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Summer Grilling Tips

Charcoal or Gas?

• This is always a big question. Purists love charcoal, and realists enjoy the versatility of gas. Both have their pros and cons.

• Using Charcoal

  Charcoal lends a fabulous smoky flavor to any food you grill, and evokes the smells and excitement that summer grilling is all about. If you use lighter fluid, make sure to let the fluid burn off completely before placing your food on the grill. Coals are ready to be used for cooking when they have heated to a grayish-white ashy color. This color is a sure sign that it’s time to place your food on the grill to cook.

• Using Gas

  Gas is quick, fast, and ready with a moment’s notice, requiring minimal set up and clean up. It’s also easy to regulate the temperature, making cooking less stressful and ensuring consistent timing with your recipes.

Searing Temperature

• You want your grill hot so as to sear your food and create that flavor-packed taste from the seared grill marks and high heat.

  There is much debate as to whether searing seals in juices or lets them out. The bottom line is searing will impart your food with great flavor and create tasty visual appeal. Go for it!

The Right Tools

• The right tool for the right job is essential for summer fun and stress free success on the grill.

  • Grill brush
    A clean grill is a happy grill. A 2-sided brush (1 side soft bristles, 1 side stiff bristles) is a must for cleaning off your grill before and after cooking. This will ensure your food cooks properly, does not pick up any unwanted flavors, and is safe and ready for use each time.

  • Tongs
    A long-handled pair of metal tongs works wonders for keeping your hands/fingers out of harm’s way of the heat and splatters of the grill. Shorter tongs are easier to handle, but you may find the safety that longer tongs afford you are a good trade-off.

    Meat fork
    While tongs are meant for turning foods, a meat fork is meant to lift fully cooked food. A long-handled, 2-pronged, pointed fork can work wonders for lifting larger cooked items. It can also prove valuable when carving steaks. Be careful, though, as a meat fork will pierce food and allow precious juices to drip free. Always use this utensil for lifting versus turning food.

    Kitchen Towels/Hot Pads
    Using older kitchen towels/hot pads that you don’t care as much if they get dirty from the spoils of the grill is a valuable tool for carrying hot dishes, grabbing hot utensils, or reaching over the grill while cooking. Kitchen mitts could work too, but why make things hotter on your hands when you are already cooking over a hot grill in the hot sun?

    Spatula
    A wide metal spatula with perforations or slits makes flipping fish, meats, burgers, and veggies a snap. Look for one with a long handle and a wide metal end. The perforations will allow grease to be left on the grill instead of on your serving platter or plate.

    Basting Brush
    This little tool makes basting food with your favorite sauce easy. Look for the newer brushes with the heat proof bristles, as they are not only much safer than the older style bristles but also easier to clean and work with. Most of these newer brushes can be rinsed with warm soapy water and placed in your dishwasher for final/safe cleaning.

    Thermometer
    Invest in a quality thermometer. The smaller pocket-size thermometers work quite well, and a thermometer can be a good “gut check” for those who don’t feel as comfortable cooking by just feel and time.

    Spray bottle
    This little grill side companion is great to have by your side. A little spray of water works wonders when you have a flare up on the grill.

    Charcoal Chimney
    A metal chimney for heating charcoal is a great time saver for starting your coals. Simply place some paper towels in the bottom of the chimney, then top with charcoal briquettes and light the paper towels over your grill. The charcoal will be white hot and ready to use in about 15 minutes or less. Carefully pour the piping hot coals into your grill and start cooking.

Keep it Simple

• You can easily make your cooking out experience stress-free and fun-filled.

  • Quick Side Dishes
    Either pre-make or purchase ready-made sides to make your preparation and entertaining easy. This will also allow you to spend more time with family instead of being chained to a hot grill.

    Enlisting Help
    Encourage the entire family to catch the grilling bug. Helping hands to make the lemonade or sun tea, set the table, or flip burgers makes this a fun event for everyone.

    Added Touch
    Cut flowers from your garden and put them in a vase, placed on the dining table to carry on the feel of a summer grilled meal.

    Easy Clean-Up
    Use paper plates, plastic utensils and cups to save on clean up after the meal, as the focus should be on quality time socializing versus alone time cleaning up. Your family/guests will appreciate spending quality time with you.

Tips for Success

• Small tips make for grilling success.

  • Well-Seasoned
    Keep a container (or better yet, a shaker) of your favorite spice blend or seasoning next to your BBQ grill for quick & easy seasoning of your food while grilling.

    Keeping Kabobs Burn-Free
    For burn-free kabobs, soak the wooden skewers in water overnight (or at least for 30 minutes) before skewering food. This will help prevent the wooden skewers from burning during the grilling process. For truly burn-free kabobs, use metal skewers.

    Savory Skewers
    Long, thick stems of rosemary work wonderfully as a natural skewer for shrimp, chicken, or vegetables. Aside from being quite attractive and functional, they will impart a delicious flavor in your grilled food. Simply remove all but the top sprigs of the rosemary from the stem and skewer your favorite food, leaving the stem end as a visible end garnish. Remove the stem at serving time.

    Grilled with a Twist
    Slice a lemon in half, crosswise, and grill (flesh side down) for approximately 1-2 minutes. The flesh will soften and char slightly. Serve 1 grilled lemon half alongside a grilled fish filet. People will fall in love with the exciting flavor that squirts of grilled lemon will bring to any dish.

    Fresh Flavor
    Add fresh (or dried) chopped herbs to vegetables or meats while grilling to build bold, fresh flavors.

Food Safety

• While enjoying the fun of cooking out, keep in mind a few safety tips.
  
  
  • Keep meat cold until just prior to cooking on the grill.
    
    
  • Write these food safety temperature guidelines on a 3x5 card and keep it by the grill for easy reference while grilling.
    
    
    • Beef or pork, ground = 160°F
    • Beef or pork, steaks/chops = 160°F or 170°F for well done
    • Sausages/hot dogs, whole = 160°F, no pink
    • Chicken or turkey, pieces (breasts, etc.) = 180°F
    • Fish = about 145°F, Look for the flesh to be flaky and opaque, to denote that the fish is cooked. A trick for salmon is to look for traces of white coming out of the fish, as this denotes that the albumen/fat is cooking and coming to the surface. Check the fish at this point in cooking as it is probably very close to pull off the grill and you don’t want your fish to be dry.
    • Seafood (shrimp) = no pink inside.

Happy on the Outside

• For outdoor dining/cooking: Use plate/platter screen covers to keep pesky flies and bugs away from your food. There are even many decorative options to choose from to match your desired decor. Citronella candles will also help to keep unwanted visitors away.

Marinating

• Marinating is a great way to impart flavor into your grilled foods, and marinades serve a dual purpose in that they can be used to flavor foods and tenderize them.

Wait Time

• Allow grilled meats to rest approximately 5 minutes after cooking prior to slicing to help create tender and juicy meals that will wow your family/guests. The resting time allows the juices to redistribute and flow back to the center of the meat, as the juices naturally flow to the outside of the meat while cooking. This is why – if you’ve ever sliced a freshly-grilled steak right off the grill – the juices run all onto your plate.
  
  

• So fire up the grill, invite the friends and family over, and start cooking. It’s time for a cook out. Enjoy!