Grilled Vegetable Salad with Chimichurri

Corn and carrots hit the grill hot. They go dark and sweet. This is what happens when you throw them in a bowl with romaine, avocado, and a sauce that tastes like garlic and vinegar had a fight and then made peace.

Why You’ll Love This Grilled Veg Chimichurri Salad

Takes 26 minutes total. Twelve to prep, fourteen on the grill. That’s the whole thing. Vegan grilled salad that actually fills you. Not sad lettuce with some garnish. Works straight off the grill or cold the next day—tastes maybe better cold. The sauce soaks in overnight. No meat, no dairy. Just vegetables charred the right way. The avocado stays soft even though everything else is hot. It’s a texture thing. Works.

Chimichurri Sauce With Fresh Herbs

Parsley and dill. Not basil. That’s the move here. Parsley’s the base—a third of a cup, chopped fine. Dill’s sharp, kind of like nothing else, works with the vinegar.

Four and a half tablespoons of olive oil. Not less. Not more. Four and a half.

White vinegar. Two tablespoons. Not apple cider, not red wine. White’s clean. Sharp in a way that cuts through grilled vegetables.

Maple syrup. A teaspoon. Sugar rounds the acid out. Just a tiny bit. Tastes like the vinegar isn’t yelling at you anymore.

Salt goes in during—three quarters of a teaspoon—then cracked black pepper at the end. Fresh pepper. Not the stuff that’s been sitting.

Mix it hard. Like you mean it. That’s it.

How to Make a Grilled Veg Chimichurri Salad

Grill goes to high. Actually high. Not medium-high. You want char. Wait three minutes after it gets hot. Brush the grates with oil—prevents the sticking thing.

Corn and carrots go on at the same time. They need twelve to fourteen minutes. Turn them every couple minutes so they don’t just burn on one side. You’re looking for dark spots, almost black in places. That’s when they taste like something.

Listen for the sound. Quiet hiss at first, then almost nothing. When you flip them and they stick for a second before sliding? That’s caramelization. That’s what you want.

Carrots take the same time as corn. They go from hard to actually soft inside. You’ll feel it when you poke them with tongs. Should give a little.

Pull them off. Let them cool. You can touch them in about two minutes. They keep cooking even after you take them off the grill.

Charred Vegetables With Parsley Dill Sauce

Corn kernels come off the cob once it’s cool enough. Just run a knife down the side. They fall off easy.

Carrots slice diagonal. Thick strips. Maybe a quarter inch. Not thin. Thick holds the char.

Bowl gets the corn, the carrots, the romaine—torn up, not chopped. Half the chimichurri goes in now. Toss it. Get everything coated but don’t destroy the lettuce.

Taste it. Fix it. Salt? Add salt. Too sharp? Nothing you can do now—don’t add more vinegar. Tastes right? Move on.

Plate goes down first. The salad mixture. Then avocado wedges on top. Not mixed in. On top. They stay soft that way, don’t get bruised.

Edible flowers if you have them. Nasturtiums, pansies, marigolds. Not necessary. Nice if you do.

Remaining sauce on the side. People drizzle more if they want. Usually they do.

Grilled Vegetable Salad with Chimichurri

By Emma

Prep:

12 min

Cook:

14 min

Total:

26 min

Servings:

4 servings

Ingredients

• Chimichurri Sauce
• 12 g (1/3 cup) fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
• 12 g (1/3 cup) fresh dill sprigs, chopped
• 72 ml (4 1/2 tbsp) olive oil
• 30 ml (2 tbsp) white vinegar
• 5 ml (1 tsp) maple syrup
• 3 ml (3/4 tsp) salt
• Salad
• 2 ears fresh corn
• 400 g (14 oz) small carrots
• 180 g (4 cups) romaine lettuce leaves, torn
• 1 avocado, cut into thin wedges, tossed lightly with lemon juice
• Edible flowers (nasturtiums, pansies, marigolds, etc.), optional

Method

1. Chimichurri Sauce
2. 1 Combine parsley, dill, olive oil, white vinegar, maple syrup, and salt in a bowl. Stir vigorously. Season with cracked black pepper.
3. Salad
4. 2 Heat grill to high. Brush grill grates with oil to prevent sticking.
5. 3 Grill corn and carrots for about 12 to 14 minutes, turning occasionally, until caramelized and cooked through. Remove and let cool slightly.
6. 4 Cut kernels off the cobs, slice carrots diagonally into thick strips.
7. 5 In a large bowl, toss corn kernels, carrot strips, and torn romaine with half the chimichurri sauce. Taste, adjust salt and acidity if needed.
8. 6 Plate the salad mixture. Arrange avocado wedges on top. Sprinkle with edible flowers if using.
9. 7 Serve with remaining chimichurri on the side for extra drizzle.

Nutritional information

Calories

230

Protein

3g

Carbs

15g

Fat

18g

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Frequently Asked Questions About Grilled Veg Chimichurri Salad

Can I make this vegan grilled salad ahead of time? Chimichurri’s fine the night before. Actually better—flavors get louder. Grill the vegetables earlier in the day. Cold salad works. Don’t add the avocado until you serve it. Avocado gets weird if it sits wet.

What if I don’t have fresh dill for the chimichurri sauce? Parsley does the heavy lifting. You could use cilantro instead of dill. Different flavor. Still works. Or just add more parsley. Haven’t tried it without one of them. Probably tastes flat.

How do I keep the avocado from turning brown? Lemon juice. Toss it light. Not bruised. The acid slows the browning down. Not forever. Just keeps it longer.

Can I use a different vinegar in the chimichurri? White vinegar’s specific here. Apple cider’s softer. Red wine’s heavier. They work fine probably. But white’s clean. Sharp without being aggressive. That’s the point.

Do I have to grill the vegetables or can I roast them? Oven works. 425 degrees. Maybe eighteen minutes. Different flavor—less char, more even cook. Grilling gets those dark spots. That’s where the taste lives.

What vegetables work for this summer chimichurri salad? Zucchini’s easy. Bell peppers. Green beans. Asparagus even. Corn and carrots are the baseline. Other stuff’s fine too. Grilling makes anything taste better than it probably deserves.