This Pan Grilled Mixed Vegetables and Halloumi Cheese is a great easy way to grill a bulk amount of vegetable in no time. It’s easy and great for when you are busy and need a quick meal to serve. They’re good on their own, or as a side dish. 

Vegetables are one thing that I often have in most of my meals. I love vegetables as much as I love my sweet treats. Most of the time I make small serving dishes, but when it comes to vegetables, I do not mind making a big batch that I could easily meal prep for the whole week. It is such a convenient item that I can add to my lunch meals. 

Why is Pan Grilled Method Easier

This method is pan grilling, at least that what I call it. Instead of cooking individual small pieces of vegetables, the vegetables are sliced into bite size pieces and cook together in a grilling pan. The vegetables end up juicy and more flavorful because of the addition of dressing before grilling it. This is more like a grilled vegetable salad, you can look at it this way. 

What Vegetables To Use

Frankly, you can use almost anything that you can grill. My favorite are yellow and green zucchini,yellow onion,  bell peppers, mushroom, snap peas. Sometimes I also add boiled corn. Avoid adding vegetables that have too much juice, like tomato. When they burst, they will release the juice and it will steam the vegetables. Not a biggie, but I you want a charred grilled look, you want to stick to vegetables that are not too juicy. 

What is Halloumi Cheese

Halloumi or haloumi is a semi-hard, unripened, brined cheese made from a mixture of goat’s and sheep’s milk, and sometimes also cow’s milk. It has a high melting point and so can easily be fried or grilled. This property makes it a popular meat substitute (source: wikipedia)

How to Grill Halloumi Cheese

Imagine my surprise when I found out about this cheese that can be directly grilled without creating a puddle of melted cheese. I got really excited and so I thought I should give it a try.

• Slice the Halloumi Cheese– I like to keep mine quite thick, about 1/2-inch thick. I normally buy a small pack (160g) then I simply cut it into 4 pieces. Sometime, I cut it into 8 cubes. Do not cut it too thin, although it has a very high melting point, it is still cheese. When you cut it too thin, it could break during grilling. Brush the cheese with olive oil.
• Oil Your Grill and Pre-Heat – To avoid sticking, make sure to properly oil the top of your grill and pre-heat it before using, about 350F.
• Grill the Halloumi – Once hot, place the halloumi on the grill. Flip each slice after about 3 minutes, or once golden brown grill marks appear. Grill on other side then remove from grill. Avoid flipping the cheese often, just like when you grill meat.
  • Alternatively, you can arrange the halloumi cheese on a lightly greased non-stick pan and cook on stove top until nicely browned. You can also use a grill pan and cook it on the grill.

How to Serve Halloumi Cheese

This can be served as is, but I really like eating it with bread, fresh greens, grilled vegetables or with sliced tomato and slight drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Squeeze some fresh lemon juice and sprinkle some fresh herbs on top if you have any, it enhances the salty flavor of the cheese.

Tips in Pan Grilling

1. Cut the vegetables in bite size pieces, but not too small that it will become too mushy. 
2. Season the vegetables before grilling. Whether you use my lemon Herb Honey Mustard dressing or not, season it. You can use store-bought salad dressing just avoid using cream based dressing. Go for oil based dressing so it helps in creating nice charred look when the vegetable grills
3. Use a large grilling pan. This allow most if not all the vegetables to have direct contact with the pan. If the pan is too crowded with vegetables, it will create a steam making the vegetables soggy. If you do not have a large pan, grill the vegetables in two batches. 
4. Some vegetables cooks faster than others. Some require more direct contact to heat, like Zucchini. I like to arrange the zucchini lying flat on the pan, so it gets the nice grill mark. The likes of Snap peas are good to cook on top as it cooks good even with slight heat. Just watch the vegetables and flip after 5 minutes, or check the bottom if they start to get the nice grill marks.

Ingredients:

• 1 Medium Zucchini
• 1/2 medium Yellow Onion
• 1/2 medium Red Bell Pepper
• 1/2 medium Yellow Bell Pepper
• Snap Peas
• 4 pieces large brown Mushroom 
• 160g Halloumi Cheese 

Dressing

• 2 tablespoon Olive Oil
• Juice of 1/2 Lemon
• 1 teaspoon Honey
• 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard 
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt 
• 1/ teaspoon Black Pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon Italian Seasoning

Instructions:

1. Pre-heat the Grill: Start pre-heating the grill while you prepare the ingredients.
2. Make the Dressing: Mix all the dressing ingredients in a bowl or glass. Stir to combine. Set aside.
3. Prepare the Vegetables: Cut the vegetables in bite size pieces. Wash and drain excess water. Pour half of the dressing and toss.
4. Pan Grill the Vegetables: Transfer the vegetables in a grill pan. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until you get the texture that you like. Use a large pan to avoid over crowding. if you do not have a large pan, grill the vegetables in 2 batches this way the vegetables will have the chance to have direct contact to the heat of the pan.
5. Prepare the Halloumi Cheese: Slice the halloumi chesse to about 1/3 – 1/3 inch thick. Brush with the dressing.
6. Grill the Halloumi Cheese: Arrange the halloumi cheese on the grill and cook each side for 3 minutes or until it starts to have grill marks. Do not flip often as this could break the surface of the cheese. You should be able to lift it easily once it starts to brown.
   • Alternatively, you can arrange the halloumi cheese on a lightly greased non-stick pan and cook on stove top until nicely browned. You can also use a grill pan and cook it on the grill.
7. Serve with bread, steam rice, or as a side dish,  

Serves 2-3

What to Do with Leftover Halloumi

Cut it into smaller pieces and you can use it for salad, or even grate it for sprinkling over pasta. I also used it one time to make cheese sandwich just like when you add cheese in any sandwich.

Nutrition Information

Nutritional Information was calculated using Veryfitwell Recipe Calorie and Nutrition Calculator. For details about Nutritional Information in this website, please read the Disclaimer page.

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