--- title: Cooking Advice: 5 Easy Steps That Will Transform How You Grill description: Make your grilling veggie-heavy canonical: https://time.com/3977319/healthy-grill-tips/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-08-05T13:00:35.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:58:23.114Z article:section: Health og:title: 5 Easy Steps That Will Transform How You Grill og:description: Make your grilling veggie-heavy og:url: https://time.com/3977319/healthy-grill-tips/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbfde1c6629a8cb4a/69885d10a988ca03356b3ad3/grilling-vegetable-chicken.jpg?branch=production&width=359&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 359 og:image:height: 202 og:image:alt: grilling-vegetable-chicken og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 5 Easy Steps That Will Transform How You Grill twitter:description: Make your grilling veggie-heavy twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbfde1c6629a8cb4a/69885d10a988ca03356b3ad3/grilling-vegetable-chicken.jpg?branch=production&width=359&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 5 Easy Steps That Will Transform How You Grill > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ## Video: Should I Eat Pork? [Watch (HLS stream): Should I Eat Pork?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/pApjZewf.m3u8) (1:56)  _Published 2015-05-13. Should I Eat Pork?_ by [Cynthia Sass / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Cynthia Sass / Health.com Contributor Aug 5, 2015 1:00 PM UTC  High Angle View Of Asparagus With Chicken And Lemon Slice On Barbecue High Angle View Of Asparagus With Chicken And Lemon Slice On Barbecue Getty Images by [Cynthia Sass / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Cynthia Sass / Health.com Contributor Aug 5, 2015 1:00 PM UTC Firing up the [grill](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20811509,00.html) can be one of the simplest strategies for delicious, healthy summer eating – if you use the right ingredients and techniques. Here’s my five-step strategy for creating a perfectly balanced meal (entirely on the grill if you’d like) that will leave you simultaneously satisfied, energized—and without the bloated feeling that comes from overdoing it on cheeseburgers and hot dogs. Get ready to ditch the fatty traditional fare and grill up some clean, healthy cuisine. **Step 1: Load up on veggies** Veggies should take up the largest chunk of the grill and your plate. Aim for about two cups pre-cooked, about the size of two tennis balls, and keep it simple while mixing up the variety. The possibilities are endless: Skewer baby Brussels sprouts, or make kabobs out of cut veggies, like bell peppers, onions, cherry tomatoes, and mushrooms. Slice zucchini and summer squash lengthwise, and place face down directly on the grill. Other options that are robust enough to grill directly include asparagus, Portobello mushrooms, and eggplant. You can even grill hearty greens, like Romaine lettuce and kale. And for a real treat wrap up some cauliflower florets in foil and cook until they’re melt-in-your-mouth tender. Any veggie you grill can be cooked plain, and jazzed up afterwards (see step 3), or marinated in a simple mixture of balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, and Italian herb seasoning (for a little extra kick add Dijon mustard and fresh squeezed lemon juice). Or simply mist or lightly brush veggies with olive oil and sprinkle with black pepper and sea salt, or a specialty salt (like fluer de sel, smoked sea salt, or pink Himalayan). You can also place grilled veggies over a bed of raw greens. I love the temperature and texture contrast, and when I do this with well-done cauliflower it falls apart and creates a creamy “dressing” that’s out of this world good, especially with a little drizzled balsamic on top. **Step 2: Pick a lean protein** To keep your protein clean and lean stick with skinless chicken breast or [seafood](http://news.health.com/2014/10/24/tips-for-cooking-fish/), like shrimp skewers, scallops, or salmon. Or, if you’re really craving a burger, make your own healthy patties. Try a combo of 3 ounces of extra lean ground turkey or flaked salmon, along with 1 lightly beaten egg, 1/2 cup veggies (such as minced red onion, finely chopped spinach, or shredded zucchini) and season to taste, with garlic, and fresh basil, parsley, or dill. For a plant-based burger that really hits the spot, combine 1/2 cup of mashed chickpeas, black beans, or lentils with veggies and herbs, or wrap up beans in foil and cook them whole on the grill. Another idea for mixing things up: take it a step further with your seasonings. For a southwest style burger use minced garlic and black or cayenne pepper with jalapeno, red onion, and cilantro. For a Moroccan-inspired burger use garlic along with spices like cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon, and black pepper. **Step 3: Select a plant-based fat** One of my favorite ways to mix up the flavor (and add a health boost) for any meal is to include a delectable plant-based fat, and there are plenty that pair perfectly when grilling. Top a grilled burger or chicken breast with a dollop of olive tapenade, guacamole, or slices or avocado. Drizzle a nut or seed butter over grilled veggies or shrimp, like spiced up tahini, or some thinned almond butter. For the latter, stir a little warmed up low sodium organic veggie broth with plain almond butter in a small bowl until smooth, and add minced garlic, fresh grated ginger, turmeric, and crushed red pepper. Brush or dip veggies with pesto, like sun-dried tomato, roasted red pepper, or basil pesto. Or for an avocado-based sauce puree ripe Hass avocado with a few fresh basil leaves, along with a little apple cider vinegar, fresh squeezed lemon juice, garlic, and black pepper. For an option that satisfies a “crunch” tooth garnish grilled dishes with nuts or seeds, like sliced or slivered [almonds](http://news.health.com/2015/01/16/5-genius-ways-to-use-almonds/), chopped pecans, walnuts or pistachios, or sunflower or pumpkin seeds. **Step 4: Choose your carbs wisely** With traditional cookouts carbohydrates are probably the easiest thing to overdo, and a surplus will end up stored in your fat cells unless you bump up your activity level to burn them off. My rule for keeping them in check: choose one nutrient-rich option as an accompaniment to your meal, and make room for it. For example, wrap burgers in crisp lettuce or grilled Portobellos instead of a bun, and get your carb fix by grilling up organic corn on the cob. You can also grill in foil fingerling or cubed red potatoes, sweet potato, [chickpeas, or beans](http://news.health.com/2015/04/03/keep-the-carbs-lose-the-pounds/). To satisfy a sweet craving, cook up some in-season [fruit](http://news.health.com/2013/06/27/fruit-isnt-making-you-fat-and-heres-why/). Slice peaches, plums, or nectarines in half, remove the pits, and grill face down. Skewer cantaloupe cubes, or even pitted cherries, or place slices of pineapple or watermelon directly on the grill. **Step 5: Lighten up your liquids** [Sugary](http://news.health.com/2014/02/14/5-ways-to-eat-less-sugar/) beverages, including soda, lemonade, fruit punch, and sweet tea, and [diet drinks](http://news.health.com/2013/09/26/5-steps-to-quitting-artificial-sweeteners/) alike, can wreak havoc on your waistline. If plain H2O just doesn’t cut it, jazz up flat water, club soda, or seltzer with a bit of mashed berries, and infusions of fresh mint, or basil and fresh grated ginger, or sliced cucumber with lemon or lime. If you’ll be enjoying a cocktail keep it light. Make white wine into a spritzer with sparkling water, reach for a light beer, or make fancy frozen drinks without sugary mixers. To make what I call a “piña-slim-lada,” blend rum with a small handful of frozen pineapple cubes, banana slices, unsweetened coconut milk and a dash of ground cinnamon. And there you have it: your summer cookout, transformed! [_This article originally appeared on Health.com_](http://news.health.com/2015/07/22/5-easy-steps-that-will-transform-how-you-grill-this-summer/) _More form Health.com:_ * [How to Grill Every Vegetable Perfectly](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20710320,00.html?xid=time) * [How to Grill Salmon Perfectly](http://www.health.com/health/video/0,,20845745,00.html?xid=time) * [Refreshing Low-Cal Cocktail Recipes](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20348715,00.html?xid=time) ## Transcript This little piggy went fo market. But does that mean you should take it home? We asked five experts to answer the tough question and most of them gave you permission park pork on your plate but with a lot of caveats. A lean cut like pork tenderloin is actually as lean as a chicken breast, says Kate Patton. A typical three ounce serving of pork has more than 20 grams of protein. And it's rich in vitamins and minerals. It's one of the best sources of zinc. With 17 % of your daily recommended intake in every three ounce serving. It also has vitamin B12, a hard to get nutrient that maintains healthy red blood cells in the body, says Christy King. But there's more to our food than just nutri- Nutrition says David Catz. Pigs are smarter than the average dog. So, raising them in factory farms and putting them on our plate while treating Fido as family doesn't really make much sense, he says. You can eat pork says, Orvagie Rangdon, but a 2013 consumer reports investigation found concerning number of antibiotic resistance strains of bacteria on the pork it's studied. Overusing antibiotics lessens the effectiveness of these drugs for all of us she says. Make sure to cook pork properly to kill off pathogens. If you want to buy better produced pork, look for labels reading organic, global animal partnership or animal welfare approved, she says. And no fall for the no hormones added. And label. Legally, hormones aren't even allowed in pork production. So, what's the bottom line on swine? Barry Estabrook was so fascinated by pork and pigs that he wrote a new book called Pig Tales. He concluded that pork is either the worst meat you can eat from pretty much any perspective or the very best, he told us. It all depends on how it's raised, so make sure to find out before picking pork. 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