Grilled Sausages and Peppers

Here’s a perfectly tasty lunch for a sunny, Saturday or Sunday afternoon in the backyard.  An added plus it that it’s easy to prep and cook.  Bonus feature: it’s also visually appealing on the table.  The following recipe is for two people.  However, it can easily be scaled up for bigger parties by simply adding the same amount for every two additional guests.

Step 1:  Foraging for ingredients

We all have our favorite markets and I’m no exception.  Seaside Market in Cardiff, Lazy Acres in Encinitas, Vons in Encinitas and, last but not least, Sprouts Encinitas.  Most of the ingredients for this lunch were procured at Sprouts Encinitas.

First you need the sausages, in this case two.  We really like the chicken, spinach and feta AND the chicken, basil and pine nuts ones.  Although, in my humble opinion, ALL types of sausages taste better grilled not matter what variety.  So, maybe try several different types each time you grill.  For this lunch I bought one of each and cut them in half so we could each try both.  

Next come the bell peppers.  Usually I try to get yellow, red, orange and green.  Unfortunately, there were no orange ones available when I went to the market.  So, I only had three different ones.  They all have subtle differences in taste and look really cool when served together on a plate fresh off the grill.  A big old sweet onion grilled to perfection adds a nice extra flavor to the final meal too.  In this case, I only cut two slices.

I also like to serve some form of chilled salad with the grilled meat and veggies.  In this instance, it’s a cucumber, avocado, carrot and broccoli salad.  The light refreshing aspects of the salad balance the flavors of the grilled sausages and veggies.

Step 2:  Prepping

One time I mentioned how much we liked grilling the chicken sausages to the butcher at Sprouts.  He suggested I boil them first before grilling.  Man, what a difference!  They stay plumper and juicier.  Plus, it only takes a few minutes to get some grill marks on them.  So, I highly recommend boiling the sausages before grilling.

Cut the bell peppers into three or four slices each.  Add salt and black pepper to taste.  Then massage them with some EVOO, coating both sides with a shiny light film.  Cut the big old sweet onion into 1/4 inch thick slices.  Again, salt and pepper to taste.  Remember to massage the slices with some EVOO too.

If you’ve ever grilled onions, you know they can fall apart pretty easily when being flipped.  So here’s a little trick.  Before grilling the onion, stick a skewer through the onion to keep it together as it cooks.  So every time you turn the onion, grab one side of the skewer while using a spatula or tongs.  It’s sooooooo much easier.  CAUTION:  the skewer will be HOT, so be careful.

Chop the cucumber, carrots, broccoli, grape tomatoes and ripe avocado into bite sizes and place in a ceramic bowl.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Next mix in white wine vinegar and EVOO to the veggies.  As for the measures for the white wine vinegar and EVOO, I’d say use your own judgement.  Start with a little of each, say a 1/2 teaspoon, and season to taste.  When it’s just as you like it, cover and refrigerate.

Get your table set up with whatever you are going to need like: water, other beverages, napkins, salt and pepper, forks and knives, spicy brown and/or Dijon mustard, etc.  

Step 3:  Grilling

Grilling always sounds easy, but sometimes it can be challenging.  Probably the best tip I every got was to simply pay attention to the grill and the progress of whatever is on it.  I prefer a propane grill because you get instant fire and it’s easily adjustable.  Some traditionalists like charcoal though.  Either way, you want to clean off the grill rack before throwing on the sausages and veggies.  Even after wire brushing, it’s still a good idea to wipe down the rack with an olive oiled rag to get whatever residue is left.  Not only is the cooking surface clean, but an added benefit is that the food is less likely to stick to an oiled rack.  

While the the sausages are  finishing boiling, get the bell peppers started with the insides down toward the flame.  Speaking of the flame, start lower rather than higher.  You can always cook something more but you can’t un-overcook something (or un-burn it for that matter!).  Close the lid on your grill.  Keep checking every 4-5 minutes.  Once the inside of the peppers start getting that grilled look, flip them over to the outside skin side.

 

This can be tricky because the skins really like to burn and blister if you leave them on too long.  IF that happens, you can still save them by cleaning off the burned and blistered skins carefully under running water in your sink.  Have the garbage disposal ready to go though.  Then you can reheat the peppers briefly on the grill.  For some, this is the preferred method of preparing peppers.  But it’s also pretty messy.

While the pepper are cooking to perfection, get those sausages out of the water, oiled up with a bit of EVOO, and on the grill.  CAUTION: when the sausages come out of boiling water they are also very HOT. 

As the peppers begin to be finished, pile them up on top of each other away from the flame to keep them warm (inside down).  Putting the peppers on an aluminum foil covered plate also works if there is no place on the grill.  I like to put a pot holder on top of the aluminum foil to add some extra insulation to keep the food warm longer.

When the sausages have the grill marks you want on them, it’s time to arrange the serving plate AND…bon apetit!