The Right Cuts: Almost any vegetable works on the grill, whether sliced, wrapped, or fresh from the field.

The Easiest Technique: To simplify your prep, slice summer vegetables 1/2 inch thick, slick them with oil, season them with salt, and place them over direct heat. They’ll be just tender by the time grill marks appear. Potatoes and tomatoes — foods you wouldn’t normally associate with the grill — work well when wrapped in a double layer of heavy-duty foil and placed over direct heat. Allow corn on the cob to steam in the husks over direct heat. If the tips start to blacken, rearrange the ears so they hang off the edge of the grill. And don’t forget about your vegetables. Like meat and seafood, they require a specific cooking time; otherwise they’ll char or turn mushy. (For cooking times, see Grilling Cheat Sheet.)

Cooking Tips

If space is limited, put the vegetables on the grill before the entrée. They taste just as good at room temperature as they do hot off the grill.

Use a spatula, not tongs, to turn sliced vegetables. This ensures that onion rings remain nicely stacked and that the flesh of the softened eggplants doesn’t detach from the skin.)

Judge an ear of corn’s ripeness by feeling through the husk for plump kernels. If you can’t resist peeking, bend back the husk, exposing only the tip of the ear. The kernels should be full and close together.

If you can slice it, you can grill it. Zucchini, eggplants, bell peppers, and onions are ideal candidates.

Slow-to-cook and potentially messy foods, like potatoes and tomatoes, require a buffer from the heat, Wrap them in foil along with some olive oil and herbs.

Soak corn, husks still on, for an hour to minimize charring. Before grilling, pull back the husks but don’t detach them. Remove the strings, add olive oil or butter, and replace the husks.