Aluminum foil is a grill master’s friend because it has so many uses. Today I’m going to show you how to grill in foil packets. Creating a foil packet or pouch is a really simple way to grill up some small vegetables, meats, or seafood. The nice thing about using the foil pack is it locks in all that flavor, and it cooks quick too.
I usually just cook up veggies in a foil packet, but you can turn it into a complete meal as well by adding in meat or seafood. For example you can take some veggies, shrimp, and a bit of seasonings or sauce and have yourself a complete meal. Today however, I’m going to focus on grilling some Asian-style veggies in the foil pouch.
First off get yourself some heavy duty aluminum foil. Tear off 4 pieces that are about 14×16 inches. Take a little butter and spread it on the middle of each piece of foil. Now it is time to throw some vegetables onto the foil. Since I’m going with an Asian-style mix I’m going to use carrots, snow peas, mushrooms, scallions, fresh ginger, and garlic.
Here is what you will need:
4 pieces of aluminum foil, 14×16 inches
3-4 carrots, sliced diagonally into 1/4 inch pieces
8 oz. Snow peas
8 oz. muchrooms, sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 scallions, whites only cut into match sticks
1 piece fresh ginger, 1 inch sliced into match sticks
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 tsp toasted sesame seeds
1 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp rice wine or dry sherry
4 tbsp butter
salt and pepper
When grilling vegetables in the foil packets it is important to slice them pretty thin, so they cook evenly and quickly. When assembling the packet place the harder, denser vegetables on the foil first, and the light, watery vegetables go on top. So in our case, place the sliced carrots down first, then peas, scallions, mushrooms, garlic, and ginger. Sprinkle on some soy sauce and sesame seeds and add a bit more butter.
Now, fold half of the foil over the vegetables to make a rectangular packet. Fold the short ends over several times to make a tight seal on each end. At this point you will have one long end open on each of the pouches. Add in your rice wine or sherry. Fold over that final edge several times to seal the packet.
Set up your gas or charcoal grill for direct cooking over high heat. Once your grill is ready place the foil pouches on the grate. Grill until the packets are puffed up quite a bit, this will signal to you that they are done. It should take around 8 to 10 minutes for them to be fully cooked. Once they are done take them off the grill and serve. Slice into each packet with a knife carefully because a lot of steam will escape.
That is how to grill in foil packets. It really is a simple way to grill. Like I said before you can make a complete meal out of these by adding in some meat, chicken, or seafood. Also experiment with different seasonings and marinades. They foil packets are great for camping as well, because you could toss them directly on the coals too.
image courtesy of sporkist/flickr