add grilled chicken, I have so many summery grilled chicken recipes including Grilled Lime Cilantro ChickenGrilled Lemon Chicken, or Peach Chili Grilled Chicken

How can I add more flavor to my grilled mixed vegetables?

Thanks to the vinaigrette, these veggies are already bursting with flavor. However, if you want to add even more, try using garlic powder, onion powder, lemon juice, red pepper flakes, or any seasoning blend you have on hand.

What are the best sauces for grilled vegetables?

I love using this basil dressing for grilled vegetables, but you can also dunk or drizzle the veggies with one of the following: 

Smoky Honey Mustard Sauce
Lime Cilantro Dressing
Mustard Dipping Sauce or Marinade
Green Goddess Dip
Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette

4.67 from 15 votes

Grilled Mixed Vegetables with Basil Vinaigrette

By Averie Sunshine
🌶️🧅🍄 Grilling gives these simply prepared vegetables the perfect amount of SMOKY flavor! The basil sauce is LOADED with layers of flavor and ready in 1 minute! Healthy, fast, EASY, minimal cleanup = the PERFECT side dish recipe!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4 servings

Equipment

  • 1 Grill or Grill Pan
  • 1 Large Bowl
  • 1 High-Speed Blender or Food Processor

Ingredients 

Vegetables

  • 1 medium zucchini, trimmed and sliced on the bias into 1/2-inch rounds
  • 1 medium yellow squash, trimmed and sliced on the bias into 1/2-inch rounds
  • half of 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and sliced into 1/2-inch strips
  • half of 1 large yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced into 1/2-inch strips
  • about 6 baby portobello mushrooms, with cores removed
  • about 2 cups cauliflower florets, broccoli florets may be substituted
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

Basil Vinaigrette 

  • about 2 cups fresh basil leaves, loosely packed (about 2 ounces or about 2 large handfuls)
  • about 1/3 cup olive oil
  • half of 1 large shallot, about the size of 2 cloves of garlic
  • 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar, apple cider or your favorite vinegar may be substituted
  • 1 tablespoon honey, or to taste (agave may be substituted)
  • ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
  • splash water, optional see note below

Instructions 

Vegetables

  • Heat a gas grill to medium-high heat or a grill pan over medium-high heat and spray with nonstick grill spray.
  • To a large bowl, add the vegetables, oil, salt, pepper, and toss to coat evenly.
  • Arrange vegetables on grill in a single layer and cook for about 5 minutes on first side, flip and cook for about 5 minutes on second side, or until as done, tender, and as blackened as desired. All grills, vegetables, and personal preference for blackening vary; cook until done based on your variables. Remove vegetables from grill, arrange on a platter; set aside.

Basil Vinaigrette 

  • To the canister of a high speed blender or food processor, add all ingredients except water, and blend on high speed until smooth.* (See Notes)
  • Taste and make any necessary flavor adjustments (more salt, pepper, honey, etc.).
  • Serve vinaigrette with the vegetables either on the side or drizzled over the top.

Notes

*Note – I used a Vita-Mix and the ingredients were just underneath the level of the blade so it was spinning around and not blending them so I added a splash of water just to bring the level up high enough to catch on the blade. I chose water rather than oil to save calories and fat but you could use more oil, or double the batch and add more basil, shallot, etc.
Storage: Vinaigrette will begin to oxidize within 48 hours so I recommend consuming it sooner rather than later. However it will taste fine despite the appearance so technically will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days. Grilled vegetables are optimal when warm and fresh but will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days. For that reason, I make extra and add them to salads in the upcoming days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 298cal, Carbohydrates: 23g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 23g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 18g, Sodium: 553mg, Fiber: 6g, Sugar: 13g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

More Grilled Vegetable Sides: 

Grilled Mexican Corn (Elote) — Learn how to make this EASY and FLAVORFUL grilled Mexican street corn at home in minutes! Fresh sweet corn is covered in crema, cheese, and finished with chili, lime juice, and cilantro!

A plate of grilled Mexican corn.

Grilled Avocado Corn Salad — An EASY and HEALTHY salad that’s ready in 10 minutes and you won’t be able to stop eating it! Juicy corn, creamy avocado, cilantro, and fresh lime juice is a FIESTA in your mouth!

Grilled Corn and Avocado Salad in a bowl.

Mexican Corn and Black Bean Salad — An EASY corn salad with black beans, zucchini, red onions, cilantro, lime juice, and more! So much Mexican-inspired FLAVOR in every bite of this family favorite recipe that’s sure to be a hit!

A bowl of Mexican corn and black bean salad.

Creamy Corn and Zucchini Salad— A healthy EASY salad that’s ready in 15 minutes and so flavorful! Corn, zucchini, cilantro, queso fresco and more are tossed in a DELISH creamy lime sauce!

A bowl of creamy corn and zucchini salad.

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4.67 from 15 votes (9 ratings without comment)

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Please note: I have only made the recipe as written, and cannot give advice or predict what will happen if you change something. If you have a question regarding changing, altering, or making substitutions to the recipe, please check out the FAQ page for more info.

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Comments

    1. Thanks for the 5 star review and I’m glad you’re trying it again with different veggies.