I admit I’m one of those people who gets hooked on things. I wouldn’t call it an obsession, though a therapist might. It’s just when I like something, I like it! I’ll let those profound words sink in for a moment….
So a couple weeks ago, my college roomie, Stef, and I went to this great Japanese BBQ place called Gyu Kaku (please excuse the unfortunate name). It’s a “cook your own food over this open grill” type of place. Which I both love and hate. Why am I spending a lot of money to COOK my own food, and perhaps run the risk of burning my own food? But we went for happy hour and sushi and spent only $34 between the two of us—including alcohol-laced drinks. Winning!
Anyway, my point here is that we ordered spinach and it came wrapped in a foil packet and we were instructed to cook it over the open flame in the middle of our table for 2-3 minutes on each side. Now, I LOVE SPINACH, and this might be the biggest understatement of all time (except when that one guy from that one church said the world was ending that “one” time and then when it didn’t, he said he miscalculated. Yeah).
For my own cooked spinach, I usually just heat up some oil, throw in a couple of smashed garlic cloves until they brown, then dump a whole package of spinach in, toss it in the oil, cover for 2 minutes. Toss and cover again for another 2 minutes. Then watch sadly as the whole package of spinach turns into two measly portions.
But recently, I took the Gyu Kaku route and made my spinach over the open fire.
Wanna recreate this delicious side? It’s super easy (and no clean up!)
“Grilled” Spinach
- 1 package of spinach
- 1 Tbsp. butter, cubed
- 1 shallot, minced or grated
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Red pepper flakes, optional
Package it Up
- Arrange the spinach on a large piece of heavy-duty foil.
- Place the cubed butter evenly on the spinach. Throw the shallot on top, sprinkle with salt and pepper (and red pepper flakes, if using).
- Fold over the foil to create a “packet” and close tightly.
- Cook on one side over medium to medium-high heat on a gas grill for two minutes.
- Flip and cook for another two to three minutes.
- Open up your packet of grilled spinach and enjoy!
For the Love of Food 
Great option to take to fourth of July BBQs. How large is a package of spinach for you? 5 oz?
I also love cooking sugar snap peas the same way.
Hi Ground Cherry, thanks for reading!
Yes, this recipe calls for 5 oz. Though I bought a 1-lb box of spinach and did the same thing on the grill, just about tripled the butter though. Could have easily done it with just double the butter. The more spinach the better!
Great tip for the sugar snap peas! Definitely going to try that one, out!
{slurp} My mouth started to water as I read this. It’s going on the “To cook soon in the near future” list. As always, I enthusiastically enjoy your witty writing.
Thanks, as always, for reading Courtney! This is so easy (and yummy) I could make it every night!
I made this tonight at the boyfriend’s family BBQ. They loved it. I loved it. It was a glorious event shared by all. So thankful you shared this recipe!
Be still, my beating heart 😀