Perfectly Grilled Fruit
LISA GRENTZ, MS, RDN, CD/LDN, FAND
Whether skewered together, placed in a wire basked, or placed directly on the grill grates, you can grill most any kind of fruit. Grilling fruit allows the natural sugar to caramelize, intensifying sweetness. Popular fruits that taste amazing when grilled are apple, pear, banana, melon, peach, nectarine, plum, and pineapple.
Grilled fruit is great on its own as a summer side dish or dessert, tossed into salads, mixed into yogurt or hot cereal, used as a topping for pizza, burgers, or quinoa/chia pudding, or chopped up into salsa.
Here are some tips for grilling your favorite fruits to perfection:
Apples:
Peel and core the apple to remove seeds. Slice apples about ¾-inch thick. Lightly sprinkle lemon juice over the apple slices to prevent browning and place on lightly greased grill grates or grill rack. Cook over medium heat for 7-9 minutes, flipping halfway.
Peaches, Nectarines, and Plums:
Slice fruit in half and remove the pit. Place fruit cut-side down on lightly greased grill grates. Grill over medium-low heat until the flesh is slightly tender and lightly browned, about 4-6 minutes for nectarines and plums and about 8-10 minutes for peaches. Flip the fruit halfway through the grilling process.
Pineapple:
Remove the skin, core, and slice into rings or spears. Brush grill grates with oil. Place pineapple rings or spears on grill grates and grill over medium heat for about 3 minutes, flip, and grill for an additional 3 minutes.
Watermelon:
Slice watermelon into wedges about 1-inch thick, keeping the rind attached. Brush grill grates with oil. Place watermelon wedges on grill grates and grill over medium heat for 2-3 minutes on each side.
*It is important note that fruit contain a lot of water, which gets hot when grilled, so allow fruit to cool after removing it from the grill to prevent all that juicy deliciousness from burning the inside of your mouth.