Cooking with gas: Up your outdoor cooking game just in time for summer

Since we have gone from winter to summer in a big way, with high temps and humidity here in late spring, I think we’re all more motivated than ever to move our cooking from the stove to the grill. Keep the heat outdoors, keep food simple, keep effort to a minimum.

While we typically think about grilling meats and main dishes, it’s easy to prep the entire meal outdoors on the ol’ Char-broil (or over charcoal, if that’s how you roll). Here are a few ideas to inspire your grilling – especially side dishes – and a couple of favorite recipes.

Foil is your friend. It’s so easy to grill vegetables in a foil packet. At least once a week, I’ll do this: Start with a pound of new potatoes, quartered, and a sliced sweet onion. Toss the veggies with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Take a large, long sheet of foil and rub it with a bit of olive oil; pile the veggies on one half of the foil and fold the other half over. Roll the edges of the foil inward to seal up and create a packet. Grill over medium heat for 20-25 minutes.

Lots of different vegetables do well with the foil treatment: eggplant and tomatoes (a grilled ratatouille), zucchini, sweet potatoes, carrots (steam lightly before wrapping in foil). Finish grilled veggies with lots of chopped fresh herbs and grated Parmesan cheese.

More: 14 of the most common grilling mistakes

Have a go-to dressing. My Easy Lemony Vinaigrette is pretty much always on hand in my fridge. I shake it up in a lidded Mason jar and use it on everything: potato salad, grilled vegetables, a pile of greens topped with leftover grilled steak or chicken.

Be simple and traditional. Later in summer, there’s absolutely nothing better than thick slabs of sliced garden-ripe tomato drizzled with lemon vinaigrette and dusted liberally with salt and pepper. Don’t forget the fresh basil, too.

Grill lots and plan for leftovers. Make cooking easy by grilling a double batch of steak or chicken and using leftovers for salads, sandwiches or tacos. The grilled flank steak here is great the next day on warm corn tortillas with salsa and avocado.

Bryn Mooth is the author of The Findlay Market Cookbook and the editor of Edible Ohio Valley; she shares recipes and kitchen tips at writes4food.com.

TENDER MARINATED FLANK STEAK

Neil Luken of the eponymous Findlay Market stand shared this recipe for The Findlay Market Cookbook. He says it’s best cooked medium rare (well done will make it too tough) and thinly sliced at an angle.

serves 6

2 pounds flank steak

1/4 to 1/3 cup Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/3 cup Worcestershire or teriyaki sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Rub the flank steak with the Dijon mustard, making sure it is coated evenly.

In a bowl large enough to contain the steak, whisk together the salt, pepper and garlic powder. Add Worcestershire or teriyaki sauce and minced garlic; stir to combine. Place flank steak in the marinade and turn to coat. Cover and marinate several hours or overnight.

Preheat the grill to high, direct heat. Sear the flank steak on high for 3 minutes on each side. Reduce the grill heat to medium heat and cook another 1-3 minutes each side.

When the steak has cooked to medium-rare, remove it to a cutting board. Cover with aluminum foil and it let rest for 10 minutes. Make thin, wide slices across the grain, and at a slight diagonal. Transfer the slices to a warmed serving platter.

More: Food truck festival Friday and where else to find mobile meals this week

POTATO-GREEN BEAN SALAD

This is a French-style potato salad, with lemon vinaigrette instead of mayonnaise (which also makes it warm weather picnic-safe). It’s quick to make indoors and is a terrific side dish for grilled steak or chicken.

serves 6-8

1 pound small new potatoes, scrubbed and cut into bite-sized pieces

1/2 pound slender green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces

*Easy Lemony Vinaigrette

Handful of fresh herbs of your choice, chopped

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Bring a pot of well-salted water to a boil; add the new potatoes and cook for 10 minutes. Add the green beans and continue cooking until the beans are crisp-tender and the potatoes are tender. Drain and transfer the vegetables to a serving bowl; while they're still warm, drizzle in lemon vinaigrette to coat. Let cool. Before serving, season to taste with salt and pepper, and gently stir in the chopped herbs. Add more dressing if needed.

*EASY LEMONY VINAIGRETTE

Make this your go-to homemade salad dressing this summer. It’s so versatile.

Makes about 1 1/4 cups

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 large garlic clove, smashed

1/2 cup olive oil

In a lidded glass jar, shake together the lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, lemon zest, salt and pepper, until the salt dissolves. Add the smashed garlic clove and shake. Add olive oil and shake until blended. Let the dressing sit for an hour at room temperature, then remove the garlic clove. Store up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.