Who else loves barbecuing in the summer? When it’s hot, grilling outside always beats cooking inside! I love having a couple of quick recipes up my sleeve for those times when you have to throw together dinner in a hurry. This is one of those recipes! This recipe is easy to prep and fast to cook. I love tomatoes – and these grilled garlic tomatoes actually work well when they aren’t super ripe. I like the Roma (or plum) tomatoes and they have fewer seeds than beefsteak tomatoes.
The grilled polenta holds up beautifully on the grill. It’s already prepared (available at most grocery stores), so your prep time is cut down considerably.
You can also serve the grilled polenta and the grilled garlic tomatoes separately (for people that don’t like their food touching), but I think they taste even better when they’re combined and you eat a bite of both together!
Not only is polenta it a little bit of a different side dish for your dinner, but it’s also gluten-free, so it’s a good side for celiacs or people following gluten-reduced diets. This is a vegetarian dish – switch butter for oil if you’re having vegans over and you’ll be good to go!
Want a quick main to go with this? Try my Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs, you can find the recipe here.
Leftover tomatoes can be pureed and used as a fast next day pasta sauce! [Ed.note: the grilled polenta is also great the next day with your egg instead of toast!]
Prep time: 5 minutes; Cook time: 8 minutes; Serves: 8
What you need:
- 8 Roma (plum) tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise, stem removed
- 3 tbsp butter (substitute oil for vegans)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 kg (2.2 lb) prepared polenta (in a tube), cut into 16 pieces about 1/2” thick (I used my finger as a gauge)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 large stalk of basil, finely sliced
- pepper to taste
What you do:
- Turn on your BBQ
- In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the butter
- Once the butter is melted, remove from heat and stir in the garlic, set aside
- Slice your polenta and tomatoes, try for uniform thickness
- Brush the polenta with olive oil on one side
- With the BBQ on high, place polenta oiled side down, and tomatoes cut side down, close lid
- Grill for 3 minutes, flip
- Brush polenta with oil and the cut side of the tomatoes with the garlic butter
- Close lid and cook for 5 minutes
- Move to plates
- Sprinkle tomatoes with chopped basil and grind pepper over them
- Place the grilled tomato on polenta round and serve
- Easy grilled polenta and grilled garlic tomatoes
- Perfect side dish
- Gluten-free and vegetarian
- Tricolori!
Grilled Polenta and Grilled Garlic Tomatoes
A fast and easy gluten free, vegetarian (and vegan with a minor adjustment) side.
Ingredients
- 8 Roma (plum) tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise, stem removed
- 3 tbsp butter (substitute oil for vegans)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 kg (2.2 lb) prepared polenta (in a tube), cut into 16 pieces about 1/2” thick (I used my finger as a gauge)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 large stalk of basil, finely sliced
- pepper to taste
Instructions
- Turn on your BBQ
- In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the butter
- Once the butter is melted, remove from heat and stir in the garlic, set aside
- Brush the polenta with olive oil on one side
- With the BBQ on high, place polenta oiled side down, and tomatoes cut side down, close lid
- Grill for 3 minutes, flip
- Brush polenta with oil and the cut side of the tomatoes with the garlic butter
- Close lid and cook for 5 minutes
- Move to plates
- Sprinkle tomatoes with slice basil and grind pepper over them
- Place the grilled tomato on polenta round and serve
- Easy grilled polenta and grilled garlic tomatoes
- Perfect side dish
- Gluten-free and vegetarian
I’m starving right now and this looks so fantastic and full of flavor!!!! 😋😋😋
And it is gluten-free!