• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Wimpy Vegetarian
  • Home
  • About
    • About Susan
    • Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • Recipe Index
  • Essential Pantry
    • 5 Tips for Perfect Cooked Dried Chickpeas
    • Reduced Balsamic Vinegar
  • Work With Me
    • Partnership Opportunities
    • Media Kit
  • Contact Me
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Meal Plans
  • Vegetarian 101
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • StumbleUpon
    • Twitter
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Meal Plans
    • Vegetarian 101
    • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • StumbleUpon
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » MAINS

    Grilled Vegetable Skewers over Zoodles

    June 25, 2018 15 Comments

    Skewers of potatoes, peppers, onions, zucchini, tomatoes, and halloumi over garlicky zoodles.

    I'm trying hard to go low-ish carb, swapping cauliflower rice for, well, regular rice, and spiralized zucchini for pasta. These grilled vegetable skewers of halloumi, peppers, tomatoes, zucchini, potatoes and onions over zoodles is a perfect example of my dinner. It's not Whole30, but I think of it as Whole30-Lite. Or maybe Whole29. And this dish was uber-easy, one of my new meal requirements. It looks a lot more complicated than it is.

    Your first question might be - what the heck is halloumi. It's a Greek cheese that is semi-hard, unripened and brined. Halloumi, typically made with goat and sheep milk, is perfect for grilling and frying because of it's very high melting temperature. Sometimes, cow milk is added to the mix. It's not very tangy, but has a hardy milky cheese flavor. I find it packaged in slabs that are easily sliced with a sharp knife. For the skewers, I sliced a slab into cubes and threaded them onto the same skewer with zucchini and tomatoes.

    Skewers of potatoes, peppers, onions, zucchini, tomatoes, and halloumi over garlicky zoodles.

    Cook Like a Chef:

    #1. Group similar cooking-time vegetables on the same skewers. I threaded baby bell peppers, potatoes, and onion together, and as I mention above, put the tomatoes, zucchini and halloumi together. The potatoes need to be pre-cooked for 2 minutes in the microwave first, as they take a little longer than anything else.

    #2. Use baby bell peppers to save time. Unlike larger bell peppers, they're small enough to be threaded whole onto the skewers (as you can see in the photos).

    #3. A grill pan or mat makes clean up MUCH easier, and help prevent shooting flames from the marinade. Here are my favorites:

    I like the trays on the left because they're non-stick, and have great handles that makes it easy to place on the grill and remove them. Click on the photo to check them out on Amazon.

    I love the mats on the right because they're non-stick, dishwasher-safe, and thin enough to give you lovely grill marks. You can even use them in the oven up to 500˚F. Mine have lasted for years now, without any sign of wear, and have a life-time warranty. Click on the photo to check them out on Amazon.

    #4. Zucchini is loaded with water, and any sauté of them for longer than a few quick minutes will result in a large puddle of zucchini juice in the pan, and very limp zoodles. If you purchase zoodles already spiralized from zucchini at your market, be sure to use them within the next day or two. Otherwise, they will become a little soggy, and as soon as they hit a hot pan, they'll release all that lovely moisture.

    #5. Make the marinade / dressing ahead of time to save yourself a few extra minutes. And feel free to use whatever vegetable you prefer. Asparagus, for example, can easily be added to the mix.

    Skewers of potatoes, peppers, onions, zucchini, tomatoes, and halloumi over garlicky zoodles.
    Print Recipe
    No ratings yet

    Grilled Vegetable Skewers Over Zoodles

    Cuisine: Dinner
    Servings: 4

    Ingredients

    Marinade / Dressing

    • 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
    • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
    • 1 tablespoon honey
    • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
    • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
    • 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

    Skewers

    • 6 small red potatoes halved or quartered (depending on their size)
    • 10 baby bell peppers assorted colors
    • 1 medium red onion sliced into wedges large enough to skewer
    • 2 medium zucchini sliced into 8 large chunks each
    • 12 1- inch chunks of halloumi cheese large enough to skewer
    • 15 cherry tomatoes

    Zoodles

    • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
    • 2 tablespoons minced garlic or garlic paste
    • 6 cups zoodles spiralized zucchini
    • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
    • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
    • ¼ cup shredded Asiago or Parmesan cheese
    • 2 tablespoons slivered basil for garnish

    Instructions

    Marinade / Dressing:

    • Whisk together all of the ingredients for the marinade / dressing in a small bowl. Gradually whisk in the olive oil. This can be made up to several days in advance and refrigerated.

    Skewers:

    • Pre-cook the potato halves for 2 minutes in the microwave oven. Toss all of the vegetables, including the potatoes, and cheese in the marinade, and soak for 15 minutes while you fire up the grill. Slide the potatoes, onions, and peppers together on a few skewers. Slide the zucchini, tomatoes, halloumi together on your remaining skewers. You should end up with 8 skewers, depending on how long your skewers are.
    • Oil the grill if you're not using a grill pan. Place the skewers with the potatoes on the grill first, and cook for 2 minutes. Add the zucchini skewers, and grill for 2 minutes. Turn the skewers over and cook for an additional 2 - 4 minutes until charred, and softened. If grilling with a grill pan or sheet, I grill over the direct flame on medium. If not, I use indirect heat to make sure they don't catch on fire from the marinade.
    • Remove from the heat while you quickly make the zoodles.

    Zoodles:

    • Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat and add the garlic. Stir it around in the pan, and add the spiralized zucchini, lemon juice, and salt. Toss for 2 - 3 minutes, only until they begin to relax in the pan, and place on a serving plate. Sprinkle with grated Asiago or Parmesan cheese, top with the skewers, and finish with a flurry of basil.

    Notes

    Make Vegan and Whole30:

    Nix the cheese on the zucchini and the halloumi on the skewers.

    For the Wimpy Vegetarian Table:

    Either cubes of chicken, salmon, or large peeled and deveined shrimp work great with this dish!

    « Book Launch: Simply Vegetarian Cookbook - (Fuss Free)
    And the Winner is....Spicy Skillet Eggs (Mexican-ish Shakshuka) ! »

    SIGN UP!

    Want to add more vegetarian dishes to your dinners but need it to be easy? Subscribe here and get my 5 SECRETS TO FUSS-FREE VEGETARIAN DINNERS!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Liz

      June 26, 2018 at 9:10 am

      We fire up the grill every Sunday night, but I haven't grilled veggies in ages! Your skewers will be the perfect side dish for our next cookout!

      Reply
      • The Wimpy Vegetarian

        June 26, 2018 at 9:30 am

        This is such an easy way to do them! Thanks so much!

        Reply
    2. Rita

      June 26, 2018 at 10:46 am

      Glad you said you're going "low-ish carb". People tend to think of carbs as starch, when all veggies and fruits are carbs (carbohydrates). I've a grill pan that I love, with higher sides. It, and my recipes, will be in my local paper in July, featuring grilled veggies. A note: Always pre-heat the grill pan on the grill before adding the veggies.

      Reply
      • The Wimpy Vegetarian

        June 26, 2018 at 5:42 pm

        Exactly, there are definitely carbs in vegetables - not as much (generally) as in fruit, but they're there! Which local paper?? And I didn't know to preheat the grill pan! Totally makes sense. Thanks for that great tip!

        Reply
        • Rita

          June 26, 2018 at 6:28 pm

          My grilled veggies will be in the Los Altos Town Crier first or second Wednesday in July. https://www.losaltosonline.com/special-sections2/sections/food-a-wine/57993-cider-from-a-kiwi-yes

          Reply
    3. Rita

      June 26, 2018 at 10:49 am

      Here's a link to my grilled veggies blog post http://getcookingsimply.com/grill-your-veggies-its-easy/

      Reply
      • The Wimpy Vegetarian

        June 26, 2018 at 5:43 pm

        Thanks so much!!

        Reply
    4. Jane, The Heritage Cook

      June 26, 2018 at 12:51 pm

      What a beautiful dish Susan, everyone would love to dive into it! I love grilled halloumi and adding it really bumps up the flavor. Brava!!

      Reply
      • The Wimpy Vegetarian

        June 26, 2018 at 5:44 pm

        Halloumi is wonderful! I love it's mild but definable taste. Unfortunately I have to drive to Reno to get it since the stores in my town don't carry it 🙁

        Reply
    5. Kristy Bernardo

      June 26, 2018 at 2:34 pm

      I'm going low-carb, too, and this dish looks AMAZING! The char on those peppers! I'm definitely making this for my next barbecue.

      Reply
      • The Wimpy Vegetarian

        June 26, 2018 at 5:45 pm

        I have to admit I feel so much better since cutting out grains, although I seriously miss pasta right now. So there are lots of zoodles at our house right now. Thanks so much!!

        Reply
    6. Karen

      June 26, 2018 at 7:06 pm

      The colors in these grilled vegetables are beautiful. What a gorgeous dish! I need to try halloumi!

      Reply
      • The Wimpy Vegetarian

        June 26, 2018 at 9:45 pm

        Thanks so much Karen. Full confession: I bought halloumi a few times and then waited too long to try it, and had to throw it away. About a year ago, I finally got my act together and tried it. I loved it!

        Reply
    7. Carol Borchardt

      June 27, 2018 at 11:54 am

      Would you believe I haven't tried halloumi cheese yet? That clearly needs to change! This recipe gives me the perfect reason to finally try it! Such pretty photos, too!

      Reply
    8. Laura | Mother Would Know

      June 28, 2018 at 1:46 pm

      I'm a huge fan of both grilled vegetables and halloumi - why haven't I ever thought (before this) to pair them? Luckily you've given me the template. And while I'm not doing Whole30, or even Whole 29:), the zoodles sound like a fun addition. what a marvelous dish!

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    I'm a mostly vegetarian married to a mostly carnivore and am on a constant hunt for healthy, delicious recipes we'll both like. Most recipes here are vegetarian with tips for adding meat or fish for the meat-eaters at the table. Whether you're vegetarian, or just wanting to eat less meat, I hope you'll find inspiration here to try something new for your own table, even if you're sharing it with someone with different eating preferences.

    More about me →

    READER FAVORITES

    • Readers' Favorite 2021 Recipes
    • Asparagus Salad with Potatoes and Lentils in a Lemon Vinaigrette
    • Foolproof Instant Pot Peach Cobbler + CrispLid
    • Easy Sweet Potato Latkes

    Follow Us

    5 TIPS FOR COOKING DRIED CHICKPEAS

    5 tips on how to cook dried chickpeas

    10 TIPS FOR GOING VEGETARIAN

    10 Tips on how to go vegetarian

    Purchase My Cookbook!!

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Recipe Index

    Copyright © 2022 The Wimpy Vegetarian

    • Pinterest
    • Facebook
    • Yummly
    • Twitter